The Scene

Issue 1, 11 February 2008

Back to The Spastic Centre

Features

The Spastic Centre Fire
On 16 December 2007, The Spastic Centre’s administration building at Allambie Heights was gutted by fire, causing millions of dollars worth of damage. The Spastic Centre needs your help to recover from this disastrous event. Please donate now at any Commonwealth Bank or by calling the Donation hotline 1300 850 538.

Client services operating from McLeod House on the Allambie site were unaffected by the fire.The Centre’s corporate offices are now in rented premises at Terrey Hills Our aim is to have our new Cerebral Palsy Centre which will combine our McLeod House services and Head Office functions built by January 2010 at the Allambie Heights site.

The Spastic Centres new Head Office contact details are:

321 Mona Vale Road, Terrey Hills, NSW.
(The mailing address at PO Box 184, Brookvale, NSW 2100 remains the same).

Phone 02 9479 7200

Fax Numbers - 02 9479 7292 - Executive | 02 9479 7291 - Payroll and HR | 02 9479 7290 - Fundraising and Events | 02 9479 7233 - Finance and IT.

View photos of the fire and the full media release

View the video of the fire and the appeal on YouTube

Dowload location maps of the new Head Office site.

Stories

Stories from People with Cerebral Palsy
Five new stories are featured on The Spastic Centre’s website…

Jess Irwin
For most teenagers, leaving the security of high school for the journey into adulthood can be a time filled with mixed emotions – excitement, relief and anticipation about what their future holds. Jess Irwin’s passion for photography has turned into a career. (Photo on left: Jess Irwin with Ken Duncan)

Becky and Kim Turner
With the support of her big sister Kim, Becky Turner knows how important it is to be as independent as possible. Becky is currently fine-tuning her prevocational skills through Sydney Employment Development Service. Together, these sisters love nothing more than a good girlie weekend away.

Craig Ryan and Eric Kime
Craig Ryan has CP and at 21 won the National Title in Powerlifting at the Junior National Games for the Disabled. His grandfather, Eric Kime, was Chairman of Sydney Markets for seven years and considers his grandson his best mate.

Maria and Lyndsay Dalmon
Maria and Lindsay Dalmon both have CP, and recently celebrated their 21st wedding anniversary. Driving to Uluru in an accessible taxi, competing in sailing regattas around the world and paying off their first home in seven years are just some of the highlights of their marriage.

Emily's Story
Starting high school is a challenging time for students AND their parents. Seventeen year old Emily describes her experiences and offers some tips for the high school years.

View these and other stories on The Spastic centre's website.

The Spastic Centre's Pathways Service

Did You Contact Pathways Between 1 and 14 December 2007?
The Spastic Centre’s Pathways service is the initial contact point for many parents and agencies referring clients to The Centre. Due to the fire at our Head Office building, some referrals made between 1st and 14th December 2007 may have been lost. If you rang during this time and are not contacted by a Pathways Coordinator by the end of February 2008, please phone 1300 888 378 to check that we have your details.

We are very sorry for the inconvenience. Please also note that a voice mail system is not yet available, so it is best to phone weekdays between 9am and 5pm.

Teenagers

Ignition Mentoring Program 2008
Every participant from 2007 raved about the Ignition Mentoring Program with comments like, ‘More - we want more!’ and, ‘I think mentoring is great - you can talk to someone else about stuff you might be dealing with that you wouldn't talk about with your parents’. Now you have the chance to be part of this great program...

The Spastic Centre is looking for teenagers, (14 to 16 years old) with cerebral palsy, to join its exciting Ignition Mentoring Program in 2008. Participants will attend seventeen sessions over the year - held in a group setting with other teenagers and their mentors. Guided discussions are facilitated around topics chosen by the young people themselves, mixed with fun activities and outings.

Being awarded the Prime Ministers’ Award for Community Business Partnership last year, this program is jointly supported and run by The Spastic Centre and ING. Feedback from past participants has shown the benefits include increased confidence for the teenager, improved social skills and exposure to new situations.

Teenagers must be 14-16 years old at some point this year, have cerebral palsy, be attending a mainstream school and have no intellectual disability.

