LIVING DISTINCTIVE LIVES Families Connecting Individuals to Meaningful Lives in the Community

Living Distinctive Lives Living Distinctive Lives (LDL) is a small family-governed group. The group is focused on creating flexible, personalised, community-based arrangements to support each individual member to live in a place of their own, and to pursue a life that meaningful to them. LDL assists each person, with the support of their allies, to decide where they would like to live, who they would like to live with and how they can be supported to live in their own place with a range of informal and formal supports that meet their needs.

More than a matter of housing The members of LDL believe that a house alone does not equal a good life, so rather than looking at accommodation in isolation a whole of life approach is taken and each individual is supported to connect to and entwine with the fabric and life of the community that they are a part of. LDL is a creative alternative to congregate care models for people who would like, or need to live separately from their families, but remain well connected and supported by them.

Key Aims of LDL- a Family Governed Project LDL aims to create maximum opportunity for people to be genuinely included in and to contribute to their local communities By working with community, one person at a time reciprocal and mutually beneficial relationships can be established LDL seeks to extend each person’s learning, participation and decision making capacity.

LDL’s Guiding Principles LDL, it members and workers are committed to the following principles, they form a foundation for planning and action and act as a reference point as people move towards their vision of a good life. A circle of supportive people is essential to the well- being of individuals in the community. All individuals have the right to a meaningful life in the community. All individuals have the right to decide where they want to live, who they want to live with, and how they want to live.

LDL’s Guiding Principles Home is about being connected to community and having valuable roles and relationships. Life planning should be creative and driven by the individual and those closest to them. The needs and preferences of individuals change over time and they should be supported through these changes to ensure a satisfying life.

A Brief History of LDL LDL was established in November 2004 after a successful application for funding through DHS under the Innovation in Accommodation Grants. This application was lodged by the Holmes family with much support from Deb Rouget of PLA. It was in direct response to the need that the Holmes family and others had for an alternative to the traditional supported accommodation, and group home arrangements. Over the past few years LDL has developed into a group of 7 families all looking for ways to support their son or daughter to move into a home of their own, and to develop lives that are meaningful to them. Following an evaluation in 2007, LDL was granted ongoing funding for the role of the coordinator. In 2009 the group was successful in securing a grant from the Scanlon Foundation to further promote the inclusion of LDL members in their communities. This has enabled LDL to establish the Community Inclusion Initiative- which employs a part-time worker to provide further assistance to the individuals who are a part of LDL.

What LDL looks like FAMILIES LDL COORDINATOR COMMUNITY INCLUSION FACILITATOR MELBA SUPPORT SERVICES- HOST AGENCY GOVERNANCE GROUP PRINCIPAL MEMBERS SUPPORT WORKERS CIRCLES OF SUPPORT FRIENDS & ALLIES HOUSE MATES COMMUNITY SERVICE PROVIDERS

Role of the Governance Group Each Family in LDL has a representative who participates in the Governance Group. This group : Meets monthly to review progress, plan future LDL activities, to provide support to the paid workers, to review the budget and share ideas, information and stories. they are responsible for selecting and directing the Coordinator and the Community Inclusion Facilitator. Safeguards the project by ensuring adherence to the vision and principles of LDL Supports the development of leadership among families both in LDL and in the wider community

Role of Coordinator Reports to the Governance Group and Melba ( Host agency) Works with the group as a whole to plan for LDL’s future And works with each individual and their family to assist them to develop their vision for the future, and to plan, build supports and arrangements to achieve this vision. The coordinator assists with budgets, funding submissions, support worker employment and supervision, capacity building for families and individuals and researches longer term projects such as affordable housing. And supports the development of safeguards and informal supports such as circles of support.

Learnings along the way I have come to believe that the following points are of great importance in providing support to individuals in their own home in the community. A plan should be a living story of somebody’s life, and the life that they wish to have. It should include all aspects of the person, from personal care needs, and health concerns through to goals around personal relationships, spiritual needs and safeguards for the future. The planning and actioning should be driven by the individual and/or their family and those closest to them. It is important for each individual and their family to have all the information and knowledge that is important to them. This includes information on funding dollars, funding applications, and to know the true cost of the supports that they have in place. Individuals and families should use this information to decide where their funding is held and what it is used for.

Learnings along the way, cont.. Individuals and families should be supported to decide who works with them and direct the workers themselves. For many individuals and their families this is a process of regaining the authority to make some of the most important decisions in their lives, such as where they live, who they live with and who will support them. The role of informal supports cannot be understated; these allies can help through the planning process, by providing social supports and by reinforcing the goals and vision that have been developed. A home of one’s own is not about independence but about meeting each individuals needs with a range of supports and striving to achieve the vision that they have for their future. Any person, regardless of their disability is able to be supported to live in their own place, and with individualised support they will be much more likely to have their own unique needs met.