Whole of Strategy Evaluation of the pss final report

82.1Suggested priorities into the medium term

To assist with implementing the changes suggested, we have prepared a summary of proposed priority actions for the PSS over the next three years.

Table : Summary of the new PSS and possible priorities

Arm	Agency Lead	Suggested Future Priorities
Supporting communities to control and prevent sniffing	FaHCSIA	Continue to fund comprehensive youth services in areas affected by sniffing that are: targeted to areas of greatest need have community support and involvement in their design and implementation based on better practice have a clear focus on addressing substance abuse funded for a minimum of three years, and target young people aged between 15 and 25yrs. Support the continued expansion of police numbers in areas affected by sniffing Disseminate advice to police on the management of VSU in remote Indigenous communities that recognise their key role in controlling VSU Continue to support the Substance Abuse Intelligence Desks Support coordination and planning of services at the community/regional level to prevent and control VSU Identify and disseminate models of best practice in legal measures to prevent and control sniffing at the community, state/territories and national level. This should include: distributing the desktop analysis of legislation conducted in 2009 and the subsequent consultation and policy project, and identifying and addressing any legal obstacles to enforcement of cross-border treatment orders Revise the guidelines for the Targeted Funding Scheme to reflect the new structure of the PSS, link allocations to prevalence of sniffing and streamline decision-making within FaHCSIA Develop an accountability framework for the TFS so that grant recipients have to report on their project, and those reports can be evaluated at a later stage Leverage the evidence and expertise developed by the PSS to advocate for the development of a National Indigenous Youth Strategy Continue to support RCs in the creation and strengthening of VSU Working Groups Support development and implementation of local VSU management plans
Supporting individuals to stop sniffing	FaHCSIA	Develop guidelines for community agencies’ staff on how to deal with sniffing in different settings, for example: by children in schools or statutory care, and by children in statutory care arrangements. Review current respite, support, treatment or rehabilitation options available for VSU in remote areas and regional towns and identify gaps, lessons and better practice models in dealing with people affected by VSU whether experimental, regular or chronic users Further develop plans to create a new residential treatment facility for chronic sniffers from remote areas in the Central Desert region Engage DEEWR: to ensure funded youth programs include consideration of VSU issues, and to link with Job Services Australia services to provide additional opportunities for engagement with the workforce for all job seekers. Develop and facilitate a best practice approach to VSU education materials and processes among state/territories Draw on research and programs promoting resilience among young people in ‘mainstream’ society to develop programs targeting Indigenous young people at risk of VSU and other substance misuse
Providing low aromatic fuel to remote communities in or near regions experiencing sniffing	DoHA	Improve the testing of the impact of LAF on small engines and address and disseminate test results Continue to strengthen communication activities to address concerns about the effect of LAF on small engines Continue to strengthen the regional approach to the provision of LAF to build stakeholder support Ensure communities considered for LAF are fully informed on the likely timeframe for provision Continue to monitor trends in sniffing in communities after provision of LAF in order to assess the impact of LAF on sniffing patterns Expedite establishment of storage facilities in Northern Australia Conduct a review of the LAF to date to identify lessons learned and new directions in the light of the support for mandatory provision of LAF Focus on further developing consultation and implementation strategies for settings where communities are linked to towns, and the provision of LAF therefore entails multiple stakeholders Update and publish criteria for the provision of LAF
Building and disseminating the evidence base	FaHCSIA	Review the current data collection and reporting arrangements by the Australian Government and state/territories to identify whether they can be improved to enable the timely production of reliable information on trends in sniffing Evaluate programs that have previously not been evaluated Distribute the compendium of research to stakeholders Publicise the availability of evaluation reports to stakeholders Codify lessons from youth services evaluations and distribute these Conduct research to inform best practice approaches in areas such as addressing VSU by youth services, treatment modalities, professional and community education Re-assess the Govdex data system to see how the quality of the data can be improved. This may particularly require training of those reporting incidents via GovDex and entering data. Report regularly (at least annually) on trends in sniffing. This should consider service, clinical, administrative and evaluation data and have regard to community privacy. Maintain a list of communities that are receiving services through the PSS, and what services each one receives
Leadership and coordination	FaHCSIA	Enhance the capacity of the PSSU to plan, lead and develop the PSS through, for example, collecting and analysing data on sniffing trends, liaising with state/territories and develop a strategic plan for the PSS Reform the Cross-Jurisdictional Forum to strengthen its leadership and coordination capacity Review the roles of the SES and EL2 Committees in the light of the new structure Codify and document the role of RCs Strengthen the induction and training of RCs Develop a five-year plan for the PSS in consultation with state/territories Re-orient the concept of the Zones so that complementary activities fall in behind the provision of LAF, except in cases where supply or isolated stakeholder issues are preventing supply Develop funding criteria for the TFS that are aligned to need Manage the incorporation of the AGD youth funding into the TFS