2015 ANNUAL REPORT - Home - AccessAbility · 2019-03-25 · 2015 Annual Report For more than 17 years, AccessAbility has been making a positive diff erence in the community by working

1AccessAbility Annual Report for Year Ending 30 June 2015

2015ANNUAL REPORT

2 AccessAbility Annual Report for Year Ending 30 June 2015

Directory Contents

REGISTERED OFFICE

Level 1, Kings Building

36 Devon Street West

New Plymouth 4310

OTAGO OFFICE

Level 1, Burns House

10 George Street

Dunedin 9016

TARANAKI OFFICE

Level 1, Kings Building

36 Devon Street West

New Plymouth 4310

WHANGANUI OFFICE

244 Victoria Avenue

Whanganui 4500

BOARD OF DIRECTORS

Rachel Stephenson - Chair

Gary Williams

Julia Genet

Paul Curry

Pati Umaga

AUDITORS

Silks Audit Chartered Accountants

BANKERS

ANZ Banking Group

SOLICITORS

Webb Farry

79 Stuart Street

Dunedin

Introduction . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3

Beliefs . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4

Spirit and attributes . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4

Jaime’s story . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5

Chairperson’s report . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6

Chief Executive’s report . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7

Nooapii’s story . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8

Key achievements . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9

Jack’s story . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 14

Finance and Business Systems summary . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 15

Audited Financial Statements . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . APPENDIX


Welcome to AccessAbility’s 2015 Annual Report

For more than 17 years, AccessAbility has been

making a positive diff erence in the community by

working with disabled people and their whānau,

assisting them to live well, dream big and live the

life they imagine.

Our aim is to inspire you to discover all of the

opportunities available in your community.

Our teams work with disabled people, whānau

and communities throughout Otago, Southland,

Taranaki and Whanganui.

We are passionate about our work and proud to

be recognised as leaders in our fi eld.


Beliefs

Spirit and attributes

A COMMUNITY APPROACH WHEREDISABLED PEOPLE LIVE WELL NOW,CAN DREAM BIGAND LIVE THE LIFE THEYHAVE IMAGINED.

• He aha te mea nui? He tangata! He tangata! He tangata!

What is the most important thing? It is people! It is people! It is people!

• Te whare tapa whā. Value the whole person.

• Investing in and supporting people to be their own agents of change.

• Family, whānau and friends matter.

• Sharing stories can teach, inspire and enrich lives.

• Enhancing community connections through active citizenship.

• Hope carries people a long way.

• Information is powerful.

• Sustainable practices and sustainable solutions.

We aspire to be:

• thought leaders

• entrepreneurial

• infl uential

• visionary

• responsive

• collaborative

• inclusive

• authentic

• ethical.


Six-year-old Jaime dresses head-to-toe in pink for her weekly ballet class. She can barely contain her grin when her Mum, Debbie, talks about her newest passion.

Meet Jaime

“Jaime really likes being involved in what her friends are doing. She participates in most of the class and was so excited about being a teddy bear in the end of year production,” Debbie says.

At ballet, Jaime is supported by one of the older students to practice. Her grandmother helps her to attend Pippins, the junior version of Girl Guides. Her family chooses people Jaime gets on well with to be her support workers. They employ them using Individualised Funding, set up by AccessAbility.

“It’s so important for families like ours to have a choice about our services. What we can do now for Jaime is amazing,” Debbie says.

Three mornings a week, Jaime is assisted to get organised for school, which allows Debbie to get her two other children ready at the same time. Day-to-day life has also been made more convenient, with an accessible bathroom, which was organised by AccessAbility.

One of Jaime’s biggest achievements has been contributing to the ‘Super Power Baby Project’ - a book that features 72 children with disabilities. It aims to change people’s perceptions about disability and Jaime has a starring role.

“We hear a lot about what Jaime can’t do, so it was really nice to be involved in something that was sharing how great these kids are,” Debbie says.

Her family is also looking towards her future. Their long-term goal is that Jaime will live

independently in the community.

