tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-72463558196559852902024-03-19T20:05:12.495+10:30Purple OrangeRobbihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00997030494556421786noreply@blogger.comBlogger53125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7246355819655985290.post-37592311803691097932013-03-27T14:30:00.002+10:302013-04-02T11:19:07.591+10:30Naming values, and the values of names
Being immersed in two projects funded by the NDIS Practical Design Fund, it has been harder than usual to keep up with the rapidly developing NDIS scene. However, last week's government announcement that the NDIS will be known as Disability Care Australia warrants a response, however late.
The announcement seems to have come as a surprise to many, including us, though we have been told the Robbihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00997030494556421786noreply@blogger.com6tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7246355819655985290.post-68176811233609830372012-12-03T17:05:00.002+10:302012-12-03T17:07:17.418+10:30An important day needs important commitments
It is December 3rd, again, which means it is International Day of People with Disability. As I've mentioned in previous years, having just one day to think about disability seems odd, especially if the rest of the time the topic is then far from most people's attention.
But this year has been different in Australia, with disability making a regular appearance in the news because of the Robbihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00997030494556421786noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7246355819655985290.post-85326037621416548382012-03-30T14:15:00.001+10:302012-03-30T14:23:04.031+10:30Everything you wanted to know about intimacy (well, maybe)
I am posting this to the blog in case some people missed this when it was released by our officde yesterday. I welcome your comments.
This week there has been media coverage in South
Australia and elsewhere relating to the possible decriminalisation of the sex
industry in South Australia. This has included the assertion that decriminalisation
will be particularly helpful to people Robbihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00997030494556421786noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7246355819655985290.post-35339660924281705702012-03-05T17:13:00.001+10:302012-03-30T14:21:49.225+10:30Will the earth move?
image by 'Leagun' www.sxc.hu
As the disability community watches and waits for the design
and implementation of a National Disability Insurance Scheme, opposition leader
Tony Abbott did no one any favours when he opined last month that the proposed scheme
was an aspirational goal that should only be realised when the Australian
economy was in strong surplus.
This brought an Robbihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00997030494556421786noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7246355819655985290.post-765334160015267302012-03-01T10:41:00.002+10:302012-03-30T14:21:49.400+10:30Relatively Speaking
Sons and Mothers is
the latest offering from the No Strings Attached Theatre Company. Part of the
2012 Adelaide Fringe Festival, the show explores the relationship between
mother and son, through the lens of seven men.
Devised and led by the creative Alirio Zavarce, the show opened its run on Saturday 25 February at Adelaide's Queens Theatre, a good location for this weighty, industrialRobbihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00997030494556421786noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7246355819655985290.post-28324326394713562032011-12-23T12:12:00.000+10:302012-03-30T14:21:49.170+10:30Santa, where's my ride?Take part in our taxi survey - the link is at the end of this posting.
Folk tuning in to the South Australia media in the last few weeks will be aware of coverage on accessible taxis. Once again stories emerged about people having to wait an age before their cab shows up, with Christmas again the number one hotspot where people have to join a waiting list to see if they can get to Robbihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00997030494556421786noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7246355819655985290.post-33453143178801638982011-12-21T17:30:00.002+10:302012-03-30T14:21:49.219+10:30Justice and SafeguardsThis week has seen two stories emerge in the South Australia media relating to disability and justice.
One was about murder charges laid against a couple who are alleged to have intentionally neglected to death their adult daughter living with disability. The second story was about the dismissal of criminal charges against a bus driver accused of sexually assaulting two child passengers living Robbihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00997030494556421786noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7246355819655985290.post-64951537075222521802011-12-12T17:07:00.000+10:302012-03-30T14:21:49.356+10:30Reality At Work
Add caption
Last week Purple Orange participated in an ABC television story about people living with disability moving into open employment (i.e. employment with mainstream employers). The story, which focused on some examples of success in mainstream work, was relatively brief, and our appearance more so.
