Disability updates
A quick round up
It’s been a phenomenal week. The dog and I somehow managed to crack heads reaching for his ball, leaving me the worse off. I have a cracker of a headache and a stunning black eye to show for it, much to the husband’s horror. I expect it will start to look worse before it gets better, eek!
Before I sign off, I wanted to send out a quick update on key areas in the disability sector:
Disability Support Services Taskforce Consultation Survey
Today is the LAST day to fill out the Disability Support Services (DSS) survey on how disability support services should best be provided in the future. The Taskforce is seeking feedback on three main topics:
Future disability support services.
Flexible funding, eligibility and what funding can be used for
Needs assessments and the allocation of support
You can read more about the survey here or go straight to the survey and start filling it out. This is likely to be the Taskforce’s only consultation round on these topics, so I do encourage everyone to take the time to answer the questions.
Closing soon: Petition of Blake Forbes-Gentle
Blake’s Petition to Parliament, Retain Ministry of Disabled People’s current role and Enabling Good Lives model, closes soon. If you haven’t already, please sign and show the Minister that flexibility in funding and honouring the Enabling Good Lives principles are still important.
Speaking of Blake, he has another episode of his BFG Podcast out, this time with Katy Thomas, an accomplished author, advocate and TV Presenter who cares for her children living with disability:
Blake has been incredibly disappointed by the continued lack of consultation from the Minister of Disability Issues. He states:
The continued denial of cuts and freezes to the industry, the blatant lies, evident in the amount of companies ceasing operations, including star jam and others … as an advocate I am very disappointed by all this.
I have several times encouraged Minister Upston to appear across either BFG or other platforms to get her side of the story for these cuts. The door will continue to remain open through 2025 and beyond. I would really encourage the Minister to appear.
The D*List
If you’re interested in regular disability news written by and for disabled people, the D*List delivers. I loved reading their piece on the hīkoi for Te Tiriti, where they spoke to people across the disability community about joining the hīkoi mō te Tiriti and why it's important we all play our part in protecting te Tiriti o Waitangi. It’s a great read!
The D*List tag line is Your weekly dose of disability joy and it truly is a joy to read. They also have a weekly Substack:
Ministry of Education will NOT prosecute parents of disabled children absent from school
Thanks to pressure from Rare Disorders NZ and others, including parents, the Associate Minister for Education has clarified that the Ministry of Education will not prosecute parents of students who are absent because of chronic illness or health conditions associated with a disability, or who are genuinely engaging with a school and the supports offered.
However, it is vitally important that there is a clear exemption pathway for students with chronic health conditions and/or disabilities built into the policy itself; simply allowing discretion for schools alone is not enough.
It is also important that such a pathway must have minimal barriers and be highly aware of the heavy long-term administrative load that parents and families already face; a long-term solution is needed (e.g., medical certificate and a review period that includes the option of ‘never’ for life-long conditions).
It’s a small win, and one we shouldn’t have had to expend energy on fighting for, but a win worth celebrating nonetheless.
That’s it from me, have a great weekend.
Toitū te Tiriti!