For many people, cleaning is simply a part of everyday life – it needs to be done and it needs to be done regularly. But for some people with a disability, keeping their house clean or doing the gardening can be extremely difficult – and in some cases, an impossible challenge.

As a NDIS registered provider of cleaning and yard maintenance services, we often get questions from NDIS participants and our customers who want to know if they can use their funds to hire a gardener, cleaner or handyman. The answer is that it varies – what you can or can’t fund depends on each individual participants situation and what is included in their NDIS plan. Simply put – there is no single answer.

There are some basic things to keep in mind, and some handy tips that can make the decision as easy as possible for you or your participants.

Does the NDIS fund gardening, cleaning and home maintenance?

In short, yes. The National Disability Insurance Scheme can provide funding for support with cleaning, gardening and home maintenance. It is important here to point out that it will only fund these supports if they are reasonable and necessary (click here for more information) and directly related to your disability.

So, if you’re unable to perform a task, like mopping or vacuuming the floor or mowing the lawn, because your disability makes it impossible, then the NDIS can fund it. If a person without a disability would have to hire a specialist to perform the job, such as hiring an electrician to assist with the installation of smoke alarms or to assist with a loose power point, it won’t be covered by the NDIS.

Gardening, cleaning and home maintenance in your NDIS plan

The NDIS includes support with gardening, cleaning and home maintenance under the support category Assistance with Daily Living in your NDIS plan.

So if you have budget allocated to this category in your NDIS plan, you can use it for this support, provided you meet the criteria outlined in the above section. Its also worth noting that, as Assistance with Daily Living is a ‘core support’.

We understand that each participant is different. We are always here to assist with your specific and personalised questions regarding your support needs and how we may be able to assist.

Call us on (07) 3708 1060.

A group of local organisations have joined together to showcase their disability support services available for the Ipswich community with a combined stall at the Ipswich Fresh Futures Market.

First Call Home Services, ASD Review and Jolly Locks will all be showcasing their services at the upcoming event being held on Wednesday, 6 September 2017 from 9.00am, at the Ipswich Showgrounds Pavilion.

The Fresh Futures Market will offer over 80 stall holders with information about community supports, employment options, education opportunities, leisure activities and carer supports. The venue is wheelchair friendly and there will be food, live entertainment and give-aways on the day.

Aaron Athorn from First Call Home Services, said that the Fresh Futures Market will provide a great opportunity for local organisations to highlight their services.

“We are excited to join with two other great service providers to share our cleaning and gardening services with NDIS participants in Ipswich”, he said.

“With the launch of the NDIS in Ipswich, the Fresh Futures Market this year is sure to be a great event”.

Danielle Butcher from ASD Review said that she is excited to meet other local disability service providers and members of the Ipswich community.

“ASD Review allows people to review and rate their service providers, helping to select quality organisations to assist with supporting their individual needs”.

As part of the group’s combined stall, Jolly Locks will be demonstrating their mobile hairdressing service at the Market by providing free haircuts to a limited number of attendees.

Sameera Bhana from Jolly Locks, said that their team was excited to demonstrate their mobile hairdressing service to the Ipswich community.

“Families in special need circumstances can regularly experience difficulty when taking children to a hairdresser. For this reason, we are excited to share Jolly Locks with Ipswich.”

All three organisations are excited to introduce their services to Ipswich and to speak more about how we can assist.

The Ipswich Fresh Futures Market is being held on Wednesday, 6 September 2017, 9.00am – 1.00pm, at the Ipswich Showground Pavilion, Warwick Road, Ipswich, Qld.

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About ASD Review

Created in 2012, ASD Review is working to become a one-stop shop where families and carers dealing with the daily struggles of ASD can search, review and list ASD related products and services.

Contact: Danielle Butcher, 0431 919 708, ceo@asdreview.org

About First Call Home Services

First Call is proud NDIS registered provider of domestic assistance services of cleaning and garden maintenance and to participants of the National Disability Insurance Scheme, aimed at helping them to remain independent in their own homes, by assisting with domestic activities.

Contact: Aaron Athorn, 07 3708 1060, team@firstcallhomeservices.com.au  

About Jolly Locks

Jolly Locks is a mobile hairdressing service, launched with the goal of providing mobile hairdressing services for families with children who may have physical, sensory and intellectual disabilities.

Contact: Sameera Bhana, 0403 184 310

UPDATE – 18/05/2021 – We have been advised that Jolly Locks are no longer offering this service.
Please note that First Call Home Services does not provider hairdressing services. 

First Call Home Services is pleased to announce that we have recently partnered with a new mobile disability support service in the Ipswich & Brisbane regions that provide free haircuts to local children with special needs.

Jolly Locks launched on World Autism Awareness Day in 2017 with the goal of providing mobile hairdressing services for families with children who may have physical, sensory and intellectual disabilities.

Aaron Athorn, First Call’s Managing Director, said that the Company was excited to be able to support Jolly Locks to provide free haircuts to children with special needs. 

“First Call has always had a proud history of supporting local groups and causes that provide benefit for the local communities in which we do business,” he said.

“We are proud to partner with Jolly Locks to provide free haircuts to families with children who sometimes struggle with attending at a normal hair salon. We are honoured to be able to support such valuable service for the local region”.

Sameera Bhana, Director at Jolly Locks, said that families in these circumstances can regularly experience difficulty when taking children to a hairdresser. It is not only a challenging activity for the child, but also for hairdressers who may not able to understand the needs of the child, or cope in a salon environment.