The ABC's interest in this topic prompted us to update our understanding of the Robbihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00997030494556421786noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7246355819655985290.post-27581127361241504822011-12-02T16:54:00.000+10:302012-03-30T14:21:49.164+10:30Why I won't be observing International Day of People with DisabilityFirst, apologies for the long absence. I've been away, and now I'm back.
image from website www.idpwd.com.au/
Tomorrow (3 December) is the annual International Day of People with Disability (IDPWD). I won't be observing it.
IDPWD was established in 1992 by the United Nations General Assembly, at the conclusion of the United Nations’ Decade of Disabled Persons (Robbihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00997030494556421786noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7246355819655985290.post-31087062487298206202011-07-19T16:56:00.003+09:302012-03-30T14:21:49.194+10:30Safeguards don't always
Photo by Sebastian Fissore http://www.sebafissore.com.ar/ accessed via http://www.sxc.hu/
This is the second of two posts on the topic of abuse and safeguards.
Safety and safeguards are rarely far from people's thoughts about supports for people who live with additional vulnerability. Interest is heightened when dreadful things happen, be it at home, on the street, or in the arms of a Robbihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00997030494556421786noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7246355819655985290.post-37951949421897942752011-07-13T12:19:00.004+09:302012-03-30T14:21:49.230+10:30To Protect and Serve?
image by Sanja Gjenero, accessed via http://www.sxc.hu
Recent media coverage on issues of justice and mistreatment triggered the next two blog postings. This first posting, below, was published earlier this week on The Punch and on the ABC's Ramp Up. A second posting, looking at measures such as regulators and mandatory reporting, will be out soon.
The Adelaide Advertiser story (Robbihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00997030494556421786noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7246355819655985290.post-13825208498719403502011-07-08T14:42:00.001+09:302012-03-30T14:21:49.133+10:30Targets and OutcomesAs many readers of this blog might know, Individualised Funding has been gaining momentum, among other places, in the United Kingdom. having had the chance to see the methodology road-tested in a number of areas around the country, the UK Government made a strategic commitment to Personal Budgets and there is an expectation all local authorities in England transform their social services Robbihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00997030494556421786noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7246355819655985290.post-54153770104754589362011-06-03T13:40:00.000+09:302012-03-30T14:21:49.318+10:30Congregation & Community, Positions & InterestsIn South Australia there has been media attention on the living conditions at the Strathmont Centre, one of the few remaining 'older-style' congregate support facilities in South Australia (as distinct from 'newer style' congregate support facilities such as community-based group homes). Following this attention, the SA Government minister for disability, the Social Inclusion Commissioner, Robbihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00997030494556421786noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7246355819655985290.post-4954220436615922392011-05-03T00:23:00.000+09:302012-03-30T14:21:49.307+10:30Alliance and MomentumThe National Disability & Carers Alliance is currently holding its two-day conference in Melbourne. The Alliance, comprising service agency peak body National Disability Services, Carers Australia and the Australian Federation of Disability Organisations (AFDO), is running this event to further the conversation about the proposed National Disability Insurance Scheme.With an attendance Robbihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00997030494556421786noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7246355819655985290.post-18320288018589360042011-04-13T17:46:00.017+09:302012-03-30T14:21:49.139+10:30Commissioning Productive Citizens: an imaginary conversationFirst, apologies for the long lay-off from the blog, which was caused by a perfect storm of annual leave, crushing deadlines and miscellaneous turbulence. Normal service has been resumed.
The Productivity Commission released its draft report here on the future of disability care and support. The full report is two volumes of around 800 pages and reading it is a formidable task. Even the Robbihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00997030494556421786noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7246355819655985290.post-39959942723621320342011-01-07T17:40:00.001+10:302012-03-30T14:21:49.259+10:30Vale - Suzanne CarmanI've been away from work these past few weeks and will be away for a little longer so this blog has been quiet. However I am moved to write something today to honour the memory of Suzanne Carman, who passed away on 30 December.
Coming away from Suzanne's funeral today, I suspect I was the person at the funeral service who knew Suzanne the least. Our connections were limited to the Robbihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00997030494556421786noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7246355819655985290.post-11578814173686507712010-11-30T16:40:00.013+10:302012-03-30T14:21:49.128+10:30Australia's Apart-hoodThis week in South Australia the media has reported the difficulties that many South Australians living with disability encounter when trying to book an accessible taxi, especially at peak times such as Christmas. The debate has now extended to include problems of finding enough accessible car parking.
