Capacity Building for Valued Lives

Research Team: UNSW, Sydney, Social Policy Research Centre Karen R. Fisher, Sandra Gendera, Megan Blaxland and Flinders University, Adelaide: Sally Robinson, Michelle Bellon, Tim Calahan

From the Introduction:

National Alliance of Capacity-building Organisations (NACBO) is a network of six organisations across Australia. 

The six NACBO organisations are:

• Belonging Matters (VIC)
• Community Resource Unit (CRU) (QLD)
• Imagine More (ACT)
• Family Advocacy (NSW)
• JFA Purple Orange (SA)
• Valued Lives Foundation (WA)

These organisations work with people with disabilities, their families and allies to build capacity for people to live a full and included life and participate as valued members of mainstream communities. NACBO believes that people do better when they experience, like all other citizens, the good things in life. This means people have the opportunity to:

• Take up valued roles
• Pursue typical pathways that are available to all citizens
• Participate in ordinary community places rather than segregated places
• Belong through active and valued contribution to the community
• Have personally tailored lifestyles and supports rather than grouped, responses based on diagnosis or efficiency
• Make informed decisions about their own life

NACBO asked researchers at two Australian universities to undertake a two-year evaluation of the NACBO capacity-building model. The research aims to understand the strengths of the model and implications to improve capacity-building.

Read and download the free pdf in your browser, link below.

The publisher is the Social Policy Research Centre at the University of New South Wales and Flinders University. National Alliance of Capacity- building Organisations (NACBO) Final Evaluation Report © The Social Policy Research Centre at the University of New South Wales. Flinders University 2023.