00:00Ella Cassidy always dreamed of having a place of her own.
00:07It became a reality when the 34-year-old who has Down syndrome and autism
00:14joined the Centacare Hand Hub on Brisbane's north side.
00:18She has learnt real life skills that she can bring home.
00:22From cooking to cleaning and even theatre, Ella does it all.
00:27She's an incredibly independent person and this has really just pushed the boundaries.
00:32But the support will soon be taken from her.
00:35Centacare, the welfare agency of the Catholic Archdiocese of Brisbane,
00:40is closing its NDIS-funded disability services in south-east Queensland.
00:46700 clients and 600 employees are impacted.
00:51They've given 90 days' notice.
00:54Three months is not a long time to find new services.
00:57And of course there will be less to go around now.
01:00Archbishop Mark Coleridge says it's become financially unsustainable
01:05to continue the services due to mounting challenges with the NDIS.
01:11The organisation says staff are being offered redeployment where possible
01:15and it's vowing to work with every client to transfer their care.
01:20Advocates say closures are becoming all too common.
01:24The loss of one provider can have a significant impact on a market that is already very constrained.
01:32It does limit the choices for children and young people and their families
01:36and therefore leaves them in a situation where they can't have their needs met.
01:41As hundreds of families face an uncertain future.
01:45I don't have the funding to provide one-on-one support for Ella.
01:49I just don't know what we're going to do.
01:51I don't know what we're going to do.
01:52I just don't know what we're going to do.
01:53I don't know what we're going to do.
01:57It's like a long time to do.
Comments