Annual Report
2023 – 2024
This online version of our Annual Report is intended as an executive summary to improve accessibility and transparency. You can view and download the full report at the base of this page.
Since 1986, Seniors Rights Service has existed to be the voice of older people in NSW, wherever they live. We proactively support older people to know their rights and to be empowered to assert these rights. We do this by providing free specialist legal services, aged care advocacy and information to people over 65 and to First Nations people over 50 years of age. We are a not-for-profit community organisation.
Our Vision
A society that respects and upholds the rights of older people.
Our Purpose
The purpose of Seniors Rights Service is to raise awareness and empower older people to activate, uphold, extend and defend their individual rights. We foster communities of respect, and we value seniors and their rights. We achieve our purpose by providing accessible and confidential legal services, aged care advocacy and information.
Our Service Principles
In all of our endeavours, we will:
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empower older people as rights holders and active contributors to society
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provide high quality, appropriate and timely services
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provide equitable access to services for seniors, regardless of race, nationality or ethnic origin, gender, marital status, disability, religion, political beliefs, sexual preference, or any other characteristic
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support the capacity development of our staff to ensure they can deliver high quality services
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collaborate with other organisations in pursuit of common goals
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work with broader civil society to foster respect for older members of society and their individual rights
Our Priority Populations
Seniors Rights Service prioritises engagement with older people who:
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are disadvantaged and vulnerable
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are Aboriginal or Torres Strait Islander Peoples
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reside in regional, rural and remote locations
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are from culturally and linguistically diverse backgrounds
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identify as lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, intersex, queer or other.
Always was, Always will be, Aboriginal land
Seniors Rights Service recognises and acknowledges Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Peoples as Australia’s First Nations Peoples and their ongoing connection to land, waters and culture. We pay our respects to Elders – past, present and emerging.
Seniors Rights Service is a proud member of:
At a glance
Our services
Legal advice
2,228
Advocacy cases
5,035
Information enquiries
6,266
Aged care Navigator
318
RACH sessions
887
Community events
274
Financial advocacy
242
Home Care Check In
192
Social media and website
Facebook followers
3,300
Linkedin followers
1,333
Instagram followers
1,179
Website visitors
47,000
Net Promoter Score
77
Net Promoter Score is an industry standard for tracking how likely a client will recommend a service to another person and overall client satisfaction based on customer feedback.
Our board
Seniors Rights Service thanks all our Board members for their guidance and thoughtful contributions over the year.
Ours is a voluntary Board and we acknowledge the time they generously give to the organisation.
Hakan Harman, Chairperson
Hakan is the Chief Operating Officer of the Art Gallery of New South Wales, he holds a Master of Public Administration and Bachelor of Commerce, is a Fellow of CPA Australia and a member of the Australian Institute of Company Directors. Hakan has over 30 years experience as a senior executive across public, commercial and not for profit sectors. He has a strong community focus, commitment to social and cultural justice and a deep passion for sustainability, inclusive leadership and social cohesion.
Hakan was appointed as the Chairperson in June 2023.
Barbara Anderson
Barbara’s professional background is in health information management and she has extensive experience in ageing and the care of older people. At NSW Health, her roles included principal policy adviser in the Aged Care Unit, Health and Social Policy Branch. Barbara also ran her own business as a quality improvement, accreditation.
Andrew Byrnes
Andrew is Emeritus Professor of International Law and Human Rights at the University of New South Wales, Sydney, Australia, an associate of the Ageing Futures Institute and the Australian Human Rights Institute at UNSW, and a Fellow of the Academy of Social Sciences in Australia and of the Australian Academy of Law. His publications address women’s human rights, human rights of older persons, gender and human rights, national human rights institutions, economic and social rights, peoples’ tribunals, and the incorporation of human rights in domestic law. He has served as President of the Australian and New Zealand Society of International Law and Vice-President of the Asian Society of International Law, as well as external legal adviser to the Australian Parliament’s Joint Committee on Human Rights and as a member of the Human Rights Committees of the NSW Bar Association and the Law Council of Australia. He has acted as pro bono adviser to the Asia Pacific Forum of NHRIs in the context of the United Nations General Assembly Open-ended Working Group on Ageing. He has also acted as a consultant to the UN on human rights on various human rights issues, including most recently on the human rights of older persons and the international human rights framework.
