Developing our Disability Supports in the Torres Strait with Ubuntu Behaviour Support.
Recently, collaboration with locally-based Ubuntu Behaviour Support has allowed us to provide specialised behaviour support training to our Torres Strait regional team.
Positive Behaviour Support is critical to National Disability Insurance Scheme (NDIS) support delivery, safeguarding the rights of vulnerable people within it. Having previously worked with Ubuntu Behaviour Support’s owner and practitioner Leonie Shawcross in some of our other regions, we saw an opportunity to offer training to our remote team on Thursday Island in this important area. Learning that she was working to collect the number of appointments required to make travelling to the Torres Strait a viable exercise, the team pitched an innovative idea; what if Leonie’s remaining available time was used to provide specialist behaviour support skills training to our support workers and leaders. The idea caught, and Leonie was able to travel to Thursday Island in early May to fit specialist training in areas such as Positive Behaviour Support, Autism, de-escalation and implementing controls & measures to reduce risk around her other community commitments.
Our Disability Supports team leader Laura Shone said the training had been very beneficial, and would help the team provide an even greater level of support to our clients and community.
“Leonie’s training was a huge success, and really empowered our team.
“The training was so client-focused and tailored to the types of scenarios and behaviours our team could experience while delivering NDIS supports.
“Because of this, our highly-trained team members are now even better prepared to offer complex supports through the Torres Strait region, which benefits not only our participants, but also the entire community.”
Speaking to why they felt it was important to ensure Ubuntu Behaviour Support came to the region, both for their own teams development and that of the wider community, Disability Supports program manager Derek Carter said that My Pathway has become an integral part of the communities we support. This training is a great example of the impact reaching beyond our program and into the wider community.
“The people of the Torres Strait Islands have welcomed our disability supports into their communities, and both our organisation, and the communities themselves are stronger for that.
“Ensuring essential services, such as Behaviour Support are more readily understood and available in the remote communities in which we work is another way we can ensure that we are having the greatest positive impact possible.”
If you would like to find out more about our community-based Disability supports, please visit the Disability Supports page or contact the team.