Our Projects
- Website
- Equipment Showroom
- Equipment Program
- Support Research & Development Projects
- Modified Community Home
Website
Project Scope:
Provide WA children with special needs, carers, families and therapists with resources and information including:
- Does my child have Special Needs?
- What Next?
- A - Z Directory of Services & Support
- A-Z Medical Conditions
- Equipments & Toys
- Leisure & Play
- Self Care Tips
- Education
- Child Care
- Respite
- Financial Support
- Family & Relationships
- Travel with Ease
- Home Modifications
- Provide online chat forums for children with special needs, their siblings and parents/carer's.
Our Objectives:
Inspire kids and families to live an unlimited life, fulfilling their dreams and potential.
Showcase a range of equipment, toys that promote opportunities for access, independence, inclusion, communication, education, mobility, postural support and quality of life
Present available options in education, childcare, respite
Empower children with special needs, their families and carers to make informed choices
Expand access, independence & inclusion within family, school, community & abroad
Provide social support for children with special needs, their siblings & parents/carers
Our goal is to regularly update and expand the information on the website to cater for all Australians
Raise much needed funds for equipment program, modified community home & projects that will enhance the life of children with special needs
Expand volunteer network to broaden the scope of our existing projects, create new projects that extend our reach in the community.
Equipment Showroom
When I want to buy a pram, a cot, a highchair anything at all for my 2 year old son I can go to any department store, choose the item that best meets his needs and our budget and buy it on the spot.
When I want to buy a chair, a pram or a postural chair for my 3 year old daughter who cannot sit, stand, walk, talk, bathe or toilet without assistance, THERE IS NO STORE.
Our showroom project aims to provide this store and similar choices and opportunities to kids with special needs and their families.
Project Scope:
We aim to raise $400K to provide a broad range of equipment for children (0-18 years) with special needs.
This equipment will be on permanent display in one central location, with health professionals available to assist with fittings if necessary. It will provide WA children with special needs, their carers and therapists with immediate access to fit equipment including:
- Postural Seating & Positioning – including travel options
- Standing
- Mobility – Mobility Bases, Strollers, Wheelchairs, Walkers
- Bathing & Toileting
- Sleep & Positioning
- Sporting & Play
- Communication
- Education
- Access & Environmental Control
The showroom will provide resources that will assist WA children with special needs, their carers and therapists to select equipment that best meets their child's needs.
Visit our Equipment Showroom Page to view our current equipment.
Our Objectives:
- Children can immediately access equipment to view & fit (no waiting)
- All equipment needs are housed in one place, along with home modification ideas
- Parents can view all available equipment options and discuss these with their child's therapist, and onsite expert O.T.
- Parents & therapists can make informed choice for equipment, after being fitted and assessing child's postural needs, growth rate as well as functional use of equipment.
- Families can test equipment (considering weight, size) etc. to know if it is suitable for home, vehicle, room size and ease of use (to prevent injury to carer/s)
- Potential to limit health complications for child due to a lack of postural support or equipment
- Carers / Parents / Therapists can use their time more effectively (not wasted sourcing equipment)
- Therapists can use their time more effectively; less time spent chasing suppliers trying to track down equipment and can provide a better service to their clients (families) with a range of equipment options for them to view and try in the one location
Equipment Program
Currently WA Children are waiting up to 12 months for essential pieces of equipment including seating, positioning, mobility, wheelchairs, bathing & toileting, communication, access & environmental control devices.
Project Scope:
We aim to raise $3 million dollars to enable loan of this equipment whilst children await government funds, so that no child has to wait longer than 4 weeks to access essential equipment.
Benefits:
- WA Children can access equipment within 4 weeks, subject to availability (no 12 month wait for CAEP funding)
- Equipment provides: access, independence, inclusion, mobility, communication, education, social opportunities
- Increased self-confidence, sense of inclusion as child has equipment to enable independent play and social interaction.
- Reduced stress within family unit
- Equipment can be re-cycled (parents know what to do with used equipment)
- Therapists will have more time to spend with families on therapy that will aid the child's development, rather than time spent in therapy sessions trying to fix health problems (such as poor posture, poor digestion, poor respiratory) that arise as a consequence of unmet equipment needs.
- Hospitals will be less burdened with unnecessary illness and surgeries (arising from lack of adequate equipment in early intervention years)... e.g. aspiration, compaction of major organs and/or pneumonia in children with CP due to lack of support and poor positioning of a child that requires postural stability.
Support Research and Development
Project Scope:
Special Aussies Foundation aims to fund research projects that will enhance the health and quality of life of children with special needs.
Research projects may include:
- Medical Research
- Equipment Development & Engineering
Our Objectives:
- To fund research that can make a difference in the lives of special needs children
- Enhance the health of special needs children through breakthroughs in medical research and therapies
- Enable opportunities for access, independence, inclusion, communication, education, mobility and improved quality of life through development of equipment, technology or therapies.
Modified Community Home
Project Scope: TBA
The Special Aussies Foundation Modified Community Home project is very much in its planning stages and is considered a future project. Our Board has canvassed the idea of funding a home that displays modifications that meet the vast array of WA children's special needs.
We see this home being utilised to offer leisure & play activities, communication & play workshops for children with special needs and their siblings and we welcome any ideas. We look ahead to 2011 to move from the planning to implementation stages, however with community ideas and generous support of sponsors we can make this can happen much sooner.
Our Corporate Partners
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