“Being a part of her community is the most important thing in helping to set Jaime up for a good life. This dream for Jaime is the basis for every decision we make about her,” she says.


At the beginning of the 2014 fi nancial year, Philip Grady indicated he would step down from the Board at the end of the fi nancial year. This prompted us to consider the skills we had amongst our Board members and what we needed for the future.

In April 2015, the Board welcomed a new director, Pati Umaga. Pati brings a wealth of disability, not- for-profi t and sector knowledge to AccessAbility. He is a highly respected member of the Pacifi c community and we look forward to strengthening relationships and providing more opportunities for engagement with Pasifi ka.

Finally, I wish to acknowledge the active involvement of all of our Trustees in their governance role. I thank them for their commitment, passion and dedication to achieving the strategic goals and purpose of AccessAbility.

Nāku noa, nā

Rachel StephensonChairperson

E ngā iwi, e ngā reo e ngā karangatanga maha o ngā hau e whā tēnei te mihi atu ki a koutou katoa,

Tēnā koutou, tēnā koutou, tēnā koutou katoa, tīhei mauriora

To all people, all voices, all the many relations from the four winds, I greet you all.

Chairperson’s report

On behalf of the AccessAbility Board, it is with pleasure that I provide this Annual Report.

It has been a busy year for the Board and teams that work for AccessAbility. As well as consolidating the good work that we have been doing in the last few years, we have taken on new projects that fi rmly position us among the leaders in our sector. Key focus areas have included:

• management realignment and implementation of a new management structure

• delivering and embedding the new Local Area Coordination through NASC pilot in Otago/Southland

• developing and launching a new website to support our new branding and highlight the work we do

• embedding a new purpose and beliefs so that we can focus our energies to listen, learn and inspire

• tireless work from our NASC teams, in Taranaki, Whanganui, Otago and Southland, in providing needs assessments and service coordination to a growing disability population. As with many health-funded service providers, the teams are often required to do more for less

• delivering against our two-year operational plan to achieve our top challenges

• development of new strategies for investment, innovation and research

• reviewing and implementing fi nancial systems and processes to streamline and improve budgeting, forecasting and reporting

• improving health and safety reporting and analysis.


Tēnā koutou, tēnā koutou, tēnā koutou katoa

It is my very real privilege to off er thanks to the people of AccessAbility for a year of work well done. Thank you.

Chief Executive’s report

For our Board, staff , contractors and the broad community of people with whom we work, the year has been about working with individuals towards living well today, dreaming big and living the life they choose.

During the year, we started the delivery of Local Area Coordination through NASC (Needs Assessment and Service Coordination) in Southland and Central Otago. In this work, we have made a valuable contribution to thinking within our community as to how the disability support system might look in the future. The work of our Local Area Coordinators has been exemplary as can be seen by the stories about the people they work with.

AccessAbility’s NASC staff have also been working to a very high standard, which I celebrate.

Our new brand and website have brought our presentation up to standard and have been a pleasure to work with.

Senior staff have been engaged in various conversations about the future shape of the disability support system in New Zealand. They have represented the values of AccessAbility in their work well – thank you.

This year may be remembered as the time when system transformation broke through as a defi ning theme. System transformation is certainly required. Increasing budget pressures and short-term fi nancial thinking threaten the very good progress that has been made in New Zealand in recent years. International data sets clearly show that taking an investment approach in working with disabled people and using a Local Area Coordination

system as a central component of service delivery will increase community engagement and reduce consumption of services over time. An investment approach requires a longer-term fi nancial perspective than we use in New Zealand in our annual budget process.

It is time to learn from the work of the National Disability Insurance Scheme in Australia. This scheme takes a lifetime cost approach in its work with each individual; is not subject to an annual budget process; and is showing excellent progress in its work with 26,000 people. The scheme is working towards involving 460,000 people, when fully implemented.

