FRASER Coast is the next region to benefit from disability accommodation developed by Accessible Homes Australia (AHA), with 12 new residential villas for NDIS participants with high physical support needs being built in Urraween.
The single-level dwellings will have two bedrooms, allowing participants to live with family or friends, and accessible facilities including swimming pool with hoist, exercise and rehabilitation gym, outdoor barbeque and dining area and sensory garden, as well as onsite shared support offering 24-hour care.
The Queensland Telstra Business Award winner has already delivered three Specialist Disability Accommodation (SDA) projects on the Gold Coast and plans to replicate their success in Hervey Bay, calling for people to apply to live in Urraween Village, with completion earmarked for mid to late 2025.
AHA uses a ‘shared care’ model that gives residents the added security of 24-hour onsite support, acting as an affordable safety net outside primary support providers.
Founder Perry Cross AM, who lives with quadriplegia, said this model gave peace of mind to the participant, and additional freedoms for live-in carers who were often family members or spouses.
“This model is also delivered at a cost saving to both the participant and the NDIS when compared with 24/7 in-home shared services like those in group homes,” he said.
“Having lived with family for 25 years after my accident, I know first-hand how life-changing independent living is and helping others find the same freedoms as I now enjoy is the motivation behind AHA.”
The site has access to the flat and accessible Hervey Bay Rail Trail, is one kilometre from Stockland Shopping Centre and Bunnings, 1.5 kilometres to two hospitals and 2.5 kilometres to the waterfront beach walk footpath.
Mr Cross said when planning an SDA project, finding the right location was paramount.
“AHA builds Specialist Disability Accommodation in thriving communities, giving residents easy access to transport, amenities, recreation and employment,” he said.
“Our residents have custom homes built to suit their specific needs, onsite facilities to improve their quality of life, access to amenity that enhances their lifestyle and proximity to communities to keep them connected.”
Resident Jason Parker, 55, lives in AHA’s Hope Island community on the Gold Coast.
Before moving into his custom-built apartment in 2022, he’d spent 12 years staying between hospitals and his parent’s house.
“I had nowhere else to go,” he said.
“I had lost the concept of having more than one room to call my own and often felt like a guest in someone else’s home.
“Finally having the comfort of knowing that you're going home, to your own home, is a really beautiful thing.
“As a double amputee, your greatest fear is falling, but I know in my apartment everything has a place, it allows me to move around freely, and it’s where I’m safest.
“You feel like part of a family and I know I have reliable people to call on 24/7 whenever there is a need.”
