Strong Voices

This is an important time for IHC as it shapes its strategy for the next ten years.

The strategy is set to be presented for discussion at this year’s Annual General Meeting at the end of October and will be released shortly after. It is not a set of actions, but rather a frame for how IHC wants to focus, work, and partner differently following the valuable feedback we have received.

Much won’t be new, but we are committed to listening, working together, and making bold, transparent decisions aimed at shifting the dial and improving lives.

We have recently published the Annual Report. You can read it on our website ihc.org.nz/publications. The data we use for reporting has also helped inform the strategy work, noting the size and scope of the work IHC does and how it spends the funding and donations it receives.

One thing I was told early at IHC is that in order to count you need to be counted. We know that historically people with intellectual disabilities were invisible in communities, in education, employment and in data.

On page 8 you can read about IHC’s latest research - the Cost of Exclusion report, that shows people with intellectual disabilities and their families are at least twice as likely as the rest of the population to live in financial hardship.

IHC says the cost-of-living crisis is worsening an already serious situation for intellectually disabled New Zealanders and their families, many of whom have faced financial hardship for years.

This report follows From Data to Dignity: Health and Wellbeing Indicators for New Zealanders with Intellectual Disability – another important report analysing anonymised data that showed people with intellectual disabilities die younger and have poorer life outcomes. This report has led to IHC Advocacy taking priorities to government including the call for free health checks.  

We look forward to updating you on our strategy in future issues of Strong Voices.