Call for more support for disabled kids

MICHAEL PARKS/Manukau Courier

EARLY HELP: Elizabeth Marsters, whose four-year-old daughter Elizabeth has smith-magenis syndrome, backs CCS Disability Action's call for early government support for families with disabled children.

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The government is being lobbied to fund early support for families with disabled children.

CCS Disability Action says it sees many families in crisis because there’s no automatic system of support as soon as a child is identified as disabled.

The group wants the government to fund support that’s triggered at the first identification of a child’s disability, similar to what happens in maternity services with WellChild or Plunket.

Manukau resident Elizabeth Marsters got early support from CCS for her four-year-old daughter Elizabeth.

Elizabeth was 18 months old when she was diagnosed with smith-magenis syndrome, a developmental disorder that includes learning and development disabilities and behavioural problems.

Ms Marsters says it was a very difficult time and believes the government should help.

"It affected me and my family a lot.

"Luckily CCS helped – if it wasn’t for them I would not even know my daughter was special needs," she says.

Ms Marsters says she gets no financial support from the government for her daughter and it’s hard on her three other children as well.

"We have to try to cope. I try to bring her up in a normal way."

For disability awareness week, CCS presented government ministers with a proposed early support framework with its approach illustrated in a children’s picturebook called Our First Holiday with Maddy.

CCS project leader Natalie Brunzel says attitudes towards the disabled need to change. "Everyone needs opportunities to make friends and be part of the community," Ms Brunzel says.

- © Fairfax NZ News