Matthew Cleary
Matthew has extensive management and not for profit governance experience across a range of sectors including Health, Social and Disability. Within the Age Care space, he has worked as a Senior Project Manager for the Older Persons Advocacy Network. Matthew has also worked extensively overseas in humanitarian management roles supporting people and communities in need. Additionally, he has worked for St Vincent de Paul as Executive Officer based at the Matthew Talbot Hostel and as a consultant at PwC on Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Primary Health Care.
Nitika Bhala
Nitika’s educational qualifications includes a Master of Business Administration, a Master of Economics, and a Bachelor of Commerce. Additionally, she is an associate member of CPA Australia
With over a decade of diverse experience in both the nonprofit and private sectors, Nitika currently serves as the Senior Finance Manager at YWCA Australia, where she leads financial operations across multiple entities. She plays a pivotal role in overseeing financial planning, budgeting, capital projects and audit processes, working closely with C-suite executives to drive organisational growth and sustainability.
Barbara O’Neill
Barbara is a proud Weil Wan/Dunghutti woman born on the Gadigal Country of the Eora Nation.
She is an Indigenous Trauma and Recovery Practitioner and specialises in the support of care leavers from institutions and people in the prison system. Barbara sits on the Walama List of the District Court of NSW assisting His Honour Judge Warwick Hunt in her role of Respected Other Person.
Barbara also consults with the Burdekin Association in regard to Indigenous Young People in Out of Home Care.
‘Untold Stories’, her DVD and presentation at the 5th National Elder Abuse Conference, provided a unique perspective on the impacts of ageing on Aboriginal people.
It draws on research undertaken through her recently completed Post-Graduate Certificate in Indigenous Trauma Recovery and Practice at Wollongong University. Barbara has completed a Bachelor of Indigenous Knowledges.
Elaine Leong
A career governance and legal professional to the for-purpose sector, Elaine holds a portfolio of professional, pro bono and volunteer roles. Elaine is the general counsel and company secretary of Australia’s oldest charity, The Benevolent Society, and partner in a boutique law firm with a focus on making the law accessible to individuals, families and charities.
Elaine served as Interim Chairperson from November 2022 to June 2023.
Jane Saphin
Jane has over 30 years’ experience in the HealthCare industry, including 12 years in global product management for 2 Australian medical device manufacturers.
Jane recently joined Access Sydney Community Transport as the Manager, Business Operations and Performance and is a volunteer coach for the Harding Miller Education Foundation, an Australian charity that supports high potential but socio-economically disadvantaged girls across Australia.
Chairperson and CEO Report
Over the 2023–2024 financial year, Seniors Rights Service focused resolutely on our core mission by providing information, advocacy and legal services to older people over the age of 65 across NSW and to First Nations people over the age of 50.
The services we provide remain in high demand for a number of demographic, economic and societal reasons. New South Wales is experiencing an ageing population, coupled with rising living costs and increasing levels of digital and physical isolation. These trends will continue into the foreseeable future, prompting us to devote significant resources towards preparing for the challenges ahead.
During this reporting period, we successfully developed and formalised our Strategic Plan for 2024-2028. This roadmap clearly defines our purpose and the services we deliver. Central to our success will be an unwavering focus on the communities we serve and the dedicated individuals we employ. We are proud to report significant progress in solidifying these foundational elements evidenced by our accolade as the Xref Employer of Choice 2024.
Our organisational success is intrinsically linked to empowering older Australians from all walks of life, enabling them to age with dignity and respect. It is our goal that their rights are prioritised by everyone involved in their care and support.
