This edition contains the following articles:

Editorial - Treading lightly on people's lives

Anita Speed

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From the President

Mike Duggan

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He’s more than just a service user, you know

Marie Knox is an academic in the School of Humanities and Human Services at the Queensland University of Technology. She is also the parent of a young man with significant disabilities. Much of Marie’s research and teaching interests are around a rights-focused approach to supporting people with disabilities to live and enjoy a valued lifestyle.

In this article, she argues the critical yet varied roles that families play in fostering the notion of citizenship as a vital element of quality service provision.

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Holding on to what makes community organisations different

Ann-Marie O'Brien describes herself as someone who works in a community organisation rather than a non-government organisation. She views the acronym NGO as defining community organisations by what they are not (non-government) rather than what they are – independent co-operative entities with identities defined by the communities in which they belong.

Ann-Marie discusses how community organisations by reflecting on a set of alternative quality standards can re-affirm their own identify and reinforce that which makes them different –their values and beliefs about the contribution community organisations can bring to creating a just and inclusive community.

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What is involved in delivering a quality service for people with a disability from an advocacy perspective

Josey McMahon works with great passion and commitment in her dual role as manager and advocate at a small community-based independent advocacy agency that provides individual social advocacy on behalf of vulnerable people with disability.

In this article, Josey discusses the role of advocacy in safeguarding the lives of vulnerable people with disability and the importance of providing both relevant and potent service provision to those who are disadvantaged and viewed differently by society.

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Distinguishing Quality

Lionel Evans is a parent of three children and is involved with a number of parent-based community groups both locally and state-wide. In this piece, Lionel considers how having a quality system does not mean that quality can be guaranteed.

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Can person-centred planning help people into valued roles and real belonging

John O'Brien discusses some limitations in the contribution that person-centred planning has made so far to the desired quality of people’s lives. John considers ways to counter these limitations and invest in positive efforts which could assist to achieve a good life for the people served.

This article is a short, edited extract from a recent, unpublished article Moving Past the Limits in Person-Centred Planning. John O’Brien has extensive experience in developing person-centred plans which provide innovative, flexible and appropriate responses to enable the person to live a full, rich and varied ordinary life.

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The Ongoing Search for a Good Life

David Bowling is a consultant quality auditor with funded services in Queensland. David is also involved with a citizen advocacy program and is involved as a volunteer with grass-roots primary health-care projects in rural India. In this story, David relates a personal journey to re-connect with a family member after many years.

This story tells us much about the importance of relationships and connections with community in the lives of people with disabilities and in particular for people who have lost the connection to family.