LifeKidz Trust Sensory Playground

LifeKidz Trust aim is to continue provide the community with the successful After School and School Holiday Programmes for children with special needs, disabilities and behavioural issues that we have been running for the past 15 years. We provide community focused programmes that create a place for children with disabilities that accepts their uniqueness and encourages friendship, participation and opportunities. We employ and train youth within the community and help them to understand about issues that face children and families with special needs/disabilities. We offer quality driven and fun programmes that children enjoy.

We are one of the only known providers in the Auckland area that will accept children with very high and complex needs. We collaborate with the local community to create opportunities that promote the child disability sector in a positive way. Many of the clients that attend our programmes require 1:1 care due to the nature of their disability. We try our best to support all families that wish to attend LifeKidz and we also accept siblings into our programmes so that the families do not have to drop children off to several different programmes. This enables parents and caregivers to have some much needed respite while they know their child is being cared for and safe in a programme specially designed for them.

Our amazing support workers also come from all over Auckland to care for and have fun with the children that attend. Without these fantastic people we would not be able to run the successful programmes that we have for over the last 15 years that LifeKidz has been operating. We provide very valuable ongoing training for our staff to ensure that we are able to care for the children and youth that attend to the best of our abilities. Most of our carers start with us while still in their last years of high school with many then going on to universities and jobs that are within the health and disability sector.

In early 2017 we established our Community Participation Day Programme. We felt that this was the next step in our services that we provide to children and young adults within the community. Our Community Day Programme is suitable for young adults with Very High Needs. Our objective at the Community Day Programme is to achieve a fulfilled and rewarding life in our community. The participants in the programme have transitioned to the day programme after the completion of their schooling and are aged 21 and over, however, our young adults may be aged 18 and over. Due to the Nature of our attendees, our service operates at a ratio of 2 staff to every 3 clients. We pride ourselves on our caring atmosphere, where flexibility is possible due to the small, family-type atmosphere. We are in regular contact with parents and carers, to ensure programmes are meeting the needs of the young adults that are attending.

The programme incorporates a range of activities e.g. physical activities such as swimming, games and walking. Activities with a social and cognitive component include baking, craft and music. There is an emphasis on utilizing the resources of our local community so we participate in 'adventures' to local community centres, art galleries, libraries, parks and areas of interest. Lifekidz premises are fully accessible for wheelchair users, with an outdoor play area, a large hall, and smaller homely rooms.