Disability in New Zealand

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Other Disability Support Services

Support services for disabled people, their families, whānau and carers are also offered by a number of organisations not funded by the Ministry of Health.

On this page are links to these organisations have been grouped into the following topics:

You can also contact a Disability Information and Advice Service (DIAS) for assistance and advice on the services available.

Health
The health sector funds and provides supports/services/assistance for people with disabilities, other than the disability support services funded by the Disability Services Directorate.

Health and disability support services for people over 65 years and for people aged 50 to 64 years who have been assessed as having age-related needs - your local District Health Board funds health and disability support services.

Mental health services - your local District Health Board funds and provides a range of support services to assist people who experience mental illness, including psychiatric disabilities.

Health services - your local District Health Board is responsible for funding and providing health services for people with disabilities of all ages.

Transport assistance - your local District Health Board is responsible for funding transport assistance to enable you to access specialist health and disability support services. View the Ministry of Health's Guide to Claiming Travel Assistance for further details.

Care Plus provides primary health organisations, which may include your local GP, with additional funding for people who use high levels of care or have high needs because of chronic conditions or terminal illness.

Accident Compensation (ACC) (www.acc.co.nz)
Support services for people who have an injury and/or who have had an accident may be funded by ACC.

Employment
The Ministry of Social Development provides direct and indirect employment assistance, such as: Workbridge (www.workbridge.co.nz) - an employment service for employers and employees, which includes information on funding relating to disabilities in the workplace.

Other forms of assistance include:
Mainstream Supported Employment Programme (www.ssc.govt.nz) – a two-year, subsidised employment programme for people with disabilities. The programme is provided by the State Services Commission and aims to assist participants into meaningful, long-term employment within selected State sector organisations.

There are a number of other employment and vocational training options (www.weka.net.nz) specifically designed to meet the needs of people with disabilities.

Housing and accommodation
Housing New Zealand Corporation provides a service, called Suitable Homes (www.hnzc.govt.nz) to help people with physical disabilities into a modified home that meets their requirements.

Some housing modifications are funded by the Ministry of Health. For information on residential subsidies that enable older people to live in rest homes and continuing care units (Residential Care Subsidy) and younger people to live in the community or group homes (Residential Support Subsidy), see Work and Income (www.workandincome.govt.nz).

Supported accommodation (www.weka.net.nz) and adapted and modified housing is also available for people with disabilities. There is also a range of holiday accommodation (www.weka.net.nz) suitable for people with disabilities.

Advocacy and legislation
There are a number of pieces of legislation that apply to people with disabilities, these include:

Care of Children Act 2004 (www.legislation.govt.nz)
Protection of Personal and Property Rights Act 1988 (PPPR Act) (www.legislation.govt.nz)

There are a number of agencies that provide advocacy and advice to people with disabilities, including

Human Rights Commission (www.hrc.co.nz) which champions fundamental human rights as a framework for a fair and just society for all the people of New Zealand. The Commission can also resolve disputes relating to unlawful discrimination.
Health and Disability Commissioner (www.hdc.org.nz), who works to promote and protect the rights of health and disability consumers, and to facilitate the fair, simple, speedy, and efficient resolution of complaints.

Education and training
The Ministry of Education, through Group Special Education (www.moe.govt.nz), provides special education services to children and young people with high and very high educational, social behavioural and communication needs.

Special education services (www.weka.net.nz) such as assistive technology, resources and other services are also available to disabled people.

Transport and travel
Other than the transport assistance provided by the Ministry of Health to access specialist health and disability services, other agencies provide transport assistance for people with disabilities.

One of the key forms of assistance – Total Mobility (www.landtransport.govt.nz) - is funded jointly by Land Transport New Zealand and your local or regional council.

Public and private transport services are available for disabled people, as well as retail services and vehicle modifications.

There is also information about accessible toilets and restaurants (www.weka.net.nz), as well as tourism and travel (www.weka.net.nz) information.

Equipment
There is a large variety of disability-related equipment (www.weka.net.nz) to buy, hire or sell in New Zealand.

Income support
Work and Income (www.workandincome.govt.nz) provides a range of financial assistance, with the key assistance available including:

Invalid's benefit (www.workandincome.govt.nz) - if you have a permanent sickness, injury or disability that stops you working you may be able to get an Invalid's Benefit to help meet your living costs
Sickness benefit (www.workandincome.govt.nz) - assistance for people who are temporarily off work because of sickness, injury, pregnancy or disability
Disability allowance (www.workandincome.govt.nz) - reimburses people for ongoing regular costs that they have because they have a disability
Child disability allowance (www.workandincome.govt.nz) - payment made to the parent or guardian of a seriously disabled child who lives at home and requires constant care and attention. This is not currently income or asset tested.

See Work and Income (www.workandincome.govt.nz) for details of other assistance available.

Families and relationships
There are groups, organisations and resources to assist with issues around families and relationships (www.weka.net.nz) including aging, youth, children carers, parenting, dating and sexuality.

An initiative called Strengthening Families (www.strengtheningfamilies.govt.nz) has been helping families/whānau reach their full potential since 1997. Whatever the concern or need – meeting the needs of a child with a disability, finding a warm, comfortable home for the family, or dealing with financial hardship – Strengthening Families brings together the family and all the agencies that can help the family achieve its goals.

Communication
A variety of equipment and communication aids (www.weka.net.nz) are available to disabled people.

Sports and leisure activities
Many groups and businesses offer sports and leisure activities (www.weka.net.nz) for people with disabilities.

Page last updated: 11 March 2008