There is a lot to learn from the Australian example. It is time for the disability community in New Zealand to learn from the campaign that led to the National Disability Insurance Scheme and break out of the constraints of short-term, budget-focused thinking that has the eff ect of ‘locking people into the house that the street has forgotten’. If you are interested in learning more about the scheme, I advise you to take a look at ndis.gov.au and everyaustraliancounts.com.au

It is up to us.

It has been my pleasure and privilege being AccessAbility’s CEO this year. We have opportunities and challenges ahead as we progress through system transformation. We go to that work in good heart as a team united by values and an enduring dream: that disabled people live well now, can dream big and live the life they choose.

Tony BlackettChief Executive

http://www.ndis.gov.au/

http://www.everyaustraliancounts.com.au/


Nooapii sits in his armchair with his guide dog Garner at his feet and modestly admits he is “pretty good at bowls”. Pretty good is an under-statement. He’s won the Dunedin totally blind bowls competition more times than he can remember in almost 30 years of playing. He’s a national champion too.

Nooapii and his family moved to New Zealand from the Cook Islands when he was a teenager. He started to lose his sight in the 1980s and in the 1990s he got in touch with AccessAbility. Throughout his years working with the organisation, his independence has grown. He receives help with household jobs and has had handrails added to his front door steps.

“When you are blind everything in your home needs to be in its place. It’s important to know where everything is,” he says.

Having a guide dog has also increased Nooapii’s independence. Garner is his third guide dog provided through the Blind Foundation and is Nooapii’s key to his community. By getting out and about more often, he’s become well-known in the neighbourhood. Local rest homes are often treated to a visit from Nooapii, who entertains residents as part of the “Sound of Niwa” group.

Meet Nooapii

Family is very important to Nooapii and he is

fortunate to have his grandchildren within walking

distance of his home. He has learned to use a

laptop with specialised software, so he can keep

in touch with family and friends online.

His next mission is to get ready to take on his

siblings in this year’s bowls championship!


Otago/SouthlandWe have 16 staff in the Dunedin offi ce and two Local Area Coordinators based in Wanaka and Invercargill. We also have contracted assessment facilitators in Central Otago and Southland, who work as required. This year we welcomed Krissy Wright, Maryanne Ballantyne, Emma Smith and Gerhard Waayer to the team.

AccessAbility Otago/Southland supports the following contracts:

• Ministry of Health - Needs Assessment and Service Coordination, for people aged 0-65 years.

• Ministry of Health - Local Area Coordination. More details on this are provided below.

• Southern District Health Board - Long Term Services for Chronic Health Conditions, for people under 18 years old.

Key achievements

TaranakiWe have seven staff in the New Plymouth offi ce who work alongside the Finance and Business Systems team and our Call Centre Operator. This year Marina Versteeg joined the Taranaki offi ce.

AccessAbility Taranaki supports the following contracts:


• Taranaki District Health Board - Long Term Services for Chronic Health Conditions.

• Attention Defi cit Hyperactivity Disorder - Service Coordination.

WhanganuiWe have eight staff in the Whanganui offi ce. This year we welcomed Denise Bell, who has joined the Ministry of Health team.

AccessAbility Whanganui supports the following contracts:


• Whanganui District Health Board - Service Coordination, for people aged 65 years and over.

• Whanganui District Health Board - Long Term Services for Chronic Health Conditions and short term supports for people who are Chronically Medically Ill.


Our new lookIn March 2015, we reached a fantastic turning point for AccessAbility with the launch of our new branding. The new brand better represents what we off er, how we work and our dream for the organisation. Our new logo is a string, which symbolises our role in connecting people with the community. It has been applied to our new website and other communications material, which showcase the people we work with and their goals and dreams for the life they imagine.

The new branding and website have been our chance to show everyone how this organisation is changing. They were developed with our vision and ideals clearly in mind. Previous feedback that our brand had low visibility, was stagnant and was not well understood were also a driving force for change.

To deliver this work, we enlisted the expertise of Squiz, who developed the brand and website, and Priority Communications, who organised and wrote the website content. We tried to remove as much of the old disability terminology as possible. Words such as needs, service and support have generally been replaced to put disabled people and their whānau in the driver’s seat. We have also developed new forms and information brochures.

The new branding and website are clear and accessible for disabled people and their whānau; they present a professional and cohesive image for our funding providers; they give a clear picture of our organisational identity for staff ; and show the wider disability community the value that we add.

Local Area CoordinationIt has been a successful fi rst year for AccessAbility in providing Local Area Coordination through NASC.

With support from ImagineBetter, AccessAbility rolled out the programme in Central Otago and Southland in September 2014. As of May 2015, Local Area Coordinators (LACs) were working with 110 people in both communities.

AccessAbility NASC and AccessAbility Local Area Coordination have diff erent but complementary roles. We have changed our processes so that people who are new to the Disability Support Services system are directed to Local Area Coordination fi rst. This means they can have a conversation about what a good life looks like for them, before discussing need, services and money. It is an exciting development.

Local Area Coordination is having a material impact on people’s lives. We have a growing library of good stories about how engagement with our LACs is resulting in individuals and whānau creating positive change in their lives and relationships.

“I honestly can’t say enough good things about my LAC. It’s not happening yet, but I do believe she is the fi rst person who can see obstacles and wants to fi nd solutions. Finally someone who doesn’t just put him in the too hard basket.” – Parent

“You’re a real asset to the disability community.” – NASC

Local Area Coordination in Central Otago

• As of May 2015, there were 79 people working with an LAC in Central Otago.

• Two forums were held in both Wanaka and Alexandra to introduce the communities to Local Area Coordination. The forums were well attended.

• The Central Otago LAC has built relationships with local iwi and health providers.

• The Central Otago LAC has been actively involved in assisting the Alexandra Family Network – a localised community building initiative created to work with employers and employer networks within the Central Otago region.

• Local Area Coordination partnered with Lawrence Chok of Family Action Support Team (FAST) to hold forums in Alexandra to engage with families about the possible development of family collectives.


Local Area Coordination in Southland

• As of May 2015, there were 31 people working with an LAC in Southland.

• Two forums were held in Invercargill to introduce the community to Local Area Coordination. The forums were well attended.

• The Southland LAC has built relationships with local iwi and health providers.

• The Southland LAC is in the early development stages of a community building initiative called Accessible Sailing Southland.

• Local Area Coordination partnered with Lawrence Chok of Family Action Support Team (FAST) to hold forums in Invercargill to engage with families about the possible development of family collectives.

New Needs Assessment formin development

This year, we started making changes to our Needs

Assessment form and processes to provide a

better experience for the people we work with.

In developing a new form, we invited people to join

a reference group in Whanganui in April 2015. The

group gave us feedback at diff erent stages of the

development to help shape our improvements.

The form is expected to be ready for people to

use in 2016.

In brief• Our three offi ces in Dunedin, New Plymouth and

Whanganui have been focusing on maintaining consistency, while retaining their regional fl avour and knowledge. This has included reviewing NASC policies and procedures so that we work in the same way across the regions.

• Our Facebook page was set up in March 2015 and has so far garnered a following of more than 70 individuals and families. It’s an impressive start and we are hoping even more people will join us there in 2016.

• Our national Call Centre was enhanced during the year to provide a more consistent, positive experience. The new service has freed up local staff time and ensures that callers always receive personalised service, even when local offi ces are unattended.

• This year we created a new Quality position in the organisation. The successful candidate is expected to start this role in the next fi nancial year and will be based in the Dunedin offi ce. This role will ensure that AccessAbility not only meets obligations and operates in a professional manner but stays true to its values and inspirational dream as we go about our daily work.


