Nicole’s supportive new base in Joondalup

Nov 24, 2022

Nicole working at Woodvale Library. She is pushing a trolley of books and smiling at the camera.

For Nicole Briggs, accessing therapy and community supports, and readying herself for employment, has just become a whole lot easier.

Nicole has partnered with Rocky Bay since late 2021 with the goal of developing her social skills and to access the community. Since then, she built a solid support team at Clarkson and Duncraig hubs where she received speech pathology, and occupational therapy, and accessed support coordination services and, more recently, equipment services.

Our new state-of-the-art hub in Joondalup, which opened 21 November 2022, is a game-changer for Nicole who now benefits from accessing all of her supports under one roof.

At the new hub, Nicole will also be able to expand the social groups and activities she takes part in – such as the cooking group in the new training kitchen and building independent living skills – and to explore study and employment opportunities – which has already seen her gain meaningful work experience at nearby Woodvale Public Library.

In collaboration with her therapy team, our Stages Toward Employment Pathways (S.T.E.P.) team supported Nicole to develop her communication and community access skills – including navigating public transport – and her professional work skills. In the S.T.E.P. program this includes resume writing and practicing interviewing, which has seen huge growth in Nicole’s confidence, motivation, social interaction and her ability to self-regulate.

Nicole’s new role at the library includes setting her own tasks such as shelving all categories of books, processing returned books, assisting with Lego Club preparations, and greeting customers.

“It’s a lot of fun and I’m loving it a lot,” says Nicole.

“I’m glad that I get to work through a mixture of books and I learnt how to shelve the sci-fi books independently…I can’t wait for next week.”

Nicole shelving books ta Woodvale Public Library

“When Nicole first came to us, she was very reserved and cautious. So it’s wonderful to see her now interacting with a full complement of staff and engaging in different work experience opportunities in the community,” says Nicole’s S.T.E.P. Mentor.

The services offered at our Joondalup hub supports all age groups and both NDIS eligible and broader ‘fee for service’ customers. The state-of-the-art facilities include a training kitchen, art room, purpose-built therapy gym, specialist equipment, and an on-site customer Engagement and Support Coordination team.

“The addition of the Joondalup hub to our existing Duncraig hub gives our customers the option of choosing which location is most convenient for them in the northern corridor,” says Rocky Bay CEO Michael Tait.

“There is a growing demand for services in the northern metropolitan region and our Joondalup hub will help to reduce wait times. Rocky Bay aims to have hubs within 20-minutes travel time for both customers and staff, and are therefore able to fill a much-needed gap in disability support and service provision.

“It’s an exciting time for Rocky Bay with our plan for future growth and expansion across Western Australia.”

To find out more about our service in Joondalup hub, call our Customer Engagement team on 6282 1900 or email [email protected].

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