Life Skills and Community Access Programs
Life Skills and Community Access Programs
The Helping Hands Community Access and Life Skills Program supports individuals to develop their capacity for independent living and to be an active participant in their local community. This is achieved by generalising skills that have been taught in one-to-one therapy settings to functional and community settings, ensuring skills are meaningful for everyday living. The multi-disciplinary team at Helping Hands works together to support the multifaceted skills required for successful generalisation, including managing the communication, emotional regulation and cognitive demands that are ever-changing in “real life”.
Life Skills and Community Access Programs
Opportunities for repeated practice are provided, allowing participants to problem solve naturally occurring variations in the activity, such as changes in weather, timetables or availability of products. The long-term goal of this program is to increase each participants wellbeing, self-sufficiency and social connections and to reduce ongoing care and support requirements.
Examples of skills that may be fostered in a Community Access and Life Skills Program are:
- Following a recipe to cook a meal
- Following a hygiene or self-care routine
- Creating a shopping list and purchasing items from the supermarket
- Engaging in independent purchase exchanges at shops, cafés and restaurants
- Catching public transport
- Engaging in play and social interactions in community settings such as parks, cafés, libraries
- Participating in volunteer positions within the community
How we can help you
Communication and Self-Advocacy
We emphasise the development of effective communication and self-advocacy skills. Our therapists work with participants to express their needs, understand their rights, and navigate social situations, empowering them to advocate for themselves in various contexts.
Independent Living Skills
Helping Hands focuses on equipping clients with independent living skills essential for daily life. We support participants in managing personal care, following schedules, and completing multi-step tasks, promoting confidence and autonomy in their routines.
Community Access
Helping Hands supports participants in developing essential community access skills, ensuring they can safely navigate and engage in their surroundings. We focus on building confidence and independence in various community settings, fostering a sense of belonging.
Frequently Asked Questions
Our clients work towards developing functional life skills to increase their independence. These life skills are taught to our clients by breaking down the tasks into smaller steps to make learning more achievable. These functional life skills can be toileting, cleaning, grooming, dressing, food preparation.
Developing essential life skills allows our clients to be more independent, build a greater sense of confidence and self-esteem. Increased independence also reduces the dependence on their caregivers. Programs designed around community participation assist clients in achieving their aspirations and access locations of interest e.g., the park or cafés.
- Dressing
- Toileting
- Cooking
- Food preparation
- Cleaning
- Taking public transport
- Visiting the library
- Shopping at the supermarket
- Going to the library