In the 2023-2024 financial year, our efforts culminated in 15,442 interactions aimed at providing older individuals with legal assistance and critical information regarding aged care services and financial matters. Each interaction represents a step towards ensuring that older Australians are heard and that we actively work towards achieving meaningful outcomes for them.
Our Aged Care Advocates conducted 887 information sessions in aged care homes, informing residents of their rights to safe and high-quality care as well as their right to live free from abuse and to have a person of their choice, including an aged care advocate, support or speak on their behalf.
Furthermore, we facilitated 274 sessions with community groups to raise awareness about the challenges faced by older people and to inform them of the support available through Seniors Rights Service.
As a Community Legal Centre, we have stood firmly alongside older people in need of legal advice and representation. Our solicitors assisted 1,424 clients, delivering 2,228 pieces of legal advice and actively engaging in 145 community legal education sessions covering various topics pertinent to older people.
Our Financial Advocacy team employs their expertise to navigate financial challenges faced by older clients by advocating on their behalf with aged care providers and government agencies. Over the year we assisted 242 clients, addressing issues such as overcharging and changes to care packages. This work is often life changing, alleviating financial stress and mitigating related mental and physical health risks.
The Home Care Check In project extends vital support to older people who may lack family or community networks around them, who are experiencing grief, who cope with cognitive impairments or who have difficulty communicating. This proactive initiative has engaged 39 clients through 486 phone contacts and 192 face-to-face visits within the financial year.
Seniors Rights Service is committed to making systemic contributions to policy discussions and research that improve our understanding of older people’s needs and enhances their rights. Throughout this period, our leadership team has played an active role in consultations regarding the new federal Aged Care Act, elder abuse, coercive control, the health impacts of isolation and disability access standards tailored for older individuals.
We would like to take this opportunity to thank our funding bodies:
- The Older Persons Advocacy Network through the Australian Government Department of Health and Aged Care
- Legal Aid NSW
- NSW Department of Communities and Justice through the Ageing Peaks program
- NSW Fair Trading
To the Seniors Rights Service team, we express our heartfelt appreciation for your unwavering commitment to safeguarding and advocating for the rights of older people across NSW. Your care, expertise, passion and respect for older residents across New South Wales enable us to excel in our mission. To our Board members, thank you for your continued support, guidance and strategic insights that strengthen our organisation.
We take immense pride in the outstanding work our staff undertake daily to enhance the lives of older Australians and uphold their rights. As we look to the future, we remain dedicated to supporting your essential and outstanding efforts.
Hakan Harman
Chairperson
Shannon Wright
Chief Executive Officer
Statements From Our Board
Some social moments and pressing issues demand an even greater level of engagement than what can be achieved using the influence of our actions and experience. At such times the Seniors Rights Service Board will issue a Board statement to express the Board’s position on an issue.
Making such statements is an important demonstration of our willingness to lead conversations around complex topics. It is also meaningful to the older people and communities we support, assuring these communities that we see and understand what is important to them.
Making Plans To Deliver Future Results
While Seniors Rights Service has achieved much over our history, the real challenges are still ahead of us. This year the Board created the Seniors Rights Service Strategic Plan 2024- 2028 to ensure we are successful in delivering future services to older people.
To develop this plan, Seniors Rights Service consulted broadly with our clients and their representatives, with our staff and a wide range of stakeholders on what is important and also on priorities and approaches to implementation. Thank you to all those who contributed to our Strategic Plan 2024-2028. We thank you for the trust you have placed in us and we look forward to demonstrating the achievements this plan makes possible.
Under this plan there are two fundamental pillars as our foundation are the people we serve and the people we employ.
For the benefit of the people we serve, this plan commits us to using the full spectrum of our expertise on behalf of older people in all their diversity across NSW. This requires us to be skilled solicitors, equitable champions and first-class advocates who empower older people to continue to contribute to society and to be treated with dignity and respect.
