Disability Act 2006
Part B:
About moving from your house
Disability Act 2006
Accessibility
This document is also available on the internet at
www.dhs.vic.gov.au/disability
Published by the Victorian Government Department
of Human Services, Disability Services Division,
Melbourne, Victoria, Australia. September 2007
© Copyright State of Victoria, Department of Human
Services, 2007.
This publication is copyright. No part may be
reproduced by any process except in accordance
with the provisions of the Copyright Act 1968.
Authorised by the State Government of Victoria,
50 Lonsdale Street, Melbourne.
(0070807) September 2007
About moving from your house
Who is this information for?
• Any person who lives in a residential service.
• A person who lives in a residential service is called
a resident.
• This information is for a resident who wants to
know what to do when moving or leaving their
residential service.
• Residents and the residential service have rights
and duties that they need to know about.
• Knowing what the rights and duties are for
residents and the residential service is very
important.
residential service
A service that provides homes and residential support
workers to help people with a disability in day-to-day
living activities.
residents
People who live in a residential service. Your home.
Disability Act 2006
What is in this book
About this information
Page 5
What does the new law say about getting residential services?
Page 6
What happens when your residential service says you must
move to another house for a little while?
Page 7
What happens if you do not want to move?
Page 8
Who else needs to know that you must move for a little while?
Page 9
What you can do when you are still not happy about moving
for a little while?
Page 10
What happens when your residential service says you cannot
come back to your house?
Page 11
Who else needs to know that you must leave your house for good? Page 12
What happens when your residential service changes their mind
and they want you to stay?
Page 13
What happens when you do not want to leave your house?
Page 14
What you need to do when you want to leave your house and
not come back?
Page 15
Who else needs to know that you want to leave your house?
Page 16
What happens when you change your mind and you want to
stay in your house?
Page 17
What these words and pictures mean
Page 18
Where to go for more information
Page 22
Acknowledgements
Page 23
About moving from your house
About this information
• This symbol tells you that written information is
written in an ‘easy to read’ way.
• Photos and line drawings are used to highlight key
points.
To help you understand this written information
your residential service can use:
• clear and simple language
• natural gesture and key word signing
• line drawings, photos or real objects.
If you need more help to understand what this
information means for you, you can ask your support
person for help.
support person
Someone who helps you say what you think. This person
may be a friend, family member, advocate or a person
who works with you. You can choose who you want to
speak on your behalf.
Disability Act 2006
What does the new law say about
getting residential services?
The new law says that you have the right to:
• get information about what your rights and duties
are, when living in a residential service
• be supported in a good way that makes you and
other people you live with happy
• get information about the rights and duties of the
residential service
• get information that is easy to read and easy to
understand
• ask your support person for help to understand the
information you get.
new law
From the 1st of July 2007 the Disability Act 2006 is the
new law for people with a disability.
About moving from your house
What happens when your
residential service says you must
move to another house for a little
while?
Your residential service:
• may ask you to relocate to another house because
there is a problem
For example you do not like someone you live with
and you keep fighting all the time.
• will tell your support person that you must move to
another house
Your support person may be your family, friend,
advocate, guardian or administrator.
• will ask you if you are happy to move to another
house for a little while, so they can try to fix the
problem
• will talk to you and your support person about what
day you will move, if you are happy to move.
relocation
Moving to live in another house. This is called relocating.
If you move for a little while this is called a temporary
relocation. The word temporary means for a little while.
Disability Act 2006
What happens if you do not want
to move?
If you are not happy about moving, you will get a letter
from your residential service. This letter,
• is called a notice of temporary relocation
• will tell you about the house you are going to
• will tell you how long the move is for
• will also say that the residential service will try and
fix the problem so that you can come back.
Important information
You may need to stay at your new
house for up to 3 months.
1+
2+
3.
This letter is called a notice of temporary relocation.
Your residential service will give you this letter when they
want you to live in another house for a little while.
About moving from your house
Who else needs to know that you
must move for a little while?
Your residential service must tell the:
• Secretary, Department of Human Services
• Office of the Public Advocate
1
The residential service must do this in 1 day.
Secretary
A person who is in charge of the Department of Human
Services. This person is Fran Thorn.
10 Disability Act 2006
What you can do when you are still
not happy about moving for a little
while?
If you get a letter called a notice of temporary
relocation and you are still not happy
• you can make a complaint to the Disability
Services Commissioner.
complaint
Not fair
You are treated in a way that makes you not happy and
you let someone know the reason.
A complaint may be about a service, a person or
something else.
Disability Services Commissioner
A person who looks into and talks to a residential service
about complaints. This person’s name is Laurie Harkin.
This person does not take sides.
About moving from your house
11
What happens if your residential
service says you cannot come back
to your house?
Your residential service will give you a letter.
• This letter is called a notice to vacate
This means that your residential service cannot fix
the problem and you are not allowed to move back to
your house.