At JFA we support the concerns that have been raised in the media by people living with Robbihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00997030494556421786noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7246355819655985290.post-42496062284346325782010-11-23T11:34:00.000+10:302012-03-30T14:21:49.279+10:30imagine getting realIn a recent blog posting I talked about the problematic nature of congregate supports. Among other comments, I received one from a parent, Ronni, who said this:
“Yes Robbi you are missing something. You have not asked those dedicated parents who provide the day to day care for the severely disabled. As much as we love our children we will wear out eventually and like you we deserve a Robbihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00997030494556421786noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7246355819655985290.post-25034372412110743452010-10-07T19:19:00.001+10:302012-03-30T14:21:49.153+10:30Entertainment Value
TheSuperheroes
While overseas recently I got the chance to watch a couple of bands at a gig in Glasgow. First up were TheSuperheroes, whose members include both disabled and non-disabled people. All band members played instruments, and these guys rocked. They are still building their songlist, so their set was frustratingly brief but very impressive.
TheSuperheroes
They wereRobbihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00997030494556421786noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7246355819655985290.post-48645220070553103572010-10-06T15:43:00.001+10:302012-03-30T14:21:49.299+10:30Imagine if, Imagine how, Imagine whenMindful that a number of the over 2,500 readers of this blog will have previously reflected on the issue of group living, I think it important to regularly reflect on its problematic nature. So stay with me on this, and do post your comments if I’m missing something here.
The problem with congregated support is that the very nature of it makes it much harder to achieve authentic choice for peopleRobbihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00997030494556421786noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7246355819655985290.post-48151962104551703332010-09-27T21:41:00.000+09:302012-03-30T14:21:49.286+10:30Cultural exchange about cultural changeContinuing the In Control International theme of my previous posting, the two-day international meeting covered topics that are relevant across a range of cultures. Amongst other things, the meeting covered:
cultural change (in terms of service planners, agency staff and the broader community)
planning and renewal
safeguards
the connection between rights and responsibilities in people's lives
Robbihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00997030494556421786noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7246355819655985290.post-85248877972801929902010-09-23T04:11:00.000+09:302012-03-30T14:21:49.422+10:30A hundred leadersIn Control International is an international community of interest on the topic of self-direction in disability support. I’ve just attended the latest meeting, an opportunity to share ideas and experiences that can assist the momentum for helpful change in people’s lives. The meeting covers ideas ranging from the personal to the national.
Participants in these conversations (not limited to theseRobbihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00997030494556421786noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7246355819655985290.post-31335025025181916052010-09-09T10:07:00.060+09:302012-03-30T14:21:49.203+10:302010 Election CarnivalNow that the identity of the new Australian government has finally been resolved, I'm sorely tempted to break into a rendition of The Seekers' hit, 'The Carnival Is Over'. It's been page-turning stuff, and we have been regularly reminded that the election has come down to handfuls of votes. This has included some comments about the number of 'informal votes' that were cast, where someRobbihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00997030494556421786noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7246355819655985290.post-23564268800308130382010-08-09T16:34:00.002+09:302012-03-30T14:21:49.146+10:302010 Election Promises Part 3On 29 July the Australian Labor Party announced $60m capital funding to create up to 150 additional accommodation or respite places for people living with disability, signalling this was a modest increase on current arrangements. Click here for the announcement.
If the policy is implemented by the next government, community organisations can apply directly to the Commonwealth Robbihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00997030494556421786noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7246355819655985290.post-71559704460495479792010-08-06T11:57:00.002+09:302012-03-30T14:21:49.361+10:302010 Election Promises Part 2Early Intervention is an important principle, even though I’m not a big fan of the word ‘intervention’ and would prefer something like ‘Early Investment’. If delivered well it in can assist children living with disability and their families to establish and build critical capacity, get on the ‘front foot’ in life, and move towards a hopeful future.
To which, on 29 July the Robbihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00997030494556421786noreply@blogger.com0