Last report from Beverley
As I write this I realise itwill be my final editorial as National President of DPA NZ.
Much has happened during the past two years and things are not slowing down.
It’s an extremely exciting time at the moment. Co-operation across the sector is growing as we forge closer working relationships with each other.
As non-government organisations (NGOs) and disabled persons’organisations (DPOs) we are successfully learning to really work together and use our collective resources to help bring about change. And government departments and officials are enforcing changes as they too work in closer ways with each other and with us.
An example of working in a closer way
I think the Enabling Good Lives demonstration illustrates the importance of working together to improve services for disabled people. The demonstration is being jointly designed with disabled people, families and service providers in the city.Seeing the many government ministries working together on this project is wonderful.
I think it is more important than ever that members and allied organisations continue to be active and visible now to ensure our voices are heard. As government departments and others seek feedback from us we have to ensure it is a representative view, so we need to be active with our individual contribution so diverse voices are heard, not just the usual suspects.
The importance of regional members
DPA regions continue to work hard and to feed their issues and achievements back to the secretariat. I hope you realise your importance. Speaking of local people, as I write I see DPA Member Shirley Hazelwood on TV illustrating her amazing community involvement and success in Taranaki with her horse museum. I can’t think of a better way to show disability awareness than to be active members of community like Shirley is. Congratulations Shirley.
New staff in the secretariat
Our capacity in the secretariat continues to grow to support our activities and it gives me great pleasure to welcome Sally Champion to our communications role and Victoria Manning to our policy role. Victoria joins us from the Human Rights Commission and Sally from a background in communications across many government departments. They join our tirelessly hard-working team in Wellington – Paula Booth, Executive Assistant and Bronwyn Hayward, Senior Kaituitui.
Staff in the secretariat are of course ably lead by Rachel Noble, our Chief Executive.
New National Executive Committee
As Bites goes to print we have just had our AGM and I would like to welcome our new National Executive Committee. Brendon Murray,of course, steps into the Presidents role.
You will be hearing from Brendon in the next issue of Bites.
So plenty to celebrate and lots to do, but thank goodness summer seems to be coming at last.
Kind regards
Beverley Grammer
(Now) Immediate Past President
Our 2013 AGM
Our Annual General Meeting was held on 23 November – as Bites went to print. We congratulate Brendon Murray who is our new National President. Beverley Grammer has now moved into the Immediate Past President role. We thank her for all her hard work during her term as President.
There are also changes on the National Executive Committee. Elected new members are Paul Holmes and John Scully, who join Roger Marsden and Matt Whiting.
Peter Mason continues as the National Maori Advisor.
To those members who didn’t stand for re-election, we appreciate all the work you did during your term.
We’ll talk more about our newly elected members in the next issue of Bites.
DPA forum
On 25 and 26 September our forum was held in Wellington. Participants came from across the disability sector. The purpose of the forum was to come up with a collective agenda for action to move the inclusion agenda forward.
The forum was facilitated by our Chief Executive Rachel Noble with DPA Kaumatua Peter Mason giving everybody a lot of aroha through-out the two-day gathering.
Who came to the forum
About 70 people attended the two-day event. DPA members were represented by National Executive members, DPA staff and kaituitui from around the country. Also present were representatives from the Office of the Ombudsman, the Human Rights Commission, the Health and Disability Commission, DPOs and key service providers.
Day one – a day of personal exploration
Activities on the first day centred around exploringour different experiences and perspectives. In groups, with a mix of people from all parts of the sector, everyone worked through a series of exercises. We looked at our experiences of being disabled (or not) and discussed our different perspectives on disability. Different points of view were acknowledged and common ground established.
Day two – work on an inclusion agenda
The second day focused on what actions needed to be taken by the sector to move the inclusion agenda forward. Work on the forum’s agenda for change concluded with each group agreeing:
- on five problems that were a priority for change
- that other problems raised by individuals (not deemed top group priorities) should be discussed further by all parties to understand why there were differences and how they could be resolved
- who in the sector should work on the different priorities
- that differences of opinion about who in the sector should do what were to be noted and discussed further by all parties to understand why there were differences and how they could be resolved.
Priorities identified
The priorities for action identified and agreed by the different groups were the need for (in brief):
- improved collaboration across the sector
- better attitudes across society regarding disability
- better education for disabled children
- increased compliance with the United Nations (UN) Convention
- income generation and equality for disabled people, and
- improved health and wellbeing for disabled people.
We are still in the very early stages of progressing this work but we will continue to give you regular progress updates.
