The topic of hoarding is a sensitive matter and can be difficult to address. Compulsive hoarding is an identified psychological disorder and disability, impacting the effectiveness of traditional compliance and enforcement approaches taken by councils to manage a situation. Regulatory interventions are not only complex to undertake on legal, ethical, financial and operational grounds, but can often only temporarily coverup the underlying issue.
Catholic Healthcare Limited was engaged by the Office of Local Government to run a series of online training sessions for councils on the identification and management of hoarding and squalor issues with the aim of enabling council officers to assist people with hoarding tendencies before this escalates to excessive hoarding and squalor behaviours.
To support councils Catholic Healthcare Limited have provided a copy of the Hoarding and Squalor Participant Workbook and developed several Service and Support Directories that provide information and advice about the available support services in each Aged Care Planning Region in NSW and can be downloaded from Catholic Healthcare Limited’s website at https://www.catholichealthcare.com.au/homecare/hoarding-and-squalor/.