Life Without Barriers
We are a leading social purpose organisation working in more than 440 communities across Australia. Our services currently support just over 14,000 people living in their own homes or in residential houses that we manage. We support children, young people and families, people with disability, older people and people with mental illness. We work with people who are homeless and refugees and asylum seekers.
Our beginnings were simple but clear – create services where the decisions around the type of care or support being received are made by the people requesting it. Today, we are one of the largest providers of social services in Australia, with a reputation for supporting clients with complex needs and delivering in challenging and new environments. We work with individuals, their carers and others in the community to ensure the best care and support are developed for each individual’s needs. This includes working in partnership with the community, elders, government and private sector to improve the lives of the people we support.
WHY WE DO WHAT WE DO
Australia currently has 43,000 children and young people living in Out of Home Care, unable to live with their parents for reasons of safety. The National Disability Insurance Agency estimates 18% of people live with disability, (abs.gov.au) while 20% of all people will experience some form of mental illness within a 12 month period. (SANE.org.au). In addition, we as a nation, are getting older. Over 15% of all people living in Australia are aged 65 years and over, that’s 3.4 million people. Of those still living in their own homes, 70% enjoy good health – they are ageing ‘well’ - and the other 30% require some form of home support. (AIHW.gov.au) As a national provider of social services, all changes in Australia’s demographic profile requires us to review our services and models of support. However, our approach of putting people first never changes.
OUR PURPOSE
Our purpose is to partner with people to change lives for the better. We believe in the rights of people and the importance of relationships. We bring respect and sensitivity to cultural, linguistic and religious diversity through our Reconciliation Action Plan and Cultural Respect Framework. These foundations shape our unique approach to care and underpin the values of Life Without Barriers.
Our services include: