Helen Neale

Helen works for the Community Living Project (CLP) in SA as the Project Lead of ‘Discover Micro Enterprise: Exploring Possibilities’, a four-year ILC grant project. She is passionate about increasing people’s expectations about the capacity of people with disability to work and contribute via meaningful careers.

Helen is inspired by her son Tom who has had his own Micro Enterprise for