Untitled - Cerebral Palsy League

Cerebral Palsy League of Queensland ( 14 )
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$305,000 in recurrent funding was secured for a new
day service in Hervey Bay.
$294,000 in recurrent funding was secured for an Early
Childhood Intervention Service in Hervey Bay and
Rockhampton.
A new Speech Pathologist and Physiotherapist were
recruited in Rockhampton.
Outreach therapy services to Mackay were restructured.
New accommodation services commenced in
Rockhampton and Yeppoon.
The Board of Directors approved in principle, the
development of a new regional office, multi-use therapy
centre and day service building in Hervey Bay.
Part of the Rockhampton office was leased to Autism
Queensland.
The Rockhampton office and residential units were
refurbished.
A new staff induction and training program for all direct
care staff was implemented.
A Central Queensland / Wide Bay Leadership Group was
formed, with a leadership and development program
initiated for senior staff.
Several successful Marketing and Fundraising initiatives
were held across the region.
The new Central Queensland / Wide Bay region will continue
to evolve with the next 12 months focused on implementing
and consolidating new services, quality management and
staff training and development.
Child and Family Support Services
Therapy and Social Work services in Rockhampton were
significantly enhanced in 2007 with the appointment
of a new speech pathologist and physiotherapist. These
appointments completed the Rockhampton therapy team for
the first time in many years. The year ended with a newly
created social work vacancy which was being filled at the
time of the preparation of this report.
The dynamic team is committed to rebuilding the reputation,
profile and quality of therapy services in Central Queensland.
Its aim is to provide a strong platform for the development
of new services, particularly new private therapy services
under the auspice of Capability Queensland.
In January 2007, the delivery of NSO funded therapy services
to children in Mackay was transferred to the Brisbane-based
State Wide Outreach Team. This created a more financially
sustainable service in Mackay with the children assisted
by this service now able to receive therapy from all three
disciplines.
The Therapy and Social Work team in Hervey Bay was
disappointed to lose the services of its physiotherapist in
January 2007. A replacement has yet to be found. In the
absence of a Physiotherapist, and with several other local
organisations experiencing similar vacancies, the Hervey
Bay team worked creatively to meet the needs of children
and families across the region. This included seeking the
support of other League therapists to provide ‘backfill’ to
clients in Hervey Bay, Maryborough, Bundaberg and the
South Burnett region.
As part of a $1.6 million funding program secured by the
League across the state, the Hervey Bay and Rockhampton
Therapy and Social Work teams received recurrent funding
from Disability Services Queensland (DSQ) to deliver a
new Early Childhood Intervention Service. The new service
delivers early intervention services to children with a
physical disability aged zero to eight and their families and
is a dramatically positive development in the provision of
services to children across the region.
The In-Home and Community Support program underwent
some changes with a new Rockhampton-based Coordinator
appointed to manage the service across the whole region.
The program provided in-home and community respite
support to more than 50 families during the year. The focus
for the coming 12 months will be on the diversification of
services within the program and development of strategies
to supplement funding received from DSQ.
Adult Accommodation Services
Accommodation services in Hervey Bay were enhanced
by the commencement of the newly funded Community
Connections accommodation support program for clients
in Maryborough and Hervey Bay. This new and innovative
program provided almost 200 hours per week of “drop
in” accommodation and community access support to
individuals living in their own home and helped to meet a
significant service gap in the local community.
Services in Rockhampton were also increased during
Pictured: League employee, Paula Smith entertains children
participating in Colour Your Day, with her clown costume.