Access For Artists With Disabilities

Finding Accessible Pathways

 

 

Mentorships are one to one teaching sessions

allowing individuals to develop their art practise.

 

The struggles to move through from an emerging artist to engaging as a professional artists are tendentious. Rarely is an artist able to live off the sales of artwork alone. For artists living with disabilities or mental illness there are additional challenges to overcome. The definition of disability we use is: any impairment that alters an individual ability to function in the normal manner.  We use a social model of disability allow us to assist people who are unable to read and write, to sell their artwork.

Access Issues include:

·         Physical Access – access to buildings, restrooms, lighting, physical layout of the building itself, and access to public transport.

·         Access to information and technology – many people with disabilities are unable to access technology independently.

·         Communication Access – is difficult for those with hearing and speech impairments and those with visual impairments.

·         Access to education – Intellectual impairments do not affect the creative process their access barriers to formal art studies and community art classes.  Traditional classroom settings are also problematic form those with behavioural disabilities, mental illness and sensory disabilities such as autisms.

·         Access on financial grounds – those living on limited incomes are less likely to be able to afford community classes or private tuition.

Community Attitudes

Community attitudes have not keep up with social reform or the law.  All business are now encouraged to have a disability action plan, to meet the needs of their employees and customers.  Many people in the community categories people with disabilities into two groups. Those with physical disabilities or those with intellectual disabilities; including the majority of those with physical disabilities.

People with disabilities are still seen as bystanders watching on, rather than active participants in the community.  While these attitudes dominate social attitudes access issues with continued to be hard fought for.  The recognition of the social barriers faced by those with mental illness, behavioural disabilities and sensory disabilities are often dismissed as people who do not act appropriately.  The is not social recognition that people cannot achieve social acceptable behaviour due to disability of mental illness.

This is why disability awareness training is imperative to address access issues for artists living with disability and mental illness.

 

 

You can help us to address access issues in the Ipswich Community through purchasing a raffle ticket.  Only 1 prize a artist supply pack with carry bag worth over $100.  Tickets are $1 each or 6 for $5 and are available for purchase at the Ipswich Mall's Twilight Markets on the 1st Friday and 3rd Friday each month.  The raffle will be drawn on Friday 7th April at 7 pm at the Twilight  Markets in the Mall.

 

If you like more in formation on access issues or how you can meet the access needs of those living with disabilities please email us.

Ignite Artists Services

 

PO Box 483 Ipswich 4305

email us

 

Ignite Artists

Who are we:

1.    We are building an inclusive artist community

2.    We are network of Ipswich artists seeking to share skills with each other and the wider Ipswich Community.

3.    We hope to provide disability awareness training to local business, so the access needs of artists living with disabilities can be meet.

Services

Mentorships are:-

1.    One to one tuition providing professional advice in development of artists practises.

2.    This many include the development of news artistic skills, developing a body of work for exhibition; building your audience, touring, working on commissions; developing a business plan and more.

3.    Once we know you vision and goals we can match you with a suitable mentor for a period of 8 to 16 weeks. 

4.    This can be tailored to the needs of individual artists including those with disabilities, mental illness and chronic health.

5.    Mentorships would suit those with disabilities such as autism, who are unable to learn in a group environment.      

6.    Fee for service: Artists can pay upfront fees or apply for an professional development arts grant; or fundraise to pay for cost.

NDIS Planning

The National Disability Insurance Scheme allows people living with disabilities to direct how the want to be supported. This involves deciding what things you would like to do and how and with who you would like to do them.

In terms of visual arts this allows you to make many choices.  Some of these choices are:-

·         To enjoy art activities with a support provider

·         Produce art with the support of a support worker, tutor or mentor

·         Attend art classes

·         Join an art group

·         Establish an  arts practise

·         Produce and sell artwork

·         Be employed in the arts sector

 

 

 

Planning involves:

Step One:      Choosing a goal, activity or things you want to do

Step Two:      Choosing how you want to do things

Step Three:   Outlining the help you need due to your disability

Step Four:     Having your planning meeting

Step Five:      Once your plan is approved, choosing the supports you will use

 

In terms of art related activities the NDIS will only pay for the expenses relating to you disability and how you tell them you want to do each activity. They will not pay for expenses that other arts incur. Such as university fees, studio and gallery hire, community classes costs, and art supplies.  The NDIS should cover your access needs like, direct support costs, transport if you are unable to use public transport, job support, supported studio staff and admin costs and things like modify paint brushes.