Interested people should contact Peter Horsley on 02 9975 8466 or phorsley@tscnsw.org.au or Pam Garcia on 02 9757 4322 or pgarcia@tscnsw.org.au

Arts

Buzz Grants for Young Emerging Artists or Musicians
Buzz is a grant round offering flexible support for young musicians, sound artists and music-related arts workers through grants of up to $2,500. Individuals aged 12-26, or groups with a majority of people aged 12-26 involved in music or sound projects, are invited to apply. This can be done with the support of an organisation. Deadline for applications is 3 March 2008. Buzz is a program organized by The Foundation for Young Australians.

For more info go to www.youngaustralians.org or phone 03 9670 5436.

[ Source: Accessible Arts]

Access the Arts
Anne Abbott is a Canadian writer and painter with a disability. Her latest project is a podcast called The Life of Anne Abbott on Facebook. With the assistance of speech facilitators and/or a text-to-speech program, Anne is talking about her life, art and experience of living with a disability on the podcast. Anne is one of an increasing number of people with a disability who are using social networking sites to promote their art, build global networks, process blogging and have direct interaction with audiences.

Arts and disability organisations are also using the networks. The BiPolar Bears, rock band and high profile advocates for mental health issues, are part of the City of Port Phillip’s Access Arts program. Their site on MySpace demos their latest original music as well as advocates for arts participation opportunities for people living with a mental illness.

Find out more about Anne Abbott on Facebook (sign up required) or Bipolar Bears on MySpace

[ Source: Accessible Arts]

AART.BOXX 08
AART.BOXX is an innovative arts initiative that provides a platform and a voice for young artists and creative thinkers with a disability. The project has been running for two years and is developing into a high profile art event. AART.BOXX 07 was highly successful when recently exhibited at the Utzon Room, Sydney Opera House, including for the first time, artist talks. Over 350 people attended the two-day exhibition.

Accessible Arts is interested in hearing from budding artists, arts workers, curators, writers or people interested in pursing the arts to form a committee to drive and co-ordinate AART.BOXX 08. This opportunity is open to young people (under 30) with and without a disability and will provide hands on experience in coordinating this arts initiative. Next year AART.BOXX will be held at Tin Shed Gallery, Sydney from October 16 – November 8 2008.

To enquire about joining our Creative Committee, contact Josie Cavallaro, Arts Development Officer on 02 9251 6499 ext 4 or email jcavallaro@aarts.net.au before 18 February 2008.

[ Source: Accessible Arts]

Out & About

Beach FreeWheeler Available at Avalon and Newport Beach
A beach FreeWheeler is a wheelchair with special wheels that allows access to the sand and water’s edge for those who use wheelchairs normally or have difficulty walking in sand. Made of marine grade stainless steel it uses special large pneumatic tyres to move easily over the sand. The removable seating fabric can be adjusted to allow the user to ‘sink in’ as much as required, making it comfortable and safe for most clients, regardless of their body shape or level of physical ability. The FreeWheeler comes standard with a webbing seat belt for safety and additional belts can be added if necessary and can be used by both adults and children.

The FreeWheeler is available to use for no cost on weekends at both Avalon and Newport beaches in Sydney’s north. To use the FreeWheeler, contact the Volunteer Surf Lifesavers at their tent on the beach. For more information, visit the People with Disabilities page of the Pittwater Council website.

[ Source: Warringah Disability Newslette]

Nepean Disabilities Social Group
A social group for people with disabilities and their carers which meetsfortnightly in Penrith. The days will include a variety of different activities including games, craft and guest speakers. Come along for a chit chat, and make new friends! People with high support needs must be supported by their own carer. There will be a one-off charge of $12 per year for insurance, and a cost of $2 per social day.

The group meets on the first and third Monday of every month, 10am -2pm at the Senior Citizens Centre, Station Street, Penrith. Alternatively the Ten Pin Bowling Group meet at Penrith Bowling on the 2nd & 4th Mondays at Penrith Bowling Alley at 12 pm. Cost is $5.50 per game.

If you are interested in attending, contact Anne Stratton on 0421 517 735 or Kevin Finlayson on 0402 6707 17 or email kevin1952@bigpond.com.au

More information about the Nepean Disabilities Social group.

[ Source: CommunityNet]

Active Places.com
Active Places is a geographically-aware search engine which identifies physical recreation, sport and cultural activities, appropriate contacts and accessible facilities for people with a disability. The sites works by searching options via tabs labeled Events, Regular Programs, Activities, Places and People. There is also a search function and a page of comprehensive links.

