Annual report

Northern Rivers local Leanne Whitehouse joined more than 120 surfers from 16 countries competing in the first Australian Pro Adaptive Surfing Championship in Byron Bay in late March this year.  

Leanne has long been an ardent surfer. She dreamed of going professional and competing on the world circuit, but when she was 21 she suffered a traumatic injury in a car accident.  

Traumatic brain injury and partial paralysis

“I was a sleeping passenger,” she explains.  

“I didn’t know I was in an accident. I had multiple injuries including a perforated bowel. That was the major injury they wanted to fix.”  

Leanne also suffered a traumatic injury to the right side of her brain, paralysing the left side of her body. 

But Leanne was determined to return to the sea and surf.   

How Social Futures and the NDIS supported Leeanne to reach her dreams

Leanne now accesses the NDIS through Social Futures, a not-for-profit and NDIS Partner in the Community. 

Through the NDIS, she sees an exercise physiologist who has helped her develop strength to ‘pop up’ or stand on a surfboard, a challenge for Leanne due to her disability.   

“Before the NDIS I was catching maybe 30 waves in a whole year. I think in the first year of having NDIS support I caught 2000 because I had support to go out into the ocean. It has supported me to reach my dreams.

“I was approved for NDIS funding on my 30th brain injury anniversary and the difference the NDIS has made to me … it gives me an ordinary life. I can do things like anybody else can do now, with help,” Leanne says.

The NDIS also funds support workers for Leanne.   

“Managing my neuro fatigue is a major thing. I can sleep between nine and 18 hours in a 24-hour day, so having someone to support me is huge,” she says.  

“For example, the crew at the surf comp went out for dinner and without a support worker to take me, I wouldn’t have been able to go. Because when the lights go out, they go out really quick.” 

Building resilience through adaptive surfing

Leanne is a passionate advocate for surfing as a way of building resilience for people living with brain injury.   

Leanne qualified to compete in the Australian Pro Adaptive Surfing Championship as an unclassified invitational adaptive surfer, and she competed in the ‘standup 2 unassisted below knee’ category. While she didn’t make the finals Leanne says she still feels like a pioneer as one of the few contestants with Acquired Brain Injury (ABI).  

“To be able to compete in an international surf competition in my own backyard…I feel absolutely honoured, gobsmacked, everything,” she says.  

The Adaptive Surfing Professionals World Championships began in 2021 and include four events: the Hawaii Adaptive Surfing Championships, the Costa Rica Open Pro of Adaptive Surfing, the U.S. Open Adaptive Surfing Championships in Oceanside California, and for the first time this year, the Australian Pro Adaptive Surfing Championship in Byron Bay.  

Leanne surfs adaptively, wearing a helmet and glasses to protect against impacts and to assist with vision and vertigo.  Outside of competition she always has a surf support person with her to help her navigate vertigo and special awareness.   

Ability ID supports people with hidden disabilities

When she’s not carving waves Leanne dedicates her time to her not-for-profit organisation, Ability ID. 

Ability ID provides free identification cards for people with hidden disabilities, including brain injury, stroke, dementia, and autism.    

“The ID cards are designed to help when people with disability find themselves in emergency situations or situations when they can’t speak,” she said.   

Leanne’s advice for others living with disability is to dream big, and to keep at it.    

“Never give up. That is my adage on everything. Never give up. And ask for help. Put your ego in your back pocket and ask for help,” Leanne says.   

Our future is digital, and three new Clubhouse technology-learning hubs in New South Wales are setting out to ensure the leaders of tomorrow are well-equipped to handle it. Backed by the global Clubhouse Network and managed by Social Futures, these free after-school programs are providing hands-on technology education to young people in Bathurst, Broken Hill and Lismore.

Where tech meets imagination

Born out of a revolutionary educational approach from Boston, Massachusetts, with its roots at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, The Clubhouse Network has grown to over 125 locations worldwide. This global testimony shows how education can thrive where technology and imagination meet.

Clubhouse Bathurst

July 2023 saw Clubhouse Bathurst open in support a brighter future, where young minds navigate and lead in an increasingly digital world. Supported by funding from Regional NSW, The Clubhouse offers a safe space for 12 to 18-year-olds to explore technologies like video editing, animation, and robotics.

Visit our website to read From Boston to Bathurst – US educators open Clubhouse tech hub in western NSW

Clubhouse Broken Hill brings tech to Western NSW youth

Clubhouse Broken Hill was established with funding from the  NSW Government’s ‘Our Region, Our Voice’ Regional Youth Investment Program. As Social Futures CEO Tony Davies described, it is an “engine room for future digital leaders.”

Visit our website to read Innovative tech hub for teens arrives in Broken Hill

Clubhouse Lismore re-opens in February 2024

Two years on from when the 2022 floods damaged the original venue, Lismore celebrated the reopening of its Clubhouse, now equipped with fresh technology for 12 to 18-year-olds.

Visit our website to read Clubhouse Lismore reopens post floods

Social Futures Clubhouse members win awards at the Global Reach Media Festival

The Global Reach Media Festival  encourages youth from around the world to express themselves about issues that are important to them.

Josie faced significant challenges in her late sixties. She lived in rural isolation with mental health issues. Her home was unsafe, as she was experiencing a hoarding disorder.

Josie was apprehensive that accepting in-home support may lead to a loss of independence.  However, through persistent and compassionate engagement, her care coordinator built a trusting relationship with her over several visits. This patient approach led to positive changes in Josie’s life.

Now, Josie enjoys weekly trips into town for a meal service, where she receives the nutrition she needs and gains valuable social connections.

Josie’s story is a testament to care finder services in the community. 

Lily* was referred to the Resilient Kids Program due to significant mental health issues related to homelessness following the 2022 floods, and family violence. She had disengaged from school and was self-harming. Her family was living in temporary pod village accommodation and were awaiting permanent housing. There had been several reports of violent incidents between Lily and her mother.

Lily engages with counselling through Resilient Kids

During her sessions Lily was able to talk openly about her experiences, both in relation to past and current domestic violence, and grief related to losing her home and connection with her friends and the community.

An holistic approach to healing

Lily enjoyed walking and talking in nature during her sessions, and creative arts were used in session to support processing past traumatic experiences and relationships. With Lily’s permission, referrals were made for Family Support and to equine therapy, as Lily had identified working with animals as a personal goal.

Relationship restored

Since undertaking creative art therapy, family and equine therapy, Lily’s confidence and self-esteem has grown significantly. Her relationship with her mother has improved to the point where she invited her mother to an equine therapy session. Lily said in her last session that she feels so much happier and that her relationship with her mother is so much better than it had been previously.

Looking to a future working with horses

Lily was delighted when the equine therapist said that she would employ Lily in the future, as she had so much potential and was so good around horses. This was a huge boost to Lily’s self-esteem. Lily will continue to receive ongoing support with the Resilient Kids counsellor as required.

* Lily’s name has been changed to protect her identity.

Since 2019, the Better Chances Forum has been building on sector investment in trauma-responsive care to support workers and managers across Northern NSW. This project is a culmination of collaboration and practice wisdom, gathered from Better Chances Forum hosted events and consultations between 2019 and 2024.  

This project report outlines key strengths and approaches that support trauma-informed care and how it is embedded in our practice, along with case studies from Better Chances Forum members and practical strategies to support our work.  

Embedding trauma informed care project report