June 2002

Encouraging active social lives

Lunch, dinner and disco outings, sports days, basketball coaching sessions and yoga classes—these are some of the diverse activities made available for people with a disability in Western Metropolitan Region through the Activate.COM program.

Activate.COM is auspiced by Scope (Vic) Ltd, formerly the Spastic Society of Victoria, and funded by the Department of Human Services’ Western Metropolitan Region.

Activate.COM works with the disability day program and community sectors in the Region to support the inclusion of people with disabilities in the life of their communities through more flexible and dynamic activities.

It supports individuals, programs, services and systems to build on what currently exists and explore new and creative ways of doing things in the future.

Activate.COM initiatives have included a Socially Active Demonstration Project and the Western Region Client Network.

The Socially Active Demonstration Project was trialled by three-day programs and offered alternative program structures enabling late morning and afternoon, evening and weekend social events, including the lunch, dinner and disco outings.

The Western Region Client Network—a collaboration between Activate.COM and VALID (Victorian Advocacy League for Individuals with Disability)—brought together people from across the Region to share information, develop self-advocacy skills and co-ordinate feedback, ideas and directions for the Department, the Western Region Disability Network, Activate.COM and other appropriate bodies.

Activate.COM has also produced a brochure and website.

The website includes dates, venues and contact details for various community-based opportunities and events, including activities at Ascot Vale Leisure Centre, Footscray YMCA, Melton Indoor Recreation Centre, Yarraville Community Centre and Women’s Health West.

• For more information on Activate.COM contact coordinator Jackie Price, on 9326 2700 or at activate@scopevic.org.au or Glen Jose at the Department of Human Services’ Western Metropolitan Region on 9275 7154.