The Summerstrand Independent Living Center (SILC)

SILC Mission
SILC's Mission is to enable individuals and families affected by cerebral palsy to live independently, integrate into the community, and attain their maximum life potential.

SILC Strategy
The strategy being followed in order to pursue this mission is as follows.

1. Initially, provide facilities and services targeted at:

Level 1: Permanent residential accommodation in their own home in the SILC complex for adults affected by cerebral palsy. These adults must be already "nearly independent", and be able to gain full independence through the support services provided or facilitated by SILC.
   
Level 2: Permanent residential accommodation in their own home in the SILC complex for families with children who are affected by cerebral palsy, where the families can regain their independence through the support services provided or facilitated by SILC.
   
Level 3: Temporary residential accommodation and relief care for individuals and families who require a short period of higher care or assistance while they regain their independence, before re-integration into their home environment.

2. In the medium term, expand the services developed for individuals and families in the SILC facility, and make these available to support individuals and families living in the broader community. This will enable individuals with cerebral palsy to live independently wherever they wish to, removing their dependence on specific physical institutions / locations.

Facilities in the SILC Complex
The facilities provided by SILC include:

Independent homes

2 or 3 bedroom homes, customised to accommodate the occupier's special needs, These are available for outright purchase or long-term lease.

   
One bedroom apartments clusters of one-bedroom apartments, with a caregiver cottage attached to each cluster. These are available for outright purchase or long-term lease. These are available for outright purchase or long-term lease.
   
High-care facility a cluster of 2/3 bedroom apartments joined together onto a high-care suite, which is manned by appropriately-qualified personnel. These apartments are available for short-term (< 6 weeks, < 3 months, < 6 months, <1 year) lease.

Services
To enable the SILC residents to gain their independence, SILC provides services and facilitates the provision of services under contract to individual or groups of residents. These services include:

· Shared supportgiver services - targeted at individuals who need relatively little assistance in the home, and can make use of shared services to make it affordable;
   
· High-care support services - provided in the high-care facility, and targeted at individuals requiring temporary high-care support;
   
· Guidance and advisory services on:
Life re-integration;
Future planning and provisioning for families with children with cerebral palsy;
   
· Administrative services;
   
· Coordination with activities and services provided by the Cerebral Palsy Association (eg. Therapies, transport services) ;
   
· Coordination with and facilitation of services by independent service providers (eg meals, housekeeping services).


SILC - Current Status
Development of the SILC site in Summerstrand, known as the "Casa d' Oro" (House of Gold) development, started early in 2004. To date, the site has been cleared, levelled, and the site civil works and services (roads, sewerage, water, electricity) have been installed.

Construction of the first (show) unit on the SILC site is scheduled to start by the end of September 2004, with completion due by early December. Depending on market demand, the balance of the units will be constructed between January 2005 and about June 2006.

The planned layout of the site is shown in the following drawing. Units on the plan include 2- and 3-bedroom independent homes, two 4-unit clusters of 1-bedroom apartments with attached caregiver cottages (outlined in blue), and the high-care facility (outlined in red).


The present stage of development of the site, with civil works completed, is shown in the following aerial photograph. In this photograph, the SILC portion of the site is outlined in red. The area outlined in yellow is the townhouse component of the Casa d' Oro development. Units in this component are available for sale on the open market. A number of these units have been completed, and new owners have taken occupation. This component of Casa d' Oro is scheduled for completion late in 2005.