Education

University of Western Sydney (UWS) - Expanded Program for People with Disabilities
People with disabilities in the Greater Western Sydney region who want to go to university or further education and then move into the workforce will now have extra help with the expansion of a federally-funded program hosted by the University of Western Sydney. UWS has been granted $1.3 million by the new Federal Department of Education, Employment and Workplace Relations to establish and run the National Disability Coordination Officer (NDCO) Program in Western Sydney.

The national program will have a total of 31 officers around Australia whose mission will be to enhance education, training and employment opportunities for people with disabilities. UWS will employ a National Disability Coordination Officer in three service regions across Western Sydney to provide transition support for people with disabilities entering tertiary education and employment. This program is to work in conjunction with the Get Ready for Uni website which provides useful information and advice to students with disabilities who are planning to go to university.

More information about the NDCO Program can be obtained from the UWS Equity and Diversity Unit on 02 4570 1460. Find Get Ready for Uni is available on the UWS website.

Research

Seeking Children and Adolescents with Cerebral Palsy
Associate Professor Nicholas Dwyer is leading a research team at the University of Sydney in order to help people with cerebral palsy. Members of this team are working on hand coordination, which in turn will have clinical implications for improving hand activity in people with CP.

They are looking for children and adolescents with CP including hemiplegia, diplegia, quadriplegia, ataxia and athetosis (over 8 to under 18 years of age) who would like to receive a FREE testing of both arms. This process will involve the measurement of bimanual movements, force control and hand activity in both arms. The study is
being conducted at Cumberland Campus, University of Sydney, Lidcombe, Sydney. Data collection will take approximately 1 1/2 hours and they will reimburse you for your travel costs with taxi fares or two cinema passes.

If you are interested in participating and would like to know more, please contact: Angel Chiu on 0402 721 820 or email at hchi9899@mail.usyd.edu.au

Conferences.. Workshops.. Forums..

Free Forum for Disability Workers
If you work in disability or community services and help clients with problems, then a special information forum being held at the Dougherty Centre, 7 Victor Street, Chatswood on Wednesday 13 February may be helpful for you. The NSW Ombudsman's role in government and disability services will be discussed as well as help for electricity, gas and water customers. Time will be given for networking, all questions will be answered and free publications will be available.

The forum is FREE but registration is essential for catering purposes, to register please email Alex Lai at alai@ombo.nsw.gov.au For enquiries phone Carolyn Campbell-McLean on 02 9286 1028. Please let them know if you have any specific access or dietary needs.

Technology

Technability Update
Since the fire of 16 December 2007 at The Spastic Centre, Technability (The Centre's sales division of assistive technology products) has been busy relocating their office and stock room into McLeod House at Allambie Heights. Technability still have all their stock in 100% pristine condition as well as all their loan devices intact as they were not directly affected by the fire. It's almost back to business as usual for the Technability team now and here's how to contact the Technability team directly if you have a speech generating device or assistive technology need.

Phone 02 9975 8469. Fax 02 9975 8467. Email remains the same - technability@tscnsw.org.au or browse www.technability.com.au

Classifieds

Pathfinder Plus Looking for a New Home
Here's the chance to acquire an ‘as new’ Pathfinder Plus AAC device at an amazing price. This communication aid is in excellent condition and has been treated with care throughout its lifetime but it is now looking to go to another home. It is a 2004 Model. Unity 128.

The pathfinder’s primary form of communication is speech, however this device also offers printed text. It comes with a new rechargable battery all instruction manuals and procedures, a key guard and fully mountable pole that can be attached to a wheelchair. This ensures that the pathfinder is secure and the user can access the device from their wheelchair.

The Pathfinder was purchased new for $16,000 and is being sold now for only $5,000. If you are interested, or would like more information, please contact Chris or Karen via email on chris.rogers@colesgroup.com.au or call 02 62915042 or 0439 429 272.

PDF (print-friendly version) of this issue of The Scene.

What would you like to see in "The Scene"? Email Robyn Cummins Managerof Information Services at The Spastic Centre if you would like to contribute any ideas, advise of any future events or know of any websites that might be of interest to others.

Disclaimer
Opinions expressed in items of The Scene are the individual opinions of the respective authors and do not necessarily represent the opinions of The Spastic Centre or the editors. Products and companies featured in The Scene are not necessarily endorsed by The Spastic Centre. The Scene is intended to be informative only and should not be relied on as medical or other technical advice on any matter. The Spastic Centre and editor take no responsibility for the information published in this newsletter or any person's actions in reliance on that information.