CCS Disability Action Celebrates 80 years

One of New Zealand’s leading community organisations kick starts its 80th anniversary year with a celebration in Timaru recognised as the birthplace of the Crippled Children’s Society now known as CCS Disability Action.

Established in 1935 at a Rotary Conference in Timaru, the organisation’s prime purpose was to help the hundreds of young New Zealanders who experienced impairment and disability as a result of the widespread polio epidemics of the early 20th century.

“At that time there were very limited supports for disabled people, despite the growing number of people experiencing impairment and disability,” says CCS Disability Action Chief Executive David Matthews.

“This was something Wellington Orthopaedic Surgeon Alexander Gillies set about changing, and in a speech to New Zealand Rotarians in 1930 he highlighted the need for an organisation to assist these children.”

“The seed was sown and thanks to his vision and the support of Rotarians around New Zealand, work began toward creating an organisation to help disabled children, providing whatever assistance was needed at little or no expense to the parents.”

At a Rotary National Conference in Timaru in February 1935, the decision to establish the Crippled Children’s Society was confirmed.

“Timaru is the birthplace of our organisation, since then we have grown in size and purpose. We are now a pan-disability national organisation delivering services to people of all ages as well as working with communities and government to create a more inclusive New Zealand. I am very proud to return to where it all started, we retain a special connection with Timaru and our local branch here continues to be a very important part of our organisation.”Mr Matthews said that the organisation had grown from these humble beginnings.

“We are now one of the country’s largest providers of disability services, supporting more than 5,000 New Zealanders. We have national reach with 25 offices around the country.”

“Our work runs deep from on the ground delivery of supports and services to advocating in the halls of power for a more inclusive society. Over the past 80 years our work has made an enormous difference in the lives of people with disabilities and their families.

“The challenges faced by these early Rotarians continue today – the fight to ensure that everyone has a “fair-go”. Disabled people continue to be over-represented in statistics on poverty, unemployment and child vulnerability. Accessibility also remains a major barrier for many disabled people – what should be really simple things liking accessing a building, a shop and public transport are still, for many, incredibly challenging.

“Our vision is that over the next 80 years we want to see equality of opportunity for all disabled people – so that they have the choice to live the lives they want. We need to be a society where disabled people are valued for who they are and can fully participate.”

Lady Gillies, widow of Sir Alexander Gillies, has been involved with CCS Disability Action for more than 40 years and says her husband was tireless in his work to help children with disabilities and to pursue his vision for accessible and quality care for all.

“In those early days, he would travel regularly to provincial centres to take clinics and perform surgery on those children whose parents could not afford or get access to specialist care or rehabilitation support,” says Lady Gillies.

“And the wider impact of his initial work has been wonderful to see. From the days when no one gave a second thought for people with disabilities who were hidden away in a back room somewhere and couldn’t go anywhere. Now people with disabilities have access to support, they can get around and are welcomed in society.”

ENDS

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