Important information
Your residential service will talk to you
and your support person to work out what
happens next.
For example you may get help to move to
another house.
Your support person may be your family,
friend, advocate, guardian or administrator.
notice to vacate
A letter that says you must leave your house.
12 Disability Act 2006
Who else needs to know that you
must leave your house for good?
If you get a letter called a notice to vacate, your
residential service must tell the:
• Secretary, Department of Human Services
• Office of the Public Advocate
1
The residential service must do this in 1 day
Office of the Public Advocate
Protects the rights of people with a disability. The Office
of the Public Advocate can help you in many ways.
About moving from your house
13
What happens when your
residential service changes their
mind and they want you to stay?
Your residential service may change their mind about
you leaving. If they want you to stay they will give
you a:
• letter that is called a withdrawal of notice
to vacate.
This means that your residential service has fixed the
problem and you are allowed to stay at your house.
X
withdrawal of notice to vacate
A letter that says your residential service wants you to
stay and not leave your house.
14 Disability Act 2006
What happens when you do not
want to leave your house?
• If you get a letter called a notice to vacate and you
are not happy
• you can ask the Victorian Civil and
Administrative Tribunal for help.
Victorian Civil and Administrative Tribunal
This is like a small court that makes decisions
About moving from your house
15
What you need to do when you
want to leave your house and not
come back?
If you choose to leave your house for good, you must:
• give your residential service a letter called a notice
of intention to vacate.
This means you want to leave your house for good and
never come back.
If you need help to write this letter you can ask your
administrator, guardian or support person for help.
• tell your residential service what day you want to
leave your house.
notice of intention to vacate
This letter says you want to leave your house and never
come back. This letter is called a notice of intention to
vacate.
16 Disability Act 2006
Who else needs to know that you
want to leave your house?
Your residential service must tell the,
• Secretary, Department of Human Services
1
The residential service must do this in 1 day
About moving from your house
17
What happens when you change
your mind and you want to stay in
your house?
Important information
You can change your mind
about leaving.
If you change your mind you will need
to write another letter that says you
want to stay.
This letter is called a withdrawal of notice
of intention to vacate.
X
withdrawal of notice of intention to vacate
This letter says that you have changed your mind and
you want to stay in your house.
18 Disability Act 2006
What these words and
pictures mean?
new law
From the 1st of July 2007 the Disability Act 2006 is
the new law for people with a disability.
residents
People who live in a residential service. Your home.
residential service
A service that provides homes and residential support
workers to help people with a disability in day-to-day
living activities.
duties
What you and the residential service must do.
There is no choice.
About moving from your house
19
What these words and
pictures mean?
rights
Everyone should be treated in the same way.
You should be in charge of making decisions
about your life.
Office of the Public Advocate
Protects the rights of people with a disability.
The Office the Public Advocate can help you in
many ways.
Victorian Civil and Administrative Tribunal
This is like a small court that makes decisions.
complaint
Not fair
You are treated in a way that makes you not happy
and you let someone know the reason. A complaint
may be about a service, a person or something else.
important information
This means that this information is very important.
20 Disability Act 2006
What these words and
pictures mean?
Disability Services Commissioner
A person who looks into and talks to a residential
service about complaints. This person’s name is
Laurie Harkin. This person does not take sides
support person
Someone who helps you say what you think. This
person may be a friend, family member, advocate or a
person who works with you. You can choose who you
want to speak on your behalf.
relocation
Moving to live in another house. This is called
relocating. If you move for a little while this is called a
temporary relocation. The word temporary means for
a little while.
Secretary
A person who is in charge of the Department of
Human Services. This person is Fran Thorn
About moving from your house
21
What these words and
pictures mean?
notice to vacate
A letter that says you must leave your house.
X
withdrawal of notice to vacate
A letter that says your residential service wants you to
stay and not leave your house.
notice of intention to vacate
This letter says you want to leave your house and
never come back. This letter is called a notice of
intention to vacate.
X
withdrawal of notice of intention to vacate
This letter says you have changed your mind and you
want to stay in your house.
22 Disability Act 2006
Where to go for more information
www.dhs.vic.gov.au/disability
[email protected]
1300 366 731
9 am – 5 pm Monday to Friday
TTY: (03) 9096 0133
For people who are deaf or have hearing, speech or
communication difficulties.
Acknowledgments
Picture Communication Symbols©1981–2007 by
Mayer-Johnson LLC. All rights reserved worldwide.
Used with permission.
Mayer-Johnson LLC
P.O. Box 1579
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Phone: 858-550-0084
www.mayer-johnson.com
Widgit symbols ©Widgit Software 2004–2007. All
rights reserved www.widgit.com. Further information
from www.spectronicsinoz.com
©Valuing People ClipArt
0870 740 4887
www.inspiredservices.org.uk Photos courtesy of the Victorian Department of
Human Services, Image Bank.