Workshop on Inclusion of Volunteers with Cognitive Disabilities at the 11th IAVE A-P Conference 2007
Presented at the 11th IAVE Asia Pacific Regional Volunteer Conference, Nagoya-Aichi
General Interest Workshop 5a Corporate Volunteering, December 9, 2007, 13:15-14:45
Inclusion of Volunteers with Cognitive Disabilities
Moira Deslandes
Volunteering SA and NT
AUSTRALIA
Notes:
If volunteering is for EVERYONE - then who was missing and what was getting in the way of them not being able to volunteer.
Inclusion - social justice - participation, equity, access, rights ; equality of opportunity.
Turning experience of being a client in receipt of getting a service to being one who is giving a service.
LIVE volunteers complained that when they came into VSA they were not treated with equality and found our volunteer interviewers not really knowing where to refer them too. VSA interviewers were concerned that volunteer involving organisations did not have the right conditions or capacity to enable a successful volunteering experience and therefore it would be setting someone up for failure.
Some volunteer interviewers were very experienced in working with people with disabilities, others were less experienced.
A first step was to train staff - paid and volunteers within VSA in disability awareness.
A second step was to undertake a survey of volunteer involving organisations to find out their experience and the opportunities they may already be providing for volunteers with cognitive disabilities.
Our partners: LIVE, OT School Uni SA, funders - State and Commonwealth sources; volunteer hours.
Collaboration - shared decision making; inclusion of participants in workshops; training for volunteers and volunteer involving organisations.
Recognition it takes time and money - funding - we didn’t take it all we looked at things that the agencies might need to help them make the placements successful and this included paying insurance; training for staff at host organisations; new signage …
Reviewing and learning at each stage to ensure that all the learning was being captured and applied to the next step.
We wanted OT students as we felt that OT would focus on functionality - not on what people couldn’t do but what they could do.
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