Minister announces CLBC’s next board chair
CLBC offers a warm welcome to our next Chair of CLBC’s Board of Directors, Dr. Michael J. Prince, whose term will begin as of July 1, 2018.
Minister Shane Simpson made the announcement on May 18, 2018, which you can read here.
Dr. Prince is the Lansdowne professor of social policy at the University of Victoria, and a well-known expert in policies for people with disabilities. CLBC looks forward to his leadership and expertise.
We also thank current board chair Tom Christensen who continues until July 1. Mr. Christensen has provided invaluable guidance to CLBC during his term, and has been deeply appreciated for his support for staff and commitment to those we serve.
Beginning in fall 2018: An improved welcome and planning process for individuals and families
Starting in fall 2018, individuals and families approaching CLBC for support will have more options available to learn about CLBC and how they can plan for services.
Over the past two years, with the help of hundreds of individuals and families across the province, CLBC has reviewed and revised information people first receive about CLBC, created a series of workshops to welcome people to CLBC, and developed new options, together with partners like the Family Support Institute, to support the different ways individuals and families choose to plan for adulthood.
In fall 2018, people new to CLBC will be encouraged to participate in four Welcome to CLBC Workshops to learn about CLBC. The workshops will be held in schools or other community locations, and will cover these topics: 1. Getting Started; 2. Community Connections, 3. Planning Choices, and; 4. The Real Deal (or how CLBC works). Invitations to attend the first workshop series will be going out to people new to CLBC from each local office in August / September.
The workshops will be led by an individual who has recently started receiving CLBC supports, a family member and a CLBC staff person, and will bring people interested in CLBC services together to discuss ideas, share information and make connections. If you are a self advocate or family member interested in being part of a team that leads workshops in your area, please contact Jessica.Humphrey@gov.bc.ca to learn how to apply by June 15, 2018.
CLBC staff are spending the summer months preparing materials and organizing the workshops. In fall 2018, as CLBC completes our transition to our improved planning approach, we will circulate more detail about it to individuals, families, services providers and external partners.
New name for service being developed through the ANSO project
The new service that is being developed through the Advancing New Support Options (ANSO) project now has a name – L.I.F.E.-based. This stands for Learning, Inclusion, Friendships and Employment. This will be the first new service to be offered by CLBC since our inception in 2005, and adds to our existing suite of community inclusion supports. We expect the service to be broadly available in Fall 2019.
Following the input and testing of the initial service design that involved small groups of individuals, families, service providers, and CLBC staff in the fall of 2017, CLBC is now preparing for a small-scale delivery of the service. The purpose of the small-scale delivery is to assist in learning more about how the new service will support individuals to gain positive outcomes in employment but also in making friends, learning skills that lead to building confidence and independence, and find new opportunities in community.
Hundreds of individuals, families and service providers participated in a user-design process, and you can read about one such family story here.
Self Advocate Net shares stories from across B.C.
CLBC is a proud sponsor of www.SelfAdvocateNet.com, a site that shares great articles from self advocates across B.C. Visit the links below to read some recent stories on the site and remember that you can submit your own story by clicking here.
- How my niece changed my life by Shannon Lebrun
- My disability and what is it like to be me by Jen Deakin
- My 3 day PATH training by Cheryl Fryfield
- My first Editorial Board meeting by Sam Green