What you need to include in your plan

·         Any goal or activity you want to do (relating to art)

·         Activities should be as specific as possible

·         Support needs to undertake each activity

 

We can provide planning advice to ensure all activities are in your plan to allow you to achieve your personal goals. Such as entering art competitions or selling your artwork.

Disability Awareness Training

·         Advice on writing your disability action plan to enable employees and customers with disabilities to be included in your business activities,

·         Advice on making your business more accessible for people with disabilities and how the NDIS can support you to achieve this.

·         Advice and specific industry training for management and staff to improve customer delivery to people with disabilities.

·         Generalise awareness on disability and access issues in the work place.

The Network

We are building the artist’s network through informal opportunities to get-together such as the Twilight Markets on Fridays in the Ipswich Mall.  The markets offer a relating atmosphere to explore different are forms and learn in a peer environment as more artists join the network more variety of activities can be added to the program.

 

Workshops

We run workshops and art activities on behalf of groups and organisations.  Can us for an individualised quote to meet your needs and vision.

Funding and Fees

We are hoping to establish a social enterprise that supports the professional development of local artists through the network of peers. Initial we are hoping to fund four professional mentorship places through arts funding.  In addition to this individual artists may elect to apply for a Regional Arts Development Fund or an Arts Queensland Grant to assist with funding their mentorship or seek private sponsorship.

Artists with disabilities can apply for a 16 hour mentorship through us in partnership with Access Arts. Artists living with disability or mentor illness must be members of Access Arts prior to applying. The successful candidate will be selected by Access Arts.

Alternatively artists with disabilities should consider asking the NDIS to support their art goals through engaging a studio assistance or mentor.  This may allow them to appoint Ignite Artists as their nominated service provider.

The next stage in our planning is to apply for seed funding to established our social enterprise in Ipswich.  We are currently conducting research and business development planning to work towards commencing late in 2018 or 2019.

Additional income will be provided through our disability awareness training and writing disability action plans and workshops. Please email us for more information.

A Matter of opinon

What does it mean to have an opinion?

 

In my view an opinion is a belief or conviction. Many of us hold very strong convictions that we a passionate about and these convictions evoke strong emotions and can blur our judgements if not keep in checked.

We can form opinions on all sorts of things from the brand of washing powder we use; to ethics based on religious faith.

Opinions are formed and powerfully used in discussions, writings research and public debate. The are formed as a result of our backgrounds and past experiences and make us who we are as individuals. Their formation may be due to social status, race, religion or political views. Or formed as a result of analysis of the information available to us.

Opinions are not fact.  A fact is something that can be establish as truth by presenting physical evidence. 

Fact: Man has walked on the moon.
Fact: Dorland Trump is the US president

Belief:  Allah is god
Belief: Jesus Christ was both man and god.
Belief: It is best not to eat after 8 pm at night.

Opinion:  Gen Y people are lazy and don't want to work
Opinion:  We should not eat more that 2 pieces of fruit per day.

We use our opinions to discuss and debate with others.  The are also used to persuade or convert others to our way of thinking. To demand another person to accept your opinion as truth is indoctrination.

Everyone is free to express their ideas, beliefs and values without fear of judgement or retaliation. When others are repeatedly slammed for stating a opinion or dismissed as insignificant the this could be considered abusive.

So its all a matter of opinion.    






 

It's a matter of choice

 

Funding of the National Disability Insurance Scheme is based on the individual's nominate goals in their NDIS plan.  Supports are approved based on the participants goals and the steps the nominate to achieve them.  It moves away from previous medical models of care or support by promoting individual choice.

 

The term "care" has negative memories in the 'disability community'  being "in care" or "care for", comes from the centuries where regardless of the nature of your disability you were locked away from view.  Like many I feel this was for the communities benefits not those who were placed in care. Sadly, the human race has a history of segregating people who are different.  Black and white; slave and free; free settlers and convicts; Native Australians and those of European decent and even men and women. 

