The ACT, like the rest of Australia, is experiencing the compounding impact of more frequent and larger disasters, increasingly affecting more people in our community.

The ACT Government recognises readiness and recovery are important stages of any emergency event – large or small – and understanding our community’s needs to be ready for and recover from a disaster is critical.

This is why we are developing a co-designed ACT Social Recovery Framework to guide our social recovery planning, readiness and delivery in the ACT.

Social recovery is about assisting you and your community following an emergency by recognising people, households and communities are best placed to understand their own needs. Social recovery focuses on the human aspects of recovery such as safety and wellbeing, connection with community, and addressing the physical and psychological impacts of disaster in the short, medium and long terms.

Your feedback is helping our planning, support services and delivery approach.

Read the Listening Report outlining the project feedback for the latest update.

We want to make sure you and your community are ready for and supported before and after a disaster. Your feedback will help inform the development of the ACT’s first Social Recovery Framework, which will be released in early 2024.

We heard a range of views to ensure we understand what your needs are in order to be ready for and recover from a disaster.

Your views are helping determine the priorities for the ACT Social Recovery Framework. A Listening Report will be added shortly outlining the project feedback.

Being ready

Recent disasters, including the 2019/20 bushfires, drought, NSW floods and the COVID pandemic highlight the value of planning with the community to be ready for and recover from disasters. Working together to meet your needs in a timely and coordinated way is essential. In this context, we define a disaster as a large-scale major event that significantly impacts the community.”

Support

The ACT Government supports people, families and communities to deal with the impact of a disaster or major emergency. Because each disaster is unique and everyone’s experience is different, the ACT Government want to hear from you about how we work with you to ensure our planning, support services and delivery approach best support you.

Recovery

The ACT Government recognises that recovery is an important stage of any emergency event – whether large or small. Your feedback will help us to better understand your immediate and long-term recovery needs.

We understand this subject may make you feel sad or upset, especially if you have been personally affected by a disaster.

You may like to contact one of the services below for support:

• Lifeline: Provides 24-hour crisis counselling, support groups, and suicide prevention services.
  Call 13 11 14 anytime, text 0477 13 11 14 12pm–12am AEST 7 days a week, or talk online 7pm–12am AEST 7 days a week.
• Blue Knot Foundation Helpline: Provides help, information, support or referral for adult survivors of childhood trauma and abuse, their partners, family and friends, health professionals and anyone working with people who have experienced childhood trauma and abuse. Call 1300 657 380, 9am–5pm AEST 7 days a week or email helpline@blueknot.org.au.
• Kids Helpline: A free 24/7 confidential and private counselling service specifically for children and young people aged 5 to 25. Call 1800 55 1800 anytime, talk online anytime, or email counsellor@kidshelpline.com.au