Sadly, the National Counselling and Referral Service is closing on Sunday 31st December 2023.
The National Counselling and Referral Service (NCRS) operated by Blue Knot Foundation is closing. The last day of the service will be Sunday 31st December and we are so sorry this is happening. It is not what we want, and we understand how difficult this may be for many of our callers. At the end of this article, we provide some other options we hope will provide you with the support you need after 31st December 2023.
Why is the service closing?
The NCRS was set up to support people engaging with or impacted by the Disability Royal Commission. It is closing because the Disability Royal Commission has ended and funding is also ending.
To everyone who contributed to the Royal Commission, a very big thank you goes to you for your role in improving the lives of all people with disability. There have already been some early changes as a result of your courage, persistence and determination.
What about the Royal Commission?
The Disability Royal Commission ran for 4 ½ years, with hearings conducted across all States and Territories. It heard from close to 10,000 people – received close to 8,000 submissions, held 1,785 private sessions and published 14 Issues papers. The Commission listened and heard and as a result made 222 recommendations and those recommendations are sitting with government.
The Commission’s final report sets out a vision for a more inclusive Australia for the one in six Australians living with disability, in which people with disability live free from violence, abuse, neglect and exploitation; where human rights are protected; and individuals live with dignity, equality and respect; and can fulfil their potential.
It was the culmination of disability advocates, people with disability, their families and carers fighting to have their experiences listened to and their rights upheld.
The final report issued 222 recommendations in 12 volumes, and a staged and thoughtful response will be required.
To immediately begin work on responding to appropriately triaging the report’s recommendations, the Government has established a Commonwealth Disability Royal Commission Taskforce to work across departments and agencies to coordinate the Australian Government’s response to the recommendations, engaging closely with the disability community.
National Counselling and Referral Service
It has been a privilege for Blue Knot to operate the NCRS. Not only have we been grateful for the way in which people from the disability community have engaged with us, but we have been incredibly moved by the ways in which our callers have responded to our support.
Not only have we had the privilege of supporting people with disability with trauma experiences, but we have also provided counselling sessions to inmates in Correctional Centres around the country. A big thank you to everyone who has opened their hearts to provide some of the most meaningful feedback we have ever received. Rest assured that we will continue to reflect on the difference we have been able to make in this short time.
We understand that this service ending will affect many of you, our callers, especially those of you who have found the emotional support provided by our counselling team invaluable. We are just so sad that we won’t be able to continue to provide this support through the NCRS service beyond December 31st.
How many callers has the NCRS supported and in what way?
As at 31st October 2023, the NCRS had supported over 8,000 individual clients. Because many callers to the service chose to remain anonymous, we supported far more people than this but are unable to provide the exact number of clients we did support.
While the vast majority of people engaging with the service are people with disability with experiences of violence, abuse, neglect and exploitation, some are carers, support workers, advocates, health practitioners and agencies.
Up to 31st October we provided 43,568 Occasions of Service which included 17,728 counselling calls and 4,840 referrals. Since February 2012, a large part of our work has been supporting inmates in Correctional Centres nationally. During this time, we have provided 2,883 booked counselling sessions of up to 45-50 minutes to 856 inmates, from 4,893 booked sessions.
It is challenging to deliver services into Correctional Centres and many are cancelled for one reason or another. However, the booked sessions have been some of the most significant work our counsellors feel they have undertaken. This is matched by the feedback we have received from inmates and the testimonials we are collecting.
There is little doubt that there is an enormous need for a trauma-informed counselling service in Correctional Centres, evidenced by the rapid growth in the number of interactions from 200-300 a month growing to 800-1000 per month. As the service draws to an end, we continue to collect invaluable data from our Correctional Centre work which will inform an Evaluation of the service in partnership with the University of Queensland. We anticipate the release of the Evaluation Report in the first half of 2024.
Where can you find support after 31st December?
We know that our callers will find it hard that the NCRS will not be able to provide support after Sunday 31st December, but there are other options.
If you do want to speak to a trauma counsellor, you can call the Blue Knot Helpline on 1300 657 380 AEST/AEDT. This service is for people with experiences of childhood trauma and operates 9am-5pm x 7 days/week.
If you are in crisis or need urgent support, you can call Lifeline on 13 11 14.
If you live with disability, you can find more services and information at the Disability Gateway via www.disabilitygateway.gov.au or call
1800 643 787 between 8 am and 8 pm AEST/AEDT Monday to Friday.
