As a person with lived experience if disability, my hopes are to help guide and shape the future offerings of Flying Kites. ensuring that disability services are aligned to the needs of the community and result in the disabled person living a good life.

Working with providers of Aotearoa New Zealands Disability Support Services, ensuring that the disabled person is at the heart of everything they do. embedding the Enabling Good Lives principles into the systems, people and contract that they provide. Working towards a shift in expectations of disabled people and allowing the individual to have choice and control about what thier good life looks like and how to get there.

Research Assistant for Flourishing Together: Including Tāngata Whaikaha In Health Policy Development.Step one is helping to design and build an accessible survey for Disabled People and their whānau to share their stories and to have their experiences captured about accessing suitable Housing in Aotearoa . . . Then to take their stories and find a way to make the information (whilst blending it with the information that is already out there) useful, available and easy to access for Policy Makers to assist when making policies that impact disabled persons in Aotearoa.With guidance, support and input from the disabled community, using co-production methods, we hope to set the standards of how the voices and stories of disabled people in Aotearoa are utilized and not forgotten when making policies that directly impact their choice and control when accessing suitable housing for themselves and their families here in NZ.

Working with a fabulous team of people who have shared experiences of living with disability. We are getting stuck into the mahi to create a network of Peer Supporters, connecting disabled people with other disabled people in their own community and having a lot of laughs along the way! At times our staff meetings are like the start of a joke a "There was a group people with hearing impairments, vision impaired, and a few paralysed persons . . . " But we are definately no joke . . . we all are passionate about building a community of capable Disabled Peer Supporters that other disabled people can reach out to for support, understanding and connection.Creating community connections is humbling, exciting and always fabulous to witness and be a part of - too often disabled people are isolated, disconnected from peers and Initially, I started out with My Life My Voice as a volunteer and when the opportunity came up through Covid-19 to join this amazing team, working remotely, from home, and all in my own time (evenings, weekends, middle of the night!), I couldn't resist - Since joining the team I have never been so welcomed and supported as an employee (disabled or not!!) - working with a group of peers, all of whom have their own disabilities has been simply amazing!

Research Assistant for Flourishing Together: Including Tāngata Whaikaha In Health Policy Development

Responsible for staff relationships, coaching of administration roles, working with client and their complaints, reviews, report writing, decision making and many other daily tasks.

Development of staff of Work and Income client facing roles to ensure Good Practice by way of nurturing excellent communication, empathy, listenening and motivation skills. Delivering workshops that intended the participants to think of new ways of working with clients where the client leads the way. Encouraging relationship building, addressing immediate needs before long term goals are even thought about.

Leading a team of Voting Place Assistants and Issuing Officers to ensure that a professional and welcoming polling place is experienced by all eligible voters through the General Election process. Providing support to staff and voters to ensure consistancy and valid votes are cast during the pre voting period and on Election Day. Answering questions, assessing risks and building resilience, motivating and building up the morale of the team throughout long busy days.

Managing Election Day Voting Place.Ensuring the staff of 12 had the correct training, equipment and information to complete thier roles. Collection, distribution and return of equipment, Electrol Rolls, Voting Papers both used and unused items.creating a friendly but professional atmosphere where voters, party members, media and officials felt the election process was being honored and carried out in a extremely accurate way.Following strict guidelines to ensure process of Voting, vote counting and recording of votes was completed in privacy. Reconciliation of all items used and unused, reporting to head office official reconciliation and packing up and returning of all items.Motivating staff to be courteous, friendly and professional throughout very long, at times very busy days.

Manager of 2020 Election Voting Place and Advanced Voting Place. Ensuring the smooth running of the Voting Place, management of 8 staff, rosters, ensuring ongoing training and spot checking is completed regularly. Working with voters who have questions around the election process. Ensuring visitors, party members and staff adhere to the Electrol Comissions rules and guidelines. Encouraging staff to work efficiently and professionally, to promote a friendly but official atmosphere for voters to be confident in the election process.Rostering of breaks and or shifts as required. Following strict processes and protocol for the protection of the votes, electrol roll and persons details.Working with the Electrol Commission to complete training for self and staff.

I moved offices to learn as much as I could about Work and Income. Working with different teams of colleagues and in a variety of communities that I served allowed me to gain great insight into how different locations, people and environments have an impact on the community.