“The Jolly Locks team of hairdressers are carefully selected to be gentle, patient and have an understanding of the important techniques necessary to help them best work with children with special needs.”

Parents and carers who are interested in learning more about the service can visit their website at www.jollylocks.club.

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For more information:

Aaron Athorn
First Call Home Services
Phone: 1300 654 173
team@firstcallhomeservices.com.au

Sameera Bhana
Jolly Locks
Phone: 0403 184 310
hello@jollylocks.club
www.jollylocks.club

I’m sure that you have heard that ‘buying local’ is a good idea – but why is staying local and supporting small businesses such a big deal?

 

When a person supports a local business, they enjoy the benefits that simply can’t be gained by shopping at national chains.

 

Local businesses employ locals and create jobs

Small local businesses are the largest employers in Australia, so supporting a local business helps to both retain and grow jobs in your community. As a small business ourselves, we employ over 20 local staff members.

Not only do we create jobs for local people, we also encourage purchasing and supporting local suppliers, so that other local businesses may have an opportunity to create further employment.

In our service region of Ipswich, the unemployment rate is 8.4%, which is higher than the Australian average of 5.7%. As jobs continue to be a key issue, particularly in regional communities such as the one we operate in, I think it’s important to ask – who benefits if I purchase from this business and where does the profit go? Does it stay local or go overseas?

 

Improve & support the local economy

When you buy locally, significantly more of that money stays in the community. Compared to corporate businesses, studies show that locally owned businesses invest a much larger share of their revenue back into the local economy through purchasing services and supplies, as well as employing locals, enriching the whole community.

Local business owners often have an incentive to support other local businesses and likely frequent nearby establishments for both business and personal reasons. Chain businesses, on the other hand, tend to source their goods and services through central corporate supply systems, as well as having staff that aren’t as personally invested in buying local.

 

Local businesses invest in your community

Anyone who has helped raise funds for a school or community cause knows that it is considerably easier to secure donations from locally owned businesses, where there is no need to gain approvals from external decision makers.

Local businesses are owned by people who live in the community, so are less likely to leave, and are more committed to the community’s welfare and future. You will see them on social media – attending and rallying support for community causes or events. Because they are local, they may have a genuine commitment to you and the community as they rely upon its ongoing support and success.

 

Local businesses provide better customer service

If you’ve ever dealt with a large company, you know getting help can sometimes be a struggle. You’ll call a phone number, be transferred seven times only to end up on hold. Even when you speak to a person, they themselves are so far removed from the decision-making process.

A local business owner is usually directly connected to every employee within the business. That leads to a genuine, personal approach that often means any problem a customer may have is taken seriously. You know the people who work locally – you see them while out shopping or have children that go to the same school.

Local businesses often pride themselves on providing a knowledgeable, personalised service as they know that it is their point of difference from larger corporate businesses. They usually treat their customers as individuals, and not just a ‘number’. They value each customer and each interaction.

Small businesses tend to go out of their way to adjust and meet each customer’s individual needs.

 

I want our customers to be proud for supporting our local business – thank you.

Supporting local businesses has benefits beyond mere convenience. When you support local businesses, you get a better level of service, as well as helping make your community a better place to live by supporting local employment and the economy. 

Providing quality cleaning services for Toowoomba.

Toowoomba’s Trusted House Cleaning & Gardening Service Provider

Quality House Cleaning for Toowoomba

First Call Home Services has been providing quality house cleaning services across the South-East Queensland region since 2014. We are a genuinely local, quality provider, backed by a reliable and insured team of employees, not subcontractors.

Whether you need your house cleaned once a week or once a fortnight, why not get in touch with us. We are here to support you with your cleaning and gardening needs in Toowoomba.

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Background checked team
Same trusted cleaner for your home – service to service
Insured and genuinely local
Use our products or yours

Get an Instant Estimate Book Online or call (07) 3708 1060

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– Our pricing includes GST and all equipment and cleaning products.
– Two hours minimum per service.

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What service suits me?

A regular clean is often best suited when focused on your core cleaning requirements such as bathrooms, kitchen, dusting, vacuuming and mopping of hard floor areas. Any of our house cleaning services can be customised to suit your individual needs.

Our weekly regular clean is popular because it provides you with the chance to keep right on top of those important needs in the kitchen, bathroom, ensuite and floors.

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First Call plans to continue its growth into other areas of South East Queensland, along with providing a wider variety of services for our local customers in our existing service areas. First Call Home Services is not a franchise and chooses to employ it’s team members, providing long term career opportunities for its people and the community. 

For more information, visit the First Call website at www.firstcallhomeservices.com.au  

On Wednesday evening, Loud and Local launched their first project in the Greater Springfield region.

Loud and Local is a community-based project, aiming to help people connect and find great local businesses in their own area, helping to support local and community-based businesses.

Attending the launch, First Call’s Managing Director, Aaron Athorn, said that the launch of Loud and Local in Greater Springfield was aimed at strengthening the local community.

“It was great to meet with so many other passionate local business owners, all trying to support their local community,” he said.

“Small businesses are the backbone of any community. Projects like Loud and Local help to foster and strengthen support for locally owned business enabling them to employ locals and return benefits back to the community.“

“As a genuinely local business, we are very proud to support Loud and Local.”

The launch event was a resounding success, with over 50 local Greater Springfield businesses attending the event and being provided with the opportunity to meet other great businesses in the area.

Several other Loud and Local regional launch sites are planned for the coming months.

For more information on Loud and Local, visit the website or Facebook.