1 Dec 2013
Across the room at the forum
1 Dec 2013
Forum inspiration
There were plenty of speakers at the forum to give us inspiration. Many were members of our own community, including: our Chief Executive Rachel Noble, President Beverley Grammer, Jade Farrar and Clare Teague.
The Ombudsman Dame Beverley Wakem DNZM CBE and John Allen Chief Executive and Secretary of Foreign Affairs and Trade and Be.Institute Chair were first-day speakers.
Words from Ombudsman Dame Beverley Wakem
Dame Beverley wasn’t able to attend the forum but, via a video link, she talked about the importance of DPOs having a strong and unified voice and the renewed commitment to partnership within the sector.
She cited a recent meeting between her office the Human Rights Commission, Rachel Noble and a group of chief executives from government agencies.
She said at the meeting Rachel really told it like it was. Rachel spoke about the lived experience of disability and how DPO’s relationship with government over the last 30 years had been littered with good intentions but the relationship had not been fully realised.
Dame Beverley said this was a turning point, a time when pre-arranged agendas were put away and participants really started to talk about how to engage effectively. A commitment she said that continues.
Words from Minister Tariana Turia
On the second day the Minister for Disability Issues Tariana Turia and Green MP Mojo Mathers visited the forum. Minister Turia also spoke about partnership. She said:
“The best way for government and its agencies to know what the priorities are for disabled people’s organisations is for them to tell us – directly.
“And we must listen and be prepared to be open and willing to engage. As many of you will know we have committed to involve disabled people’s organisations in updating the Government’s Disability Action Plan. An updated Disability Action Plan is due to come back to the Ministerial Committee on Disability Issues in December 2013.
“There is also a commitment for the Chief Executives’ Group on Disability Issues and the Independent Monitors to monitor progress with implementing the updated DisabilityAction Plan. Once this is underway, we will also be working with disabled people’s organisations to better understand the capability and capacity challenges they face in just existing, let alone actively engaging with government agencies.
“The concept of challenge is nothing new to many of you here. Every day is a challenge to exercise the full rights of citizenship, on an equal basis with others. Part of the significance of this forum, however, is that Government is stepping up to the challenge; which in itself emerges out of the ratification of the UNConvention.
“Government is raising its own expectations about what it can and must do to address the entrenched attitudes and behaviours preventing many disabled people from living an everyday life and exercising their rights of citizenship. This has been the enduring message of the New Zealand Disability Strategy, theUN Convention and, of course, what disabled people and families tell me.”
Read the Minister’s full speech by going to the beehive website:
MinisterTuria and DPA’s Peter Mason
Rachel speaking at the forum
Rachel says……….
“The forum was a real success. It was great to see so many people from so many parts of the sector in the same room, talking together and sharing their perspectives.
“I was particularly pleased by the way everybody engaged with the forum process. Looking around the room I saw a lot of animated discussion and active listening.
“Points of disagreement were debated and points of agreement were arrived at.”
New way of working between government and DPOs
Government agreed in August this year to work with Disabled People’s Organisations (DPOs) in a new way byinvolving them early in policy design and monitoring new initiatives.
DPOs involved in this agreement include: Balance NZ, the Disabled Person’s Assembly, the Association of Blind Citizens, People First, Deaf Aotearoa, Nga Hau e Wha, Ngati Kapo o Aotearoa and Deafblind NZ.
Work programme
This joint work programme will see:
- the Disability Action Plan updated with a three- to five-year focus
- processes developed for seeking DPO representatives
- a project to understand the current capacity of DPOs and identify ways to streamline processes
- government agencies working together to reduce compliance costs for DPOs and funding relating to strengthening DPO capacity pooled.
Over the next 12 months DPOs and government agencies will meet monthly to assess how work is progressing and make any required adjustments.
A big step forward
Rachel says, “Government commitment to increase DPO capacity is a big step forward. And this is the first time we have been formally invited to work with it on the Disability Action Plan– the whole-of-government plan it uses to outline work in the disability area.
“Earlier in November the DPOs presented a consensus document to government officials. The document highlights common issues and areas where a variety of approaches are required to cover all groups of people. It is fascinating to see how one issue translates in so many different ways. An example is what goes into being able to vote. People need to be able to vote independently, they need to be able to access a building to vote and access information before the election to make an informed choice.”
A new look for DPA
As you can see from this edition of Bites DPA has developed a new look to celebrate the new era of co-operation and positivity within the sector.
We have kept our name of course but alongside it we have added the brightly coloured words ‘A whole new attitude’. Have a look at the end of this edition of Bites to see how our name and the ‘A whole new attitude’graphic, work together.
We are giving our website a re-vamp
DPA staff at the Secretariatin Wellington are working to apply the new look tothe DPA website and to add extra features.
We want you to be able to contribute to the work we are doing online and to provide a space for you to tell us about your life. We are also going to post more DPA news (so if you are online you don’t need to wait for the next issue of Bites) and we’ll be posting ‘Think Pieces’ from invited disabled writers and thinkers.
We hope you will find our new site informative and we hope the new interactivity will help give us a sense of community and direction.
In the next issue of Bites we’ll be able to give you the address for the new site.
Pledge of support from City Councillorat the recent Christchurch hui
by Chris Ford, Kaituitui Dunedin
At the recent DPA hui in Christchurch, City Councillor Yani Johanson pledged his support, honouring the UN Convention, and saying it just can’t be left on the shelf, it needs to be actioned and the City Council is committed to this.
Three Christchurch City Councillors came to the one-day hui on Friday 8 November, as well as New Zealand’s first (and former) Minister for Disability Issues Labour MP Ruth Dyson and Green MP Mojo Mathers.
There were nearly 40 participants, from the disabled and non-disabled communities in Canterbury, all wanting to learn more about the UN Convention, DPA and the work of the Kaituitui network.
Five Southern Region Kaituitui flew to Christchurch to facilitate the event, which was the second DPA hui on the UN Convention following the first successful national hui in Wellington.
Maxine Hooper (Ashburton), Brendan Murray (Invercargill), Peter Mason and Karim Baradi (Christchurch), and myself organised the hui with support from Senior Kaituitui Bronwyn Hayward and Rachel Noble who also attended.
The day’s main discussion centred on how participants can turn the UN Convention into a living reality. A number of recommendations were made around how to do this. Accessibility, employment opportunities, support services, educational outcomes and housing for disabled people were issues that were discussed. During the day we also looked at the history of disability in New Zealand leading up to the UN Convention. Times when people felt they were included or excluded from their communities, and two Kaituitui talked about their work and what the UN Convention meant to them.
The hui was a very positive experience and we five Kaituitui were pleased that the planning we had done in just a short space of time had been so successful.
As this edition of Bites goes to print, two more Kaituitui-organised hui are planned for Auckland and Palmerston North to discuss the same issues.
We hope to now take this hui/forum format into other centres as a means of building momentum for UN Convention implementation across the country.
People First New Zealand celebratesits ten-year anniversary
On 16 October People First members and supporters of People First came together at parliament to celebrate ten years of the organisation operating as an independent DPO.
Minister Turia, who hosted the event, spoke and presented the Leona Gitmans Te Aranga Self Advocacy Award to Josie Khoury. Josie is a founding member of People First and has been involved in a long list of self-advocacy activity over many years.
At the celebration People First members also launched the new People First logo, website and Facebook page.
At the end of the celebration a publication, highlighting the activities of People First over the last 10 years, was available for people to take away.
In the evening people gathered to cut the tenth anniversary birthday cake and to party.
Go to the new People First website: to read more about the celebrations. You can alsodownload the ten-year anniversary publication (the ten-year edition of the Butterfly Express).
Minister Turia placing the Award pounamu around Josie’sneck.
DPA Secretariat team grows
Two new members of the Wellington Secretariat team are now on board.
Sally Champion, Communications Co-ordinator and Victoria Manning, Policy and Research Analyst, join Chief Executive Rachel Noble, Paula Booth her Executive Assistant and Bronwyn Haywood, Senior Kaituitui.
Victoria comes to us from the Human Rights Commission. She says, “My role at DPA involves providing disability analysis and expertise. I’ll be writing submissions to Parliament and liaising with government policy units to give advice. Right now I am analysing DPA’s strategic documents to develop some policy statements that outline its position on key issues. These statements will of course be sent to you for input.”
Victoria has 20 years’ experience in disability policy and government-level advocacy. She has extensive knowledge of government and policy processes and strong relationship skills. She has worked as an expert disability analyst in government departments, the Human Rights Commission and now for DPA.
Victoria says she is looking forward to working here and engaging with you as members to help ensure our diverse voice is heard loud and clear.
Victoria is deaf and can be contacted by email:
Sally has worked in government communications for many years and has a good knowledge of disability policy and services across the sector. She will help DPA plan and craft its communications. At the moment she working onBites, content for our re-vamped website and putting together our annual report for publication.She would be really interested to hear from you about the sort of information/news you want to see in Bites. Email Sally at: