Welcome

Update

• Australia: Following our 3 days of strategic planning lead by Dr. Michael Kendrick for practitioners, peer families, officials and researchers, we are laying out the foundations for a regional pilot to test impact on families as a point of entry to the NDIS together with a longitudinal research to monitor impact over 3 years following intervention
• New Zealand: Our second Now and Next program is starting in November in partnership with McKenzie Centre and CCS Disability Action: Twenty three participants (amongst them 11 couples!) graduated from the first Now and Next program and launched the first Now and Next NZ Alumni group called: Families Empowering Families. Seven parents are carrying on the training to become Peer Workers and 12 people (6 practitioners from McKenzie and 6 parents) are completing their Pictability training. We are using this second Now and Next group to provide in-session training for them as well as additional peer worker training ahead and during the program
• Canada: We are preparing to launch in Vancouver where Kinsight (http://kinsight.org) has confirmed launch of the full Now and Next suite of programs over the next 2 years, following enthusiastic endorsement from their 30 practitioners trained in Pictability in June.
• Research: We are also carrying two NZ research programs funded by CCSDA Innovation Fund to explore supporting school leavers and their families as well exploring the cultural appropriateness of Pictability for Maori families
• Publications and presentations: We are submitting 5 new publications towards both widespread dissemination and peer-review, and about 5 new conference presentations
  (list here)