Individual supports for people from all backgrounds

Gellibrand has for more than 40 years been a sector leader in supporting people from a range of cultural backgrounds.

Australia is one of the most multicultural nations on earth. More than a quarter of our population was born overseas and, of that number, two thirds were born in non-English speaking countries. People from culturally and linguistically diverse (CALD) backgrounds speak more than 300 different languages, and Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples also speak hundreds of languages.

According to People with Disability Australia, 25 per cent of Australians with disability are from CALD backgrounds. It’s also known that CALD people with disability are less likely than others to have access to support.

At Gellibrand, we seek to support people from all cultural backgrounds, but we know that different cultures have different attitudes to disability – and varied concepts of what disability support should look like.

Western views have shifted in recent decades to seeing disability through a human rights lens. This has led in the west to a legal push for equality and increased opportunities for people with disability, but many world cultures take different views.

Some cultures emphasise compassion and acceptance, while others see disability as caused by ancestors’ mistakes or supernatural forces – or as a test of faith for individuals and families. All of this can potentially lead to people with disability not getting the best support possible.

On the other hand, some cultures view disability as something for which people should be pitied, which results in a model that overlooks fostering independence. Many cultures also emphasise the importance of family support for people with disability and can be sceptical about people outside the family providing support.

“It’s clear that attitudes to disability are diverse and depend upon a lot of different cultural factors,” said Matthew Hoyle, Gellibrand’s CEO. “That’s where our 40 years’ experience in Melbourne’s west, one of the country’s most culturally diverse areas, is so important in the support we can offer clients.”

Gellibrand has a strong track-record of supporting people with disability from numerous cultural backgrounds. A culturally diverse team has been integral to that, meaning there’s usually a team member who can engage effectively with clients and families from different cultural backgrounds.

“Gellibrand is definitely at the higher end of cultural diversity,” said Admire Mukupe who has been a support worker at Gellibrand for nine years. Admire, who was born in Zimbabwe and came to Australia as a young adult, said it “means everything to him” that Gellibrand is such a culturally diverse organisation.

“I’ve worked at different companies and I have seen it all. Working here you could come from any background, it’s not something that is noticeable, you are just part and parcel of the team.”

One of the key things Gellibrand has learnt about supporting people from culturally diverse backgrounds is never to assume anything.

“You might think that because someone is from a particular background, they will want things done a certain way,” Matthew Hoyle said, “but there are so many differences among cultural groups. That’s why we’re so big on making sure the support we offer is personalised.”

It’s also important for all Gellibrand’s team members to be aware of their own cultural attitudes and to ensure these don’t negatively impact how people from different backgrounds are supported.

“We accept all the different cultures,” said Amy Qin, who moved to Australia from China in 2014 and has worked at Gellibrand for five years, “and we talk about out histories and make friends with everyone.”

Matthew Hoyle said Gellibrand did everything possible to be culturally respectful.

“Our clients and our team members really value our cultural diversity and we learn so much from each other. We wouldn’t have it any other way.”