Transport

MiLife-Victoria offers six bus runs every morning and afternoon, transporting approximately 30 clients into the day programs at Langwarrin and Cranbourne.

Buses travel as far east as Pakenham and Beaconsfield, up to Aspendale Gardens in the north and down to Rosebud and Mornington in the south.

MiLife owns six buses and leases five new buses. The leased busses are used for the daily bus runs, while the owned buses are generally used throughout the day to transport clients to community-based activities.

Six bus drivers are employed by MiLifeVictoria to complete the morning and afternoon bus runs. This year we have employed another driver allowing us two relief drivers to fill in when the bus drivers are unwell or on leave. This has alleviated issues that have been faced previously when the regular bus drivers have been unavailable. As with all other aspects of the business, COVID-19 had a significant impact on the bus runs. In some instances, transport was unable to be provided at all, while other times of the year social distancing within the buses had to be adhered to. This resulted in limiting the numbers of clients who can travel on the buses from 60 people at full capacity to 30 people, five clients per bus maximum.

During last year, bus drivers started using the AYLO app to track the number of kilometres travelled. From July 2020 to June 2021, the buses travelled a total of 281,389 kilometres. The tracking app assists the finance team to work out clients’ transport charges, as well as other features that improve on the administrative side of transport.

It is hoped that during the next year buses will be able to get back to full capacity again and clients can enjoy the full benefit of the transport program.

Viktor keeping the MiLife bus clean

Social Enterprise

Coffee Potts Café

Coffee Potts Café is a new social enterprise which MiLife-Victoria manages for the Langwarrin Community Aged Care.

A Memorandum of Understanding was established between MiLife and the Aged Care facility which enables MiLife to operate the café as a social enterprise, while providing hospitality training to people with disability. The café opened soon after Langwarrin Community Aged Care opened its doors to residents in November 2020. The first few months saw a number of challenges with regards to staffing and management of the café. Changes in management at both MiLife and the Aged Care facility added to those challenges.

Lisa Hazelman was appointed as the Manager of the café in March 2021, and since that time has worked to increase the number of menu items available, and has also been building relationships with staff, residents and their families.

The café currently has three staff members, Lisa is full-time with two part-time staff. The café is expecting to welcome more staff and MiLife clients who will be able to benefit from hands on work experience, gaining important skills in the industry.

The facility itself is nearly at capacity, with close to 140 residents and approximately 140 staff. When families are able to visit the residents, the café can become a thriving hub, with coffees and Lisa’s homemade scones being the most popular items on the menu.

The café is as new as the facility, and as such it has all new equipment such as a coffee machine, cake display fridge, drinks fridge as well as a simple Point of Sale system which helps to keep track of stock and sales.

The COVID-19 pandemic has certainly impacted on the café, especially since it is based within an Aged Care facility, meaning tighter restrictions than other cafés. While the café has been able to remain open during the lockdowns, staff have had to wear extra Personal Protective Equipment (PPE), and some have had reduced hours or have been furloughed for a period of time.

Lockdowns also mean no visitors for the residents, which has led to less traffic and sales in the café. This is a tough time for the residents who suffer from not seeing their families. During these times the café and facility staff become ‘surrogate families’ to those residents, as they continue to visit the café for a cuppa and a chat.

It is hoped that over the next financial year the café can continue to see growth, with weekend opening hours, more staff, and training opportunities for people with disability, and an increased range of food offerings and services.

Selection of goodies on sale at Coffee Potts Café

Designs for Hair

In November 2020, MiLife-Victoria purchased Designs for Hair, a hairdressing salon in Seaford. This well-established business located in Ti-Tree Place, has provided hairdressing services to the Seaford community for over 35 years.

Since purchasing the salon and taking over its day to day management, MiLifeVictoria has introduced two programs of support which NDIS clients have been able to get involved with.

The Hair and Personal Care course which runs at the salon on Monday’s teaches clients how to take care of their own hair. Clients have learned skills such as washing hair and how much shampoo and conditioner to use. They have learned to blow wave, straighten and curl their own hair and their friends’ hair.

The Skills for Work Course provides a work-based learning experience where one of our clients has been able to come into the salon a few days a week and learn skills such as customer service, cleaning, making tea and coffee, and communication skills.

The impact of COVID-19 and constant lockdowns has caused a number of challenges for the salon, forcing it to close its doors to clients on multiple occasions. There have also been multiple challenges when the salon has been open, including the impact of the one-square metre rule, capacity limits, touch point cleaning and ensuring there’s enough time between clients to clean thoroughly. The lockdowns have also affected the courses which support MiLife-Victoria clients, and have not been able to run during those times.

The salon has experienced challenges in finding qualified hairdressing staff. The industry is currently experiencing a shortage which has impacted on the salons’ ability to attract new staff.

Staff at Designs for Hair have enjoyed the opportunities to undertake learning and development within the disability industry, having had to undertake training as MiLife-Victoria employees. Staff feel they have developed their understanding and knowledge of the industry which will help to improve the everyday running of the salon.

Salon staff have also expanded their services to Langwarrin Community Aged Care, as part of a Memorandum of Understanding between MiLife-Victoria and the Aged Care facility. Designs for Hair provides hairdressing services to residents within the aged care facility one day a week, with the option to further expand these services in future.