Supporting choice through personalised disability support services
Access to high-quality disability support services can transform the way people live, participate and connect with their community. In a recent interview on Bathurst radio, Living My Way was invited to share how our unique Employ Your Own Support Worker model is helping people shape their own disability care services – choosing who supports them, how they work together, and how their daily lives are managed.
For more than 30 years, Living My Way has supported people with disability through flexible, person-centred disability support services across New South Wales. The radio conversation highlighted how this model benefits both participants and Support Workers, and how simple it is to get started.
Below is the full transcript of the interview, where a Living My Way team member explains how the Employ Your Own Support Worker model works, why people choose it, and how individuals in Bathurst and surrounding regions can access this empowering approach.
Listen to the interview here
Full Interview Transcript
Bathurst Radio Interviewer – 00:08
About Living My Way. And I wanted to find out a bit more about this. So I thought, well, let’s go to the source and find out what it’s all about. Good morning.
Living My Way – 00:15
Good morning.
Bathurst Radio Interviewer – 00:16
How are you this morning?
Living My Way – 00:17
I’m very well, thank you.
Bathurst Radio Interviewer – 00:18
Now, for those who haven’t heard about it before, who is Living My Way and what’s it all about?
Living My Way – 00:28
Yeah, sure. So, we are a not-for-profit organisation. We’ve been around for 30-plus years now, and we have a really unique service called Employ Your Own Support Worker.
Bathurst Radio Interviewer – 00:42
Right, okay. So this Support Worker — what sort of things are they involved in? Is it just support for individuals, or something else?
Living My Way – 00:52
So we support people with a disability. Our Employ Your Own Support Worker service empowers a participant — someone who has a disability — or their nominee, to be the employer of their own Support Workers. They get to choose who they’d like their Support Worker to be as well.
Bathurst Radio Interviewer – 01:11
So in other words, it not only benefits the person receiving the support, but also the Support Worker as well, because it makes them feel good about themselves.
Living My Way – 01:20
Yeah, of course. And you might be able to support someone you already know, so you already have a relationship with them.
Bathurst Radio Interviewer – 01:27
Right, okay. Now, if somebody wants to employ their own Support Worker, how do they go about that?
Living My Way – 01:33
Yeah, so it’s really simple. We support with that process. So, if anyone is interested in employing their own Support Workers, they can find us at livingmyway.org.au and one of our team can have a friendly chat.
Bathurst Radio Interviewer – 01:47
Okay, so what do they have to handle? The participant normally — is it just sort of talking to the people, or are there other things involved?
Living My Way – 01:59
That is a great question. We support with most of the admin associated with being an employer. The participant or their nominee — whoever the employer is in the scenario — they take care of the timesheet, and they have the ongoing relationship with their Support Worker.
Bathurst Radio Interviewer – 02:20
Okay. What sort of feedback do you get back from people who are actually doing this? Is the feedback good?
Living My Way – 02:26
It’s great. We’ve had people use the service since the beginning — so 30 years — and the feedback is very, very positive. Like I said, we do most of the admin work. We train you how to be the best employer you can be, so you really can just get on with life.
Bathurst Radio Interviewer – 02:45
It’s a wonderful, wonderful thing. So how can people find out more about Living My Way?
Living My Way – 02:50
Yeah, so if you just Google livingmyway.org.au you should be able to find our contact details there.
Bathurst Radio Interviewer – 02:57
So livingmyway.org.au — and you’ll be able to find all the information on that. And of course, as I said, you’ll feel good about yourself, but you’ll also feel good about the people you’re assisting as well.
Living My Way – 03:13
That’s right, yep. So even if you Google “Employ Your Own Support Worker Living My Way,” you should be able to find us.
Bathurst Radio Interviewer – 03:19
Wonderful, wonderful stuff. Thanks for your time this morning. Really appreciate it.
Living My Way – 03:22
Thank you. Bye.
Bathurst Radio Interviewer – 03:24
There we go — and of course, it’s livingmyway.org.au.
Strengthening Access to Disability Care Services in Bathurst
This Bathurst radio interview offered a great opportunity to highlight how Living My Way continues to expand access to high-quality disability support services across regional New South Wales.
Through our Employ Your Own Support Worker model, people can build a support team they trust, stay in control of their daily routines, and receive disability care services that truly reflect their needs, preferences and goals.
For more than 30 years, our Member-led approach has empowered people to design their own supports while we manage the complex administrative work. This means individuals can focus on living life — supported by people they know, trust and feel comfortable with.
Ready to learn more?
If you’d like to learn more about our Employ Your Own Support Worker Service, or explore how Living My Way can help you access flexible and personalised disability support services, our team is ready to help.
You can call us on (02) 8525 4000, email us via operations@lmwl.org.au or visit fill in our enquiry form.
We’re here to help you navigate the process, answer your questions, and support you to take the next step toward living life your way.