Dear Members and Allies of the Self Advocacy Community,
CLBC wants to make sure we are keeping you up to date on the things we are working on.
This letter includes information about:
- CLBC’s budget for 2016
- CLBC hosts inclusive housing forum
- The CLBC WOW! Awards
- CLBC’s regional reorganization project
- Advancing New Support Options (ANSO) project
- Reminder about scholarship fund
- Upcoming self advocacy conference in Burnaby
- New Self Advocate Net stories
CLBC’s budget for 2016
Last week, the provincial government presented their annual budget. CLBC received some new funding. For 2016/ 17, provincial funding will increase by $44.8 million, and CLBC’s total budget will be $896.8 million.
This new funding will help us continue serving the 18,000 people we serve now. It will also help CLBC to provide new services, or more support, to about 2,600 people in the coming year.
If you want information about how CLBC makes decisions about funding you can read about this here. To read a story from Victoria’s Times Colonist newspaper about this increase, please click here.
CLBC hosts inclusive housing forum
Appropriate, affordable housing is important to many people CLBC supports.
Individuals, families, service providers and other groups are working together on ways to bring more housing to local communities. CLBC is often asked to help in this process. When people move into the new homes, CLBC services are often required to support them.
People have different ideas about housing. Some people worry that housing solutions will not be inclusive. CLBC has invited many groups to get together at an inclusive housing forum. They will discuss inclusive housing policies, practices and will start to work on guidelines.
There has been a lot of interest in the forum and registration is full. CLBC has created a list of people who could not attend this event. If you would like to be involved in future meetings about housing, please email Pratima.Singh@gov.bc.ca. We will share information about future opportunities to talk about housing.
WOW!clbc Awards announced
Congratulations to the winners of the CLBC Widening Our World (WOW!clbc) Awards! We received over 50 nominations from many B.C. communities. Thank you to everyone who helped spread the word and nominate deserving individuals.
Four individuals and one organization are being recognized for making their communities more inclusive of people with developmental disabilities. Winners were chosen by a committee of self advocates, family members, community council members, services providers and CLBC staff.
This year’s winners are:
- Adam Irwin-Gunn – Victoria
- Chris Weekes – Powell River
- Garth McCreedy – Chilliwack
- Shelley De Coste – Kelowna
- Kelowna Sunrise Rotary – Kelowna
Congratulations to all of the winners and the nominees. Winners will receive their awards in February and March. We will share information and photos on CLBC’s Facebook and Twitter pages.
You can read more about this year’s WOW! Awards here, and also click here to see an online photo gallery.
CLBC’s regional reorganization project
In December, we shared information about how CLBC is going to change how we work together as staff. The main change is that CLBC Facilitators (who work with individuals and families) and CLBC Analysts (who work with service providers) will work together on the same team and report to the same Integrated Service Manager. We hope this change will make us able to respond quicker to individuals and families.
CLBC is now getting ready to change to the new integrated model in the near future. We will keep you updated about this. If you have any questions, please contact your local CLBC manager.
Advancing new support options project
CLBC is working on a new project to come up with new support options for the people we serve. The goal is to help the people we serve to get a job, be involved in the community, develop their skills and build support networks. This is a three-year project called Advancing New Support Options (ANSO).
The ANSO project has five local design teams from across B.C. These teams include self advocates, family members, CLBC staff and service providers. In early March, these teams will meet in the Lower Mainland for three days to talk about designs for a new support option. Then they will return to their local areas to test this new option for three months.
You can find information about ANSO on CLBC’s website here. If you have any questions, please email Manon.Gelinas@gov.bc.ca.
Scholarship Reminder
If you are eligible for CLBC services, you can apply for up to $2,500 to develop your skills or advance your education. This money is provided through the CLBC-BCGEU Scholarship Fund. The last day to send an application is Friday, March 18.
For more information, including the online application form, please click here.
Upcoming Self Advocate Conference in Burnaby
The 2016 Self Advocacy Leadership Conference will take place on March 31 in Burnaby. Click here for more information.
If you have any questions about this event, please contact Jessica.Humphrey@gov.bc.ca.
New Self Advocate Net shares stories
CLBC continues to be a proud sponsor of B.C.’s Self Advocate Net website. Please visit the links below to read recent articles from self advocates across BC.
- Our inclusive book club – by Anna Bach
- My life and family – A video blog by Julie Carlson
- My job search – by Natalie Fortin
- Learn about the Revelstoke Self Advocacy Group
If you want to share your own story idea, you can click here.
Self Advocate Net has also started a monthly newsletter. You can read recent editions and become a subscriber by clicking here.
We hope you found these updates useful. Please feel free to contact Jessica directly at Jessica.Humphrey@gov.bc.ca with any questions or comments about this message.
Thank you as always for your efforts to help us build strong and welcoming communities.
Sincerely,
Seonag Macrae
CEO, Community Living BC
Jessica Humphrey
Self Advocate Advisor, Community Living BC
