Evaluations to inform ‘once in a lifetime’ system transformation

  • Nicky Wagner
Health Disability Issues

Evaluations of the Christchurch and Waikato Enabling Good Lives (EGL) demonstrations will help guide the transformation of the disability support system, Disability Issues and Associate Health Minister Nicky Wagner says.

“The Phase Two evaluation reports show disabled people and their families really value having more choice, more control and more flexibility when it comes to the support they receive,” Ms Wagner says.

“We learnt a number of lessons from our experiences in both Christchurch and Waikato, so we now have a much clearer idea of what works and what doesn’t.

“Those lessons will feed into the all-important transformation co-design process, which begins today. This will be different from anything we’ve done before as the goal is to create a new way of working that can be rolled out across New Zealand.

“The transformation is a once in a lifetime opportunity to provide better support and better services for disabled people and their families.”

EGL is an innovative principles-based approach that empowers disabled people with self-directed planning. The transformation will initially focus on those receiving support from Disability Support Services in the Mid-Central region.   

“To date, the disability support system has been more about the system than disabled people. The EGL approach makes it about the person, their strengths and the kind of life they want to live,” Ms Wagner says.

The evaluation reports are now available online at: https://www.odi.govt.nz/nz-disability-strategy/other-initiatives/enabling-good-lives/