Registration of Interest - Support Funds Management

Details

The Ministry of Social Development’s (the Ministry) Support Funds (the Funds) provide grants and subsidies to meet additional cost incurred by disabled people and people with a health condition in open employment, self-employment and work-related training. The Ministry is seeking to appoint a provider for the administration and management of the Funds.

This is an opportunity to manage approximately $4.1million in funding on behalf of the Ministry to assist people who are willing to undertake part or full-time employment but face barriers to gaining and retaining employment because of a disability or a health condition.

There are two categories of Funds –

Job Support - makes individualised funding available to purchase employment support services and provide wage subsidies for people with disabilities or a health condition to work in open employment while receiving appropriate rates of pay for the job, or to assist people in self-employment. Employment supports include such things as:
• specialist equipment;
• access to a New Zealand Sign Language interpreter;
• job coaches.

Training Support – assists people to meet the additional disability costs when participating in work related training, work experience or education and includes such things as:
• Facilitate participation in training or education;
• increase the level of participation in training or education;
• complement existing vocational training programmes available.

It is expected that post-training or employment placement follow-up will occur for all participants in receipt of assistance at 3 and 12 months intervals.

The expected volumes of participants accessing the Funds are:

Job Support - funds approximately 2,500 first time, new or continuing applicants per year.
Training Support – funds approximately 500 first time, new or continuing applicants per year.