Laura Fergusson Trust (LFT) has a proud history of providing care, rehabilitation, advocacy and accommodation services to people living with physical disabilities in Auckland and Northland.
LFT have the responsibility and unique opportunity to make a positive impact in the lives of disabled New Zealanders.
Over the coming months and years, Laura Fergusson will deliver workstreams in line with the following four key areas:
Key Workstreams
Housing
Transition: supporting people to discharge from clinical spaces (e.g. the spinal unit or hospital) with dignity, to a place they would be proud to call home and enable further rehabilitation opportunities.
Community Housing: supporting people living with physical disabilities to live in the community in accessible homes purpose-built for their support needs, empowering choice, control, and independence.
Respite: partnering with communities to have alternative respite options for families.
Rehabilitation
Providing rehabilitation and wellbeing access options for disabled Aucklanders living with physical disabilities, while proving the benefit to the Crown (Publishing Social Return on Investment Research).
Through strategic and deliberate data gathering and quality of life measures, we will demonstrate that the investment in holistic wellbeing and rehabilitation initiatives (including hydrotherapy, physical exercise access and proactive mental health support), is life changing and pivotal to living a great life.
Research
LFT, a respected organisation, will advocate for the rights of disabled people, exposing shortcomings of the crown and agencies and supporting people to have voice, mana, and self-determination.
We will do this through published research papers that are statistically significant and prove Social Return on Investment benefits to the Crown.
Advocacy
Being the trusted partner (and the voice) of people with physical disabilities in New Zealand through good PR, research and publications, calling-out crown entities on historic and current shortcomings.
Being an organisation that advocates for all future social housing projects to have the suitable accessibility lens considered that goes above and beyond building code.
Be respected both nationally and internationally as the organisation that advocates for the safeguarding of at-risk populations to online violent extremist grooming.