Dance a part of Lucy's active life

Lucy is member of a large family – parent Pip and William have six daughters. Lucy has a rare chromosome disorder, the chromosome Q13 deletion, a condition which affects only four others in New Zealand and about 150 people worldwide. Lucy is profoundly deaf with no verbal communication and she lives with autism, hyperactivity and OCD.

Lucy has a team of three support workers on rostered shifts. Her sisters and parents also provide support and assist Lucy with her day-to-day activities. Pip encourages Lucy to be independent. She loves the fact that IF allows her the flexibility to choose who comes into her home to support Lucy.

“A trial period is amazing as people can interview really, really well but can turn out to be quite different” adds Pip. She believes children are naturally intuitive, and if her kids can get along well with support staff during their trial period, the candidate is the right fit for Lucy and the family. “I have found nursing and teaching students brilliant.’

There’s more to Individualised Funding than just the support hours. There are other things that the family has been able to achieve with IF which they may not have through a traditional service provider.

Lucy has finished school but continues to have an active life. She not only attends a dance class but also conducts one, every Tuesday at a local dance studio owned by Dean McKerras who has been instrumental in supporting Lucy’s aspirations.

“I wanted her to be able to go to places that she chooses, it’s her life now and I wanted her to choose it.”

View Lucy's story on video here