Senate Inquiry into the Support at Home

Dementia Australia representatives and Advocates have participated in the Senate Inquiry into the Support at Home program held in July and August 2026.

The Senate Inquiry is looking into the operation of the Support at Home program. The program was launched in November 2025 to deliver care and services to older Australians living at home.

In our submission to the Inquiry, which was informed by people living with dementia and their carers, we share how Support at Home is not consistently providing people living with dementia the support they need to live safely and with dignity at home.

We are calling for urgent reform to the program including improving assessment to better capture cognitive needs and plan for dementia progression, reducing wait times for services and support, removing co-contributions for essential supports for people living with dementia, restoring funding and incentives to support coordinated dementia care and strengthening workforce capability through dementia-specific training.

Urgent action is required to strengthen the design and implementation of Support at Home so that it reflects and responds to the degenerative nature of dementia and the needs of informal carers.

To read our Senate Inquiry submission in full please visit our website.