Carer Friendly Business Awards

This year marked the 20th anniversary of our Carer Friendly Business Awards (CFBA).

For 20 years, as part of National Carers Week, we've invited carers to acknowledge individuals, employers, and businesses who go the extra mile to improve their lives.

Individuals who inspire others and make a difference in their lives.

Businesses significantly impact their community through exceptional service or carer-friendly employment practices.

As we announced the CFBA winners, we celebrated the progress made in the past two decades and years of dedication, innovation, and partnership.

Carer Friendly Business Awards

This year marked the 20th anniversary of our Carer Friendly Business Awards (CFBA).

For 20 years, as part of National Carers Week, we've invited carers to acknowledge individuals, employers, and businesses who go the extra mile to improve their lives.

Individuals who inspire others and make a difference in their lives.

Businesses significantly impact their community through exceptional service or carer-friendly employment practices.

As we announced the CFBA winners, we celebrated the progress made in the past two decades and years of dedication, innovation, and partnership.

Award Winners

Three of them were officially announced as state winners of our Carer Friendly Business Awards.

In this special moment, family, community, business, and government all come together to celebrate and recognise carers and show their appreciation and support for the work they do every day.

The winners were:

Great Business: The Experience Collectors, Brisbane.

The Experience Collectors: The Great Business Winners. Check out this photo of award-winning Brisbane Mums, Kylie Reeves and Sarah Nelson, proudly holding their Carer Friendly Business Award for 2023.

The Experience Collectors was created by Brisbane Mums, Kylie Reeves and Sarah Nelson when they recognised a gap in services for their six autistic children. 

TEC provides support and therapy for Neurodiverse and autistic children. They also offer parent education sessions and as many free family events as they can possibly afford. 

The Experience Collectors was nominated by Stacey Kirby. 

In her nomination, Stacey said:  

“They run free events for parents so that we can build our own network of support and have some downtime. They are always available to help in times of extra need and they also run fun and informative parent education evenings. “ 

“I feel supported. I can have fun with like-minded people who know why you’re late without you having to explain. Who know why you have a tear in your eye when talking about your children, who just get it. It encourages me to make some time for me to get out and attend these events which has helped me more than I can explain.” 

Great Employee: Charity Degaris from Learn for Life Occupational Therapy & Associates, Maroochydore.

Charity Degaris from Learn for Life Occupational Therapy & Associates, Maroochydore, received an award for her outstanding performance. Check out the photo of Charity with Chantelle Black, who nominated her for the Great Employee award.

This year’s winner of the Great Employee Award was nominated by Chantelle Black. 

Chantelle cares for her 12-year-old son with a disability, Dexter. Since Dexter was six, he has been attending occupational therapy sessions. This has proved to be really beneficial not only for her son, but for her too. 

In her nomination, Chantelle said:  

“Not only does she go above and beyond for him in every session, Charity has supported me throughout this journey. Charity is the reason my son has progressed, and we are able to access the community. She always takes extra time and care towards her families and cares beyond what is expected of a practitioner.”

“Charity is a one in a million. I honestly believe the Sunshine Coast is so truly fortunate to have such a caring, compassionate, and skilled service provider to assist families going through all the stages of life living with a child that has a disability.”

“Without Charity I don't know that I would be coping at all. She has not only given me tools towards supporting Dexter, but lets me know I matter, and what I do for my son is valid and seen. She has given me the confidence to back myself and helping me to look for opportunities to take time for myself.” 

Great Employer: Empower Autism, Brisbane.

Discover Empower Autism, a

Working carers need an employer who demonstrates an understanding of their situation and supports their caring commitments outside of work with alternative work arrangements and established policies or practices in place. Every National Carers Week employers, like Empower Autism, can help us create more carer-friendly workplaces for carers.  

The winner of the Great Employer Award was nominated by Jeny Brett, a carer for her husband. 

In her nomination, Jenny said: 

“As a carer, I have previously experienced challenges in thriving in the workplace due to my responsibilities. I have dozens of appointments each month and Tom not only ensures I can fulfil the responsibilities of my role around these, but also supports a healthy work life balance and reminds me to set realistic timelines.”

“I recently had to provide more hands-on support at home and Tom not only accommodated this time but also was never too busy to check in with me with a box of tissues.”

“This has allowed me to fully accept my identity as a carer and to acknowledge that I can support my loved ones while also thriving in a role I love. Tom's management has highlighted the value my caring experience adds to me as a professional and increased my connection with the people I support and the time to engage with their supports at a deeper level.” 

Carers Week is proudly supported by:

The Carer Friendly Business Awards are proudly sponsored by: