DPA's Information Exchange - 26 June 2021

• Bubble Hui - Housing
• Bubble Hui for Māori members
• Transport Survey
• Adoption Law Reform consultation
• Royal Commission of Inquiry into Abuse in Care - Nelson hui

Bubble Hui  - Housing

Come along to our next Bubble Hui on Saturday July 3 and join us for a conversation about housing.

When: Saturday 3 July 
What time: 3.00pm  – 4.30pm 
Where: Zoom (all current members will be emailed a link) 

  
-NZSL interpreters will be present at this event 
-This is a national event, members from around the country are invited to attend 
 
Do you want to join in but are not a DPA member? Joining is easy and free – go to http://www.dpa.org.nz/join-dpa/introduction to sign up. 


About our Bubble Hui

Our Bubble Hui started last year during the Level 4 lock-down as a way for members to meet and discuss current issues online via Zoom. As we found them a great way to connect with our members around the country, we are now continuing them on a regular basis.

Bubble Hui for Maori members

We are holding another Bubble Hui specifically for our Māori members on July 14. 

This follows on from an initial Bubble Hui for our Māori membership last month and will continue the conversation around: 

What issues are important to our Māori members and what does DPA need to do to advocate for change?  

How do we develop a strategy for empowering Māori members – and for our Māori membership to lead the way in this?  

Should we have a Māori membership stream / working group? And what would this look like?  

Should we have dedicated places reserved on our National Executive Committee for Māori members?  

What does our Māori membership exercising Tino Rangatiratanga within DPA look like?   

When: Wednesday 14 July 
What time: 5.00pm  – 6.30pm 
Where: Zoom (all current Māori members will be emailed a link) 
  

-This hui will be facilitated by NEC member Helena Tuteao 
-NZSL interpreters will be present at this event 
-This is a national event, members from around the country are invited to attend 
 
Do you want to join in but are not a DPA member? Joining is easy and free – go to http://www.dpa.org.nz/join-dpa/introduction to sign up. 

Transport survey

Thank you to everyone who has participated in the Transport Workshops that DPA have been holding together with transport consultancy MRCagney, as part of a research project conducted on behalf of Waka Kotahi, NZ Transport Agency - "Understanding the transport experiences of disabled people, determining what barriers exist for people wanting to use Total Mobility and exploring new opportunities"

For those of you who haven't taken part, it would be great if you could share your transport experiences through this survey:

Complete the Plain English Transport Survey
 
Complete the NZSL Transport Survey

There will be an opportunity at the end of the survey to provide or update your contact details. The only reason we collect contact details is to send a summary of the research results, when that is available later in 2021. Your contact details will be stored separately from the rest of your contributions.

The information you provide in the survey will be used to improve transport planners’ understanding of how disabled people experience transport. The results from the workshops and survey will be analysed for a research report. The report will include recommendations for improvements that could be made to transport, to make disabled peoples’ journeys easier.

If you have any questions about the research or survey, please contact researcher Fiona Thomas by email at fthomas@mrcagney.com 

Adoption Law Reform consultation

The Government is reviewing our adoption laws to make sure they meet the needs of Aotearoa New Zealand in 2021 and beyond. 

The consultation includes a number of suggested options for changing our adoption laws, including around ‘dispensing with consent’.

In some situations, the Family Court can make adoption orders without the agreement of one or both birth parents. This is known as ‘dispensing with consent’.

If an application to dispense with consent is made, the Court may only do so if:

• the parent or guardian mistreated the child. This means the parent or guardian has either abandoned, neglected, consistently failed to look after and care for, or consistently ill-treated the child, or
• it considers that the parent or guardian is unfit to look after the child because of a physical or mental incapacity, meaning they cannot have care and control of the child. Any physical or mental incapacity must also be likely to continue indefinitely.

Royal Commission of Inquiry into Abuse in Care - Nelson hui

The Royal Commission of Inquiry into Abuse in Care are holding two hui in Nelson.

Nelson Hui 1 - Whānau, Provider, Community hui

Hui for people who are part of or connected to the learning disability, neurodiverse and cognitive impairment community:

Easy Read invite Community Hui Nelson July 22 (Word Doc)
Easy Read invite Community Hui Nelson July 22 (PDF)
Invite whānau provider community Hui Nelson 22 July  (Word Doc)
Invite whānau provider community Hui Nelson 22 July (PDF)

When: Tuesday 22 July
Time: 10am - 12pm.
Where: Greenmeadow Centre, 491 Main Road, Stoke, Nelson

This hui will discuss:

• why the Inquiry was set up
• what the Inquiry does
• how people can share their story with the Inquiry.

Nelson Hui 2 - Community Hui

Hui for people who identify as part of the learning disability, neurodiverse and cognitive impairment community and their supporters.

Easy Read invite whānau provider community Hui Nelson 18 August (Word Doc)
Easy Read whānau provider community Hui Nelson 18 August (PDF)

When: Wednesday 18 August
Time: 10.30am – 3pm
Where:  Greenmeadow Centre, 491 Main Road, Stoke, Nelson

This hui will discuss:

• what abuse and neglect means
• who to tell if it has happened to you
• what you think helps people feel safe to speak up.