Enabling Good Lives Waikato Stories The Enabling Good Lives approach has been in Waikato for several years now. The approach is about growing disabled people’s leadership and networks, growing family networks and leadership and supporting providers to embrace the Enabling Good Lives principles in their work. The approach is about the principles guiding everything that occurs in the sector.
The demonstration is about a small number of disabled people and families doing things in a different way – working with Tuhono to build connections, plan, get a personal budget, manage their funds and buy the supports and services that make sense for them.

Some stories are about the participants on the Waikato Demonstration, and some are about people embracing the Enabling Good Lives Approach.

Dynamic Duo Launch New Disability Support Scheme

Robert Martin speaking at the forum.

A Hamilton man is calling on personal experience to promote an initiative helping extraordinary people do ordinary things in life.

Mike Pulman last week helping launch a Waikato trial for Enabling Good Lives a joint initiative by the ministries of health, education and social development working with the disability sector to change the way people with disability and their families/whānau get support.

The disabled 23-year-old, studying journalism at WINTEC, has called on his own experience in moving from living at home to a flatting situation with other disabled people involving 24/7 care.

Pulman, who didn’t move out of home until the age of 22, said he quickly learnt a lot about the disability sector. Other aspects that are close to home with Pulman include getting into the workforce.

Enabling Good Lives will give people control and choice in their lives, he said.

“It’s a one-stop shop.”

Pulman was joined at a public meeting on the Waikato programme in Hamilton last week by Robert Martin, an international campaigner for the rights of the disabled. Martin has a learning disability, but this hasn’t stopped him playing a big part in changing the disability sector in New Zealand. From Whanganui, he was awarded the New Zealand Order of Merit for services to people with disability. He is New Zealand’s candidate in next year’s election for the United Nations Committee on the Rights of Persons with Disability. Self-educated after growing up in institutions and various state homes Martin addressed the United Nations in 2003.

Both he and Pulman delivered an inspirational opening to Enabling Good Lives. The two-year Waikato trial, which officially starts today, will involve about 200 people from, from south of the Bombay Hills to Taumaruni.

Mike Pulman speaking at the forum

“This demonstration is about people with disability and their families/whānau having the same choice and control over their lives as other New Zealanders,” said co-director Chris Potts.

“Enabling Good Lives participants will have more choice about where the live, who they live with, and what they do during the day, as well as more employment opportunities. They will be more likely to use community services in the same way as all New Zealanders,” she said

“Enabling Good Lives participants will also be able to purchase their own services and supports.”

More information: www.enablinggoodlives.co.nz

Article credit: Steve Edwards/Hamilton Press.

Photo credit: Ashton Ledger/Mediash

Future leader found within Enabling Good Lives Leadership Group

photo of Glen Terry

Enabling Good Lives Waikato Leadership Group member Glen Terry has been presented with a 30 under 30 award for outstanding achievement made by a young Hamiltonian.

The 30 under 30 project is a joint venture between the Hamilton City Council and the Youth Council Advisory Panel. It profiles 30 young Hamilton residents, under the age of 30, whose achievements in academic, athletic, artistic or community endeavour have been identified as significant and successful. “These people have a high level of success and inspire other young people” said Julie Hardaker, Mayor of Hamilton.

Glen, who has been identified as a “future leader” by the Youth Council Advisory Panel said the award “means that I can be an awesome leader and encourage others to be leaders as well”.

Glen is also a national advisor to the Health and Disability Commission and has been part of a project highlighting awareness about students who have learning disability to high schools and student teachers.

Ballsy Search Lands Craig a Full Time Job

Craig Armstrong said his job search got “pretty ballsy”, and now he is working full time at Z Energy.

Landing a forecourt role at the Mill Street Z station started five months before he donned the bright orange uniform. After eight years of unemployment Craig went along to a social bowling event with Z staff at the Blind Foundation. This was a key time to network with Z staff and Craig made it pretty clear at the time that he wanted to be playing on their side of the lane.

Afterwards Craig filled out a job application and even attended a group interview. This resulted in him hearing the same words that nearly all job seekers experience, “we’ll get back to you”. And that would have been that.

Craig continued looking for a job and going to the Empowered Employment forums which are put on by Enabling Good Lives Waikato and DPA. One particular forum was about networking skills, and Selwyn Cook, manager at Z was attending. Craig decided to go up and speak with him directly. “I told him I have been to a group interview already, and I am ready to start work”. That was on a Friday, “it was a pretty ballsy thing to do”, Craig said, but on Monday he was offered a job.

Craig said that it was the Empowered Employment forums that gave him, “the skills and confidence to go up to someone like that, otherwise I would have just sat there in the corner.”

Now Craig is doing shift work and loving it. He doesn’t get let off any tasks and they haven’t put any systems in place to make things easier for him, which is exactly the way Craig wants it. “I have to do everything that every other staff person does, and I mean everything. If I make a mistake, I get chewed out just like everyone else”.

The only thing that Z has done differently for Craig is give him a few more hours training than other people. But within three weeks Craig was given extra responsibilities to open and close the store on his own. “Z seems to be a company that is prepared to take risks” Craig said.

Craig says that the best thing about the Empowered Employment forums is the opportunity to discuss ideas amongst people with different types of disability, and share strengths to problem solve with each other. “People need to find ways around their barriers because a company is not going to do that for you”. Craig’s advice is that “companies and people with disability both need to think outside the box”.

Craig Armstrong standing in front of Z Station

Catalyst Sharon Jefferies Aims to Empower Job Seekers

Sharon Jefferies is an Employment Consultant at the Blind Foundation in Hamilton. Her role is to be a catalyst for people who are blind or have low vision to get into work or training.

Sharon’s work revolves around enhancing positive attributes and focusing on strengths. She says watching people realise their strengths, interests and abilities is one of the best parts of her job.

As well as keeping up to date on information about market trends, Sharon uses self-assessment tools for matching jobs to personality type to help people identify their ideal job. After career goals have been set Sharon assists people to write a professional looking Curriculum Vitae and cover letter, and coaches them through the ups and downs of job searching. She gives people information and then they make their own decisions about the best way forward into work. The best thing is that once people have good job search habits those skills will stay with them for life.

Peer support is a key strategy for Sharon, which is why she and two other service providers started up Job Chats. Job Chats is a free monthly forum at the Blind Foundation open to people who have any type of disability. At the forums people can share tools, resources and success stories. It is also about role modelling active job seeking techniques like networking; approaching businesses and organisations; volunteering and work experience; and applying for larger numbers of advertised jobs.

After many years in the corporate sector and at the University of Waikato Sharon was drawn to working at the Blind Foundation because she liked the values of the organisation. She has a Diploma of Management Studies, a professional coaching qualification, and has nearly completed a Diploma in Career Guidance.

Job Chats

Second Monday of each month from 4.30pm – 5.30pm

Blind Foundation

15 Liverpool Street

Hamilton

Sharon Jefferies

07 838 7516

027 201 6794

sjeffries@blindfoundation.org.nz

Sharon head shot

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