Disability support opens way to 'good life'

Most people want to live the best lifestyle they can within their budget – surrounded by friends and family – and people with a disability are no exception.

The community living program makes this possible by complementing the support provided by family, relatives, friends and personal networks.

Bespoke Lifestyles helps people plan their chosen lifestyle using disability support services in non-traditional ways.

Bespoke Lifestyles manager Kathryn Treston says the community living program particularly suits people, and their families, who want to actively direct and control the supports they receive.

“It’s essentially a process whereby families engage in expansive thinking and intensive planning. It’s all about exploring options and opening up possibilities,” she says.

Successful applicants are able to receive funding of up to $20 000 a year from the program.

Graham is a professional who works in Brisbane’s CBD. He lives with his wife and two young children. For the past decade his wife has assisted him with his personal care after a spinal injury.

Because his wife now has a physical disability, she is unable to provide the usual level of support and take care of the children’s needs at the same time, especially in the mornings.

As a result of a program tailored to meet the needs of the family, a carer now visits the family home on weekdays to assist Graham with personal care, enabling his wife to get the children ready in the mornings.

Debra has an intellectual disability and wanted to move out of her parents’ home, but said they were reluctant to ‘let go’.

Through an arrangement detailed in a Community Living Plan, developed with Debra’s parents and siblings, Debra will now be able to have her independence and her parents will have the comfort of knowing she will be secure living in her own unit.

The arrangement will be similar to other young people sharing a house together. In return for providing support in the mornings and some evenings, a flatmate will only pay a small amount of rent.

In addition, Debra receives four hours personal assistance a week to help her plan her days and manage her finances. Her ambition is to start a domestic service business and she is already in the process of seeking a few clients. 

Mary is middle-aged and has a spinal injury requiring her to use a wheelchair. She works full-time, as does her husband Don who provides her personal care, cooks all the meals and does the housework.

Mary would like to live at home instead of going into respite care when her husband is unwell or needs to travel interstate.

With community living program funding Mary is able to employ her own support workers to provide personal care, light domestic assistance and shopping when her husband is not able to care for her.

For more information about the community living program, including the application form and eligibility requirements, visit www.communities.qld.gov.au/disability or contact your local Disability Services service centre. Centres are available on the website or by calling 1800 177 120 (TTY: 1800 010 222).