 

Once the first Australians of this land were judged to be "unintelligent" and inferior, we now know this is not true. Segregations of those who are different have a long history of being exploited and abused.  History tells us whenever people feel superior and assume a position of control, potential for abuse occurs. The disability sector to date has been no exception.

 

The development and implantation of the NDIS has occurred under the influences of two things:-

 

• A recognition by the United Nations that the rights of people with disabilities (regardless of the nature of their disabilities) as other people.  The NDIS has very much focused on the rights for all Australians to have full access to the community. We as individuals have no right to restrict choice of any individual. Of particular concern is the access to the judicial system due to the 'perceived' intellectual abilities of a person and their ability to understand the complexities of the legal process, denying many victims of abuse access to the law.
• The other is a ground swell of people who wanted to see and need to the medical model of care, enforced on people with disabilities long after large scale institutions have closed their doors. People with disabilities and those who support them have clearly stared that they wanted control of the direction of their own lives.  We have too many document cases where people with disabilities such as CP have been assumed to be unintelligence when the clearly have their own voice. A voice they want to be herd.

For those living with disability the term 'care' is tied with the term 'duty of care'.  Many including myself find it offensive that an other individual assumes the role of protection, simply because my impairment is visible. In my opinion I am better equipped to care for myself than many who have been given a "duty care of me", over the years.

 

This is the position of disempowerment, that we as people living with disabilities are coming from. I am often criticism for being a advocate for those living with intellectual disabilities and mental illness the empowerment to make their own direction.  As `judges of abilities' we get it wrong often.  People have much more ability then we give them credit for.

 

I am a firm believer that given the correct support people with all disabilities can make informed choices.  In most cases that will be their family member who can see what they enjoy and don't enjoy.  I do think the participant should be actively involved in any plan process.

 

So what is choice and how do we make those choices?

 

For me choice involves having access to information and the right to an advocate who can enable to both understand the choices and the conquences.

 

Offering two choices when we know their are seven choices or offering a choice which someone can't understand or comprehend due to their limited experience is not, 'my idea' of empowering choice.  I think to empower someone to make choice around how they want their life to look like you need to facilitate that experience. I know that is time consuming but that is the individuals right.

 

Likewise if a participants said to me . . . this is all I know and I happy to run with that as I feel safe. Then for me that is a valid argument.  When it comes to the NDIS some people will chose the safe option.

 

This whole NDIS journey has so many emotions attach. We travel from different places and come from different experiences and views. In a scheme based on individual choice, we have not room to judge.

 

It is a matter of choice please make yours but don't commend me for making mine.  

 

Lose the walfare tag please

 

The key jewel in the NDIS reform was to increase the community participation rates of people living with disability and their families. The NDIS is not a welfare reform, nor is it linked to any welfare payment. True the mobility allowance and Taxi Subsidy Scheme are moving to NDIS umbrella, but the reason for this is it fits better under the objectives of the NDIS.  The key to this agenda is participation.

 

People who participate in the scheme may also receive some form of welfare, but the scheme is there to generate employment and long term prognosis of those born with disabilities.  Many of the participants are under the age of 16 and not entitled to welfare.  Thus any model that links NDIS to welfare reform is floored.

 

Accessible employment is a key agenda for NDIS reform so why it is linked or thought of as another handout is beyond me. People with disability need assistance to do things other take for granted. The NDIS is the new way people with disabilities access supports including attendant care, mobility aids, accommodation support, house modification, early intervention programs and therapies to increase a person's independence.

 

Many of the supports will enable some children to work. The NDIS was designed to create employment and reduce the dependence on the government. Rather than being welfare the NDIS is a scheme that will see less people with disabilities needing welfare in the late stages of their lives.

 

Some of the difficult in understanding how this all works and why it is not an drain on the system, is people with disabilities are seen as 'recipients of care'. People with disabilities are not sick and most do not need to be care for. 

 

It is our traditions that we now know were based on myths that lead to a medical care model.  Yes a small minority of people with disabilities are totally dependent on others. The rest of us are able to make contributions to the community.

 

 

 

It is not our disabilities that disable us, but the community attitudes towards us.  If the community were more embracive of disability, we wouldn't need to be constantly asking for access needs.  I may be unemployable but that it not the same as not being able to work.  I am quite happy to be self-employed, my uncontrollable seizures effect my profits not someone else's.