For the people we employ, we are committing to continuing to improve the way we do things, remaining an employer of choice for staff and growing our services to meet emerging needs. We will attract and retain the staff we need to deliver on our promise to older people across NSW.
By following the Seniors Rights Service Strategic Plan 2024-2028, we will ensure we remain a client-centred service that is effective, integrated and focused on the voice of older people and their representatives.
Aged Care Advocacy
Seniors Rights Service provides free, confidential and independent information as well as individual advocacy support to older people and their representatives. Our services empower older people to self advocate, and our outreach assists them to understand their aged care rights, to ensure they are recognised and upheld.
Our Aged Care Advocates do this by tailoring information to best meet the needs of older people. This can take the form of discussions with clients or information sessions and attending residents’ meetings. Where needed we ensure that we have an accredited translator available to assist us. We can provide information on the older person’s specific care arrangements and the services they are receiving or we can assist by being the voice of an older person by speaking up on their behalf and following up to ensure their concerns have been addressed.
At our core, we provide independent advice on the complexities of the aged care system. Having this information, as well as active assistance when needed in speaking up on their own behalf, is an essential right for older people.
The difference our advocacy makes is very significant to older people, Having someone who is on your side can be life changing. When older people reach out to us, they are often feeling overwhelmed by poor communication or a lack of response to issues they have raised. The actions of our Advocates help cut through to aged care service providers so that older people’s concerns can be addressed. This results in a renewed connection between our clients and their service providers and ensures an older person’s wishes and choices are respected and upheld.
Whenever our Advocates provide tailored information, older people are empowered to defend their rights, and whenever our Advocates speak up on behalf of an older person, their human rights and aged care needs will be better protected.
Passion And Purpose in Alignment According To Our Team
Seniors Rights Service is proud to be awarded in the Xref Engage Awards 2024 for Best Workplace.
The Best Workplace Award recognises exceptional levels of employee engagement and satisfaction as well as demonstrating effective management practices.
This award validates the ongoing efforts across our team to continually improve, implement best practice and ultimately deliver exceptional services to our clients. This is only made possible by individuals working together with shared goals and dedication to protecting and advancing the rights of older people.
Congratulations to our entire team.
Legal Services
As a specialist Community Legal Centre, Seniors Rights Service delivers high quality legal information, referral, advice and casework assistance to older people across NSW in most areas of civil and family law and with traffic matters.
Our legal programs include:
- Supported accommodation legal service assisted clients that live in or are looking to move into a range of supported accommodation options including retirement villages, residential age care facilities, boarding houses or hostels. The main areas of assistance we provided this year were in relation to termination of agreements, budgets, repairs and disputes with management.
- Strata legal service assisted clients that are lot owners within a strata scheme and who need advice on a proposed collective sale agreement, by-laws, repairs to common property and other disputes with the Owner’s Corporation.
- Domestic, family and sexual violence service assisted victim-survivors with apprehended violence orders, victim compensation and immediate needs payments, early intervention family law advice and general advice on safety planning. Almost all (99%) of our clients were older women.
- Generalist legal service assisted clients with all other legal issues that are within scope for Seniors Rights Service including consumer complaints, guardianship, residential tenancy agreement (including land lease communities) and national redress scheme applications.
Pro bono assistance
We continue to work with and are very grateful for the support of Baker McKenzie, Dentons, Hall & Wilcox, Holding Redlich and Wotton + Kearney in our pro bono clinics.
Each firm kindly contributes the time and experience of their solicitors to advise our clients on a roster basis. Their assistance enables Seniors Rights Service to take on more complex and more impactful casework that would otherwise need to be referred to private solicitors, further placing barriers in front of our vulnerable clients.
Wotton + Kearney, in addition to their pro bono clinic assistance, have provided a secondee paralegal from their team to assist First Nations clients who come to Seniors Rights Service one day per week. The paralegal works with our solicitors to engage with clients and works with our intake team to provide information and referral services to clients that we cannot assist with advice.
Financials
Read the full report
