Intereach is your NDIS ‘partner in the community’

EVERY STEP OF THE WAY… From left, the team at Intereach Shepparton, Michelle Judd, Millie Stephens, Anthony Madu, Gillian McLeod, Simon Humphrey, Alyssa Hamilton, Asma Harrouk, Laura Ash, Jill Smith, Meagan Homewood, Debra McAlister, Stacey Ferrito, Kathy Remilton, Vanessa Cardamone, Dylan Rustem and Yvette Buhagiar who can help take you through all you need to know about the NDIS. Photo: David Lee.
EVERY STEP OF THE WAY… From left, the team at Intereach Shepparton, Michelle Judd, Millie Stephens, Anthony Madu, Gillian McLeod, Simon Humphrey, Alyssa Hamilton, Asma Harrouk, Laura Ash, Jill Smith, Meagan Homewood, Debra McAlister, Stacey Ferrito, Kathy Remilton, Vanessa Cardamone, Dylan Rustem and Yvette Buhagiar who can help take you through all you need to know about the NDIS. Photo: David Lee.
EVERY STEP OF THE WAY… From left, the team at Intereach Shepparton, Michelle Judd, Millie Stephens, Anthony Madu, Gillian McLeod, Simon Humphrey, Alyssa Hamilton, Asma Harrouk, Laura Ash, Jill Smith, Meagan Homewood, Debra McAlister, Stacey Ferrito, Kathy Remilton, Vanessa Cardamone, Dylan Rustem and Yvette Buhagiar who can help take you through all you need to know about the NDIS. Photo: David Lee.
EVERY STEP OF THE WAY… From left, the team at Intereach Shepparton, Michelle Judd, Millie Stephens, Anthony Madu, Gillian McLeod, Simon Humphrey, Alyssa Hamilton, Asma Harrouk, Laura Ash, Jill Smith, Meagan Homewood, Debra McAlister, Stacey Ferrito, Kathy Remilton, Vanessa Cardamone, Dylan Rustem and Yvette Buhagiar who can help take you through all you need to know about the NDIS. Photo: David Lee.

A COMMUNITY-BASED organisation, Intereach, has been funded to provide Local Area Co-ordination, Early Childhood Early Intervention, and Community Engagement and Capacity Development as a National Disability Insurance Scheme “partner in the community.”

Intereach senior manager for the Goulburn NDIS area, Kate McRae said Intereach staff are helping people plan and implement their NDIS plans and working with participants, community members, community groups and service providers to provide assistance with the rollout of the NDIS.

Ms McRae said they are working hard to ensure local people with a disability have as much opportunity and choice as everyone else.

“We are about making sure people get access to the services they need. Having a disability shouldn’t be a bar to accessing everything in the community that everyone else gets to access and it shouldn’t stop people from pursuing their goals,” Ms McRae said.

“We want to make sure people are meeting their goals, and if they’re not, what are the barriers and how can we help those people move past them?”

The fact that the Shepparton area was amongst the last of the regions to get the NDIS was a bonus because people will get the benefit of professionals and organisations that have already worked with the NDIS, according to Ms McRae.

“I see being the last region to roll out NDIS as a positive given that the NDIS is the biggest social change since Medicare – having others come before us and learning from their experiences can only be seen as a positive,” Ms McRae said.

“The tangible benefit is that Intereach has now been working in the NDIS space for over two years and that organisational knowledge will absolutely benefit the Goulburn Valley communities.”

After two years personally working with the NDIS system, Ms McRae said the vast majority of NDIS outcomes had been positive for individuals, and with people, services and community groups working hard on adjusting to the new market-based system ‘it’s only going to get better.’

“Intereach recognises that there are already a host of amazing providers and services in the area. The introduction of the NDIS is a massive change to the way business was done before and the service providers in the area are working really hard to adapt,” Ms McRae said.

“Our service providers, our people with disabilities and our core groups have all been working towards inclusion for a really long time and the NDIS is bringing this to the next level. The demand for services, and opportunity for people with disability will increase with the NDIS. What we have seen in other areas is that services increase to meet those demands.”

Ms McRae said, “For us the individual is the most important person coming through the door. Our job is to help the individual and their family and support networks to make the most out of the scheme. We are the connection that allows people with disabilities to have streamlined access to community and mainstream supports.”

Because the NDIS is new for so many people, Ms McRae encourages people with questions, including those enquiring about early childhood intervention, to call 1300 488 226 or drop into their new office at 1 Sobraon Street, Shepparton.

“We want to be a channel for people to find information and learn more about the scheme. Information is so important in terms of allaying fears and anxiety,” Ms McRae said.