Community update - 21 March 2025

Chris:

Kia ora koutou. I'm Chris Bunny. I'm leading the work to stabilise Disability Support Services. Thanks for tuning in to my regular community update. We are doing things a little differently today.

Stabilising disability support services so that they are fairer, more consistent, more transparent, and sustainable into the future is a big job and a team effort. I’d like to introduce one of my team, Anne Shaw.

Anne:

Thanks Chris. Kia ora koutou. I’m Anne, I’m the Associate Deputy Chief Executive. My team and I lead the delivery of disability support services. We provide essential support to around 50,000 disabled people and their whānau. We also provide equipment and modification services for approximately 100,000 New Zealanders.

Chris: 

Anne and I have both been on the road at workshops as part of our community consultation. It has been a privilege to meet people and hear their insights and their stories.

Anne:

Now we are in the final days of our consultation. It closes at 5pm on Monday the 24th of March.

A personal highlight for me has been talking to disabled people, their whānau and carers about what positive changes we could make to needs assessment and allocation settings, and to how flexible funding is used.

I really appreciate the effort people have made to participate. For many, this meant making special arrangements and taking time away from their very busy and challenging lives.

Chris: 

I would like to add my thanks to everyone who has taken the time to tell us what you think. It’s not too late to get involved. If you missed out on a workshop, you can still make a submission, complete a survey, or send us a video.

All the information is on our website disabilitysupport.govt.nz.

It’s important we hear from as many disabled people, their whānau and carers as possible. If you haven’t yet had your say, please take the time to do so by 5pm on Monday.

Anne:

Mā te wā, bye for now.