The Imagine More podcast

Jessie was a recent school leaver when she gave this presentation with her mum, Genna, and Job Supporter, Cassandra. Jessie had undertaken work experience in high school and was offered an ASBA (Australian School-based Apprenticeship) in Business Administration in Year 12; however, she finished school without a clear employment pathway.  Genna was keen to use a Customised Employment (CE) appr...

Milton Tyree continues his explanation of Customised Employment in this, his second presentation for the Opening Opportunities conference. This time around, Milton encourages the listener to avoid being a ‘creature of habit’ by making unhelpful assumptions about people with disability and employment. He explained that creatures of habit use traditional job development methods like the old "place a...

Milly Whitehead was just 18 years old and planning her move from school to work when she gave this presentation along with her Mum, Simone, and work experience employer, Ros. She describes her interests, her microenterprise, Made by Miss Milly, and what type of work she hopes to do in the future. Simone Whitehead has spent a lot of time thinking about and working towards Milly’s vision of a good a...

Milton Tyree, from Marc Gold and Associates, opens his presentation by encouraging us not to believe everything we think, explaining how personal and societal assumptions can be unhelpful when it comes to finding meaningful employment for people with disability.  Instead, Milton encourages us to take a person-centred approach to employment by beginning with a process called Discovery. You’ll...

In this episode, Dr. Jenny Crosby, a seasoned advocate with 35 years in the disability sector, discusses the persistent barriers that hinder economic participation for young people with intellectual disability in Australia.  Jenny’s PhD research highlights systemic issues and advocates for an 'employment ecosystem' perspective to address these obstacles. You’ll learn about the multiple levels...

In this episode, you’ll hear from Nathan Basha, an actor, university student, filmmaker, and a staff member at the “coolest radio station in Sydney”. He is also an ambassador for the NSW government's 'Living Life My Way' campaign. Nathan shares his lived experience of many things: expectations (both high and low), the power of his family’s vision, his various experiences of employment, and plenty...

This season, we're bringing you powerful presentations and personal stories from the 2023 Opening Opportunities conference, held in Canberra.  The conference featured speakers, including young people with disability, their families, and professionals from Australia and overseas who have opened up opportunities using a proven framework called Customised Employment. By listening to these sixtee...

Making the Most of Therapy with Anne Keep This session is for anyone who has ever felt that their life is filled with therapy appointments wondered if there are ways to apply therapy in the real world, away from therapy sessions and the therapist’s office struggled to implement a student’s therapy needs into the school day noticed that the person receiving therapy finds it demotivating boring and...

I'm Ready for Work, Are You? With Fiona McIntosh, Jessie Ward and Genna Ward As young people with disability progress through the secondary school years, they and their family members often wonder: what they will do after school? what will they be able to do? Families tell us they inevitably arrive at a narrow set of ‘post-school options’. These vary depending on the young person’s assessed readin...

Shifting the ‘yes, buts’ and how being known can keep you safe with John Armstrong and Jan Kruger This session will draw from stories shared throughout the conference. John and Jan’s conversation will look at: how people with disability exceeded expectations when they had the opportunity how being known can keep people safe why being present is the first step to being known why you don’t need to s...

Because we are social creatures, we are ‘hardwired’ for kindness and cooperation. It’s our natural state. The sense of ‘belonging’ is therefore essential to our mental and emotional health. But the social changes of the past 30-40 years have been pushing us in the opposite direction. We’ve become more socially fragmented, less cohesive, and more isolated. The consequences are obvious: epidemics of...

Think Big, Go Micro! With Chloe Reid and Jodie Reid Most people experience a micro-business when they are young. They might look after a friend’s pet or mow a neighbour’s lawn and receive some money or other item of value in return. Such micro-businesses teach young people valuable lessons about work, money, saving, and contribution. Unfortunately, young people with disability often miss out on en...

When Tom was preparing to leave school, and no one was offering any suitable post-school work options, his parents knew they had to come up with the answer. Skip forward 5 years, and Tom is happily and successfully running his own lawn maintenance business with approximately 50 regular clients. Ground Control by Major Tom came into being because his family chose to focus on Tom’s interests and ski...

Ageing and Living Well with Sue Robertson Sue and Susan have known each other for over 20 years. During this time, Sue has been Susan’s Citizen Advocate and has supported her to get the good things in life. One of these good things was a place to call home. Susan lived in a group home for many years, but it wasn’t a place where she felt relaxed or in control. In this presentation, Sue will describ...

Much has been learned through the years about open employment. There is much evidence that shows what works and what doesn’t work. When the well-established guiding principles of customised employment are applied, desirable results will likely follow. In this presentation, we will look at how a local family applied these principles in the workplace. Jack Kruger, a recent school leaver, will provid...

Much has been learned through the years about open employment. There is much evidence that shows what works and what doesn’t work. When the well-established guiding principles of customised employment are applied, desirable results will likely follow. In this presentation, we will look at how a local family applied these principles in the workplace. Jack Kruger, a recent school leaver, will provid...

Much has been learned through the years about open employment. There is much evidence that shows what works and what doesn’t work. When the well-established guiding principles of customised employment are applied, desirable results will likely follow. In this presentation, we will look at how a local family applied these principles in the workplace. Jack Kruger, a recent school leaver, will provid...

Sometimes we are driven by fear to select options that seem safe. These might include special schools, group homes, day programs, even “special swimming classes”. Yet, ironically, safety has never come from segregated settings. Being with valued people in valued places doing valued activities is what keeps people safe. Having someone in your life committed to your wellbeing is what keeps people sa...

Follow Tia and her team on their journey of discovering meaningful employment for Tia, driven by her interests. Tia’s journey began with a desire to ensure her post-school life was not dominated by screens and solitude. She had an interest in fashion, design, and modelling. Her team explored this interest with her and tested creative methods of designing that didn’t involve sketching or drawing. A...

When their daughter Katie was born 35 years ago, Sue and Neil began to make plans for the future. Katie has lived in a home of her own for the past 14 years. She is well known by her neighbours and has tasked herself with many neighbourhood roles. The impact of autism has made it difficult for Katie to be understood at times. This hasn’t stopped the family from supporting Katie to live her best li...

In this presentation, Erosha shares the story of how she successfully got her daughter Sethmi out of an autism unit. Sethmi is now physically, socially, and academically included in another school. Many professionals told Erosha that Sethmi wasn’t ‘ready’ to be fully included in a mainstream classroom. So the family moved Sethmi to a school that shared their belief that, with the opportunity of in...

Societal attitudes have failed to acknowledge that people with a disability are sexual beings. They have the same rights to sexual expression, education, and health as people without a disability. Yet, people with disability have traditionally not had access to information about sexuality. Their differing needs for sexuality education has also been widely overlooked. People with disability face ma...

People with sensory/movement differences and diversity may process the world around them in a manner that can result in behaviour that causes them trouble. In this conference session, Kate McGinnity and Anna Nikolay share their experiences of understanding and supporting individuals with sensory and movement differences. Their focus for every individual is on finding the root cause of their behavi...

In this practical, interactive session, Janet Klees will zero in on some essential elements and strategies that ensure that you and your team are on their way to making a lasting and positive difference in the lifestyle and experience of your family member. Together, we will: Discover which elements to focus on to make the most significant difference in a good life in community with your family me...

In this practical, interactive session, Janet Klees will zero in on some essential elements and strategies that ensure that you and your team are on their way to making a lasting and positive difference in the lifestyle and experience of your family member. Together, we will: Discover which elements to focus on to make the most significant difference in a good life in community with your family me...