Who we work with

NASC SERVICE PROVIDED OTAGO TARANAKI WHANGANUI TOTAL

New People - Assessment and Coordination 239 111 51 401

Existing People - Reassessment and Coordination 794 335 171 1300

Existing People - Service Review 2167 755 394 3316

TOTAL 3200 1201 616 5017

WHANGANUI

51

171

394

616

OTAGO

239

794

2167

3200 EXISTING PEOPLE -SERVICE REVIEW, 3316

NEW PEOPLE - ASSESSMENT AND

COORDINATION, 401

EXISTING PEOPLE - REASSESSMENT AND

COORDINATION, 1300

People by NASC service provided

People by geographical distribution NEW PEOPLE - ASSESSMENT AND COORDINATION

EXISTING PEOPLE - REASSESSMENT AND COORDINATION

EXISTING PEOPLE - SERVICE REVIEW

Otago region Taranaki region Whanganui region


MAORI, 534, 12%

ASIAN, 46, 1%PACIFIC, 52, 1%NOT STATED, 80, 2%

EUROPEAN/OTHER, 3675, 84%

INTELLECTUAL, 2243, 51%

NEUROLOGICAL, 125, 3%

PHYSICAL, 1363, 31%

SENSORY, 136, 3%OTHER, 13, 0%ASD, 507, 12%

People by ethnicity

People by typeof disability

ETHNICITY OTAGO TARANAKI WHANGANUI TOTAL

European/Other 88% 79% 73% 84%

Maori 8% 18% 23% 12%

Asian 1% 1% 1% 1%

Pacifi c 1% 1% 2% 1%

Not Stated 2% 2% 1% 1%

WHANGANUI

73%

23%

1%

2%

1%

OTAGO

88%

8%

1%

1%

2%

TYPE OF DISABILITY OTAGO TARANAKI WHANGANUI TOTAL

ASD 12% 13% 6% 12%

Intellectual 50% 54% 54% 51%

Neurological 3% 4% 2% 3%

Physical 33% 25% 36% 31%

Sensory 3% 3% 2% 3%

WHANGANUI

6%

54%

2%

36%

2%

TY OTAGO

12%

50%

3%

33%

3%

AGE GROUP OTAGO TARANAKI WHANGANUI TOTAL

0-5 years 2% 4% 2% 3%

6-21 years 29% 35% 25% 30%

22-65 years 56% 53% 58% 56%

Over 65 years 12% 8% 15% 11%

WHANGANUI

2%

25%

58%

15%

OTAGO

2%

29%

56%

12%

22-65 YEARS, 2437, 56%

OVER 65 YEARS, 504, 11% 0-5 YEARS, 117, 3%6-21 YEARS, 1329, 30

People by age group


Jack has big plans for his future.

He is a sports fanatic; he loves his

hand-cranked fl uoro-green bike

and he has an incredible

knowledge of rugby.

Meet Jack

It is hardly surprising to his friends and family that

Jack has chosen a career in sport; either as a sports

journalist or involved in sports management. He is

already working in the industry. Every Wednesday

night he hosts a spot on Radio Southland. He also

releases a podcast which consistently ranks in the

station’s top fi ve listener selections.

Jack didn’t always feel so optimistic about his

future. He attributes his newfound independence

and achievements to his AccessAbility Local Area

Coordinator Jenny Hogg, although Jenny credits

Jack for determining and driving his own goals.

“I’m just in the background guiding him along and

passing on knowledge about who and what is out

there. I plant seeds and if Jack chooses to make

them grow into opportunities, then that is his

choice,” Jenny says.

Currently Jack is studying for his drivers’ test and

is ready for his written learner licence exam.

Long-term, he is looking forward to living in his

own home and to being a father one day. He would

also like to travel the world.

“Jenny has made a big impact. She’s awesome.

Life is just so cool at the moment,” Jack says.


Old and new

This fi nancial year, Rex Healy was appointed to the newly created role of Manager Finance and Business Systems, while Marcia Hoelting-Kern was welcomed to the newly created Finance and Data

Analyst role.

Paperless fi nancial systems

In the last annual report, AccessAbility reported its successful migration to a paperless approach for Needs Assessment and Service Coordination (NASC) documents.

This fi nancial year, the Finance and Business Systems team has achieved paperless status with its fi nancial systems. As well as saving time and expense, it is more eco-friendly. Positive feedback has been received during the 2015 independent fi nancial audit on this achievement, which for most

organisations is still in the ‘too hard’ basket.

Simplifying fi nancial data

A new fi nancial framework has been implemented that aligns cost centres to the new operational framework. It also allows extra-operational projects and one-off activities to be tracked.

The reporting framework has been streamlined and simplifi ed to ensure that the most relevant information is presented up front, with detailed

information readily available in the background.

Finance and Business Systems summary

Technology infrastructure enhancement

While initially face-to-face video was a bit of a

novelty, use of the new technology for remote

meetings, collaboration and resource sharing has

become a mainstream part of the frontline toolkit,

with all staff now equipped with Lync-enabled

computers and headsets.

AccessAbility’s technology infrastructure has

also been strengthened to reduce the risk of

information and functionality being lost.

Improving operational decision making

New tools have been developed to support

managers and team leaders in planning and

monitoring workfl ow. The ‘Last Minute Charlie’

is a report that is automatically sent to team

leaders each week, signalling any work that is

close to being overdue. Workfl ow management

reports also enable team leaders to plan ahead for

workfl ow allocation and timing within their teams.

Wellness and leave systems enhancements

Changes have been made to payroll and leave

systems in the last year to give staff better tools to

access and manage their leave and benefi ts.

Less can be more

With an increasing number of people to support,

and constantly emerging opportunities for

new things to deliver, the Finance and Business

Systems team have maintained a core strategic

focus on simplifying and streamlining processes.

This extends from new and departing employee

processes to developing quick reference guides for

personalised computer setups.


Acc

essA

bili

ty A

nnua

l Rep

ort

fo

r Ye

ar E

ndin

g 3

0 J

une

2015


Acc

essA

bili

ty A

nnua

l Rep

ort

fo

r Ye

ar E

ndin

g 3

0 J

une

2015


Acc

essA

bili

ty A

nnua

l Rep

ort

fo

r Ye

ar E

ndin

g 3

0 J

une

2015


Acc

essA

bili

ty A

nnua

l Rep

ort

fo

r Ye

ar E

ndin

g 3

0 J

une

2015


Acc

essA

bili

ty A

nnua

l Rep

ort

fo

r Ye

ar E

ndin

g 3

0 J

une

2015


Acc

essA

bili

ty A

nnua

l Rep

ort

fo

r Ye

ar E

ndin

g 3

0 J

une

2015


Acc

essA

bili

ty A

nnua

l Rep

ort

fo

r Ye

ar E

ndin

g 3

0 J

une

2015


Acc

essA

bili

ty A

nnua

l Rep

ort

fo

r Ye

ar E

ndin

g 3

0 J

une

2015


Acc

essA

bili

ty A

nnua

l Rep

ort

fo

r Ye

ar E

ndin

g 3

0 J

une

2015


Acc

essA

bili

ty A

nnua

l Rep

ort

fo

r Ye

ar E

ndin

g 3

0 J

une

2015


Acc

essA

bili

ty A

nnua

l Rep

ort

fo

r Ye

ar E

ndin

g 3

0 J

une

2015


Acc

essA

bili

ty A

nnua

l Rep

ort

fo

r Ye

ar E

ndin

g 3

0 J

une

2015


Acc

essA

bili

ty A

nnua

l Rep

ort

fo

r Ye

ar E

ndin

g 3

0 J

une

2015


TARANAKI

Level 1, Kings Building, 36 Devon Street West

New Plymouth 4310

PO Box 8377, New Plymouth 4342

T 0800 758 700

E [email protected]

WHANGANUI

244 Victoria Avenue, Whanganui 4500

T 0800 758 700

E [email protected]

OTAGO/SOUTHLAND

Level 1, Burns House, 10 George Street

Dunedin 9016

PO Box 966, Dunedin 9054

T 0800 758 700

E [email protected]

accessability.org.nz

facebook.com/AccessAbilityNZ


Documents

2015 ANNUAL REPORT - Home - AccessAbility · 2019-03-25 · 2015 Annual Report For more than 17 years, AccessAbility has been making a positive diff erence in the community by working