 

I should not be seen as inspirational for my choice to pursue a career as a artists.  It should be the norm. I do not need pretty I live a very rewarding life, I just need some help to lug my art supplies and work around.  This is not welfare, I create employment for support staff and other artists.  My help should never be seen as a handout.

 

Until we lose that welfare tag - poor person with a disability that needs help, then the NDIS reform is doomed. Not all welfare recipients have disabilities and not all people supported by the NDIS receive welfare.  The two are not linked.

 

Some people with disabilities do themselves a disservice by playing the poor me act. The NDIS only pays for costs incurred due to disability.  The money doesn't go into a bank account to spend how I like.  It pays for my physio, workers to help me shower and do house work and enable me to get to work and training on time.

 

We all have a responsibility to ensure the NDIS reform is successful.  To do that we need to remind the community and politicians that NDIS is not part of welfare reform.  The way we speak about something is just as important as the changes we seek to make.

 

Sorting through the facts

The NDIS and Great Expectations

 

 

 

 

What is the NDIS?

 

As the National Disability Insurance Scheme, known as the NDIS is the new way people with disabilities and their families are being supported to live a life reflective of their peers.

 

NDIS is not a Centerlink payment, entitlement or linked to any centrelink payment. It is a funding system to pay for the assistance that people with disabilities need to live a life that is reflective of their peers.

 

The scheme is for all Australians from birth to 65 years of age. With a permeate disability that requires life long assistance to reach their milestones and goals. You can check your eligibility here.

 

 

It is new and exciting

 

The NDIS is a revolutionary new way to support people with disabilities and their families to access funding to best allow them to achieve the lifestyle they desire. For many years Queensland families have wanted a greater say in the way they are assisted.

 

Thus the NDIS is a individualised approach to designing support packages for those needing assistance with their. The types of support and $ value, are determined by your individual goals and how you want to each those goals.

 

Like any thing that undergoes major reform there are teething problems and frustrations result.  If my advice is worth anything, then . . .

 

Keep, clam and eat chocolate, while we

attempt to sort fact from fiction.

 

Expectation # 1

 

Exercising Choice

 

Even if your choice is for nothing to change you still have a few things you need to prepare for the transition to the NDIS. Your `first plan' is about expressing those choices as goals. Goals are about how you want you life to look like.

 

You're plan will need to describe life now. With a statement about how you are feeling about, your life now.  If life is great, then put that in your participant statement.  The change has occurred because the majority of people were not happy and wanted a greater say in the way they are assisted to live life. 

 

Thus to continue to be supported you need to:-

 

1. State the things you want to do.
2. How you want to do them.
3. What assistance you will require.

 

As your needs are now assessed on the things you want to do, the information required is different.  You will be ask to work on your first plan. Click here to download your participants pack to plan your future supported under the NDIS.

 

So if you had a expectation than their would be no work involve then I guess you feel disappointed.  With the power to chose comes some level of responsibility. The more choice and flexibility you want to build into your plan, the higher the commitment you will need to invest into the development and execution of your plan.

 

With the right to chose comes responsibility and accountability 

 

The Challenge

 

Self-directing the way you want to be supported, means you become and advocate for yourself or the person you are assisting, for example a family member.  In writing your plan you need to provide reasoning for the supports you are asking for.  The NDIA does not have a blank check and real life is not like sending Santa clause a wish list.

 

 

Making Your Choices

 

So what are some of the things you can make choices about?

 

• The services you want to access.
• When and how you access those services.
• How you want your funding to be administration

 

What are the choices involving administration of your package and what will that mean for you?

 

At base level there are three ways you funding can be managed:-

 

1. Ask the NDIA to do it on your behalf
2. Ask a funding host to manage your funds
3. Manage your funding yourself

 

With the second and third choice their is flexibility in how that looks like at grass level.

 

A perceived expectation I heard from others was gaining control of their own funding meant they could spend it more economically than the way service providers were.  The difficult is service provider were bound by rules and regulations, if you are intending to self-manage you need to be business like in this approach and will need to keep to the rules and regulation yourself.

 

The amount a support person is paid does not equal the service deliver cost.  Self-management will not reduce the price of your support or allow you to buy more hours.

 

To derive at the cost per hour you need to add:-

 

• Hourly rate of worker or workers delivering the service
• Administration costs
• Training of staff
• Coordination of staff
• Plenty rates, superannuation and ;eave loading
• Insurances and work cover

 

Add all these costs divided the sum by the no of service delivery hours and you derive at the service delivery price.

 

Costs divided by hours = unit pricing

 

 

Reality does not always meat our expectations, sometimes our expectations are not realistic.

 

 

What is meant by Control?

 

 

My understanding is control under the NDIS is about participants directing how they are assisted. 

 

• Their goals and activities
• Types of services
• Choosing the service providers
• Choosing how funds are administrated, 

 

The NDIA still have a duty of care and will not fund 'supports' that put the participant at risk of harm.  For some people self-management might put them at risk of finical harm so safety steps are put in place like a support coordinator to enable them to best self direct.

 

 

We have seen that NDIS is not a welfare payment that goes into your bank account.  It works a bit like medicare paying for your support needs.  For things like therapies and equipment you make a claim, that claim has to be approved.  The funds must be as set out in your agreement you will sign with your Local Area Coordinator.

 

The NDIS supports includes:

 

 

• Accommodation support
• Direct support hours
• Respite
• Day services\
• Therapies
• Equipment and aids
• Assist technology
• Administration supports

More people will be supported by the NDIA for a whole range of reasons.  Not everyone is needing what we traditionally referred to as supports. Some people will be accessing the NDIS just for support with the mobility such as a wheelchair and incontinences pads.

 

This is the main reason you are being requested to write a NDIS plan so your package can be correctly design for you needs.

 

No Disadvantage

 

The NDIA has promised  no one will be disadvantage under the NDIS. There are people who have being receiving support funding that goes unspent year after year.  This rule allows that funding to be redirected. You many not receive everything you receive now, because a more effective way to meet your supports needs can now be sourced under the NDIS. 

 

"Reasonable and Necessary Supports"

 

The NDIS funds supports:

 

1. That are linked directly to your NDIS goals.
2. Are related to your specific disability.
3. Are cost effective - deliver value for money.
4. Do not put the participant at risk.

The NDIS will not fund things your peers must pay for like rent, cars or textbooks. A peer is a non-disable person about you age. So if you go to the pool with your support work you still need to pay to get into the pool. A companion card can be one way you can meet the expenses of you support person.

 

Great expectations

 

Like everyone when the concept of the NDIS was being discussed, I formed expectations about what that may look like.  Most of my expectations will be meat but not all and that's life.  Some of these expectation is due to my misunderstanding what terms I have never heard before or poor examples being used.

 

In the early days in my neck of the woods, going on holiday was a regularly used example of a choice we could make under the NDIS. The use of universal example concern me because some people through the world get to go on holiday for free.  Just like everyone else whether we camping at the lake or flying to Pairs the cost of a holiday is your personal expense.

 

Regardless of your goals the NDIA will only pay for the expense of your disability. If you want to play basketball. you need to pay you fees, memberships, uniforms and travel costs.  The NDIS ,ay pay for a sports wheelchair. Due to the individual design of the NDIS.

 

 

Much of our frustrations and confusion is due to our personal expectations not being realised, The NDIA has no blank checks and it can not possibly fund every dream.  This is one reason we are asked to prioritise our goals to ensure what is most important to us is funded. 

 

For some these expectations were the result of not knowing how the rules and regulations of the current system would operate in the new world of the NDIS.  We assumed the auditing process would not occur in a market driven industry.  Not-for-profit are still not making a profit, safe checks are still needed and your funding still needs to be acquitted. 

 

 

 

 The NDIA Ipswich office are already calling clients and requesting plans and documentation.  July 1 is not a flick of a switch.  You need to get up to speed or risk a gap in service. You need to know what you want; how you want your life to look like; how you intend to achieve your goals and the support you have now.  These are the determines in what you package will include.

 

To avoid major disappointment ask someone like a current provider to ensure you not left anything out. If you not got something call My First Plan you are now behind the game.  You need to pull that finger out and start asking for help to get up to speed.

 

Time to leave La La Land and head to the website download the documents or contact you current provider for a template and start writing.

 

You can message me for a free information booklet.

 



For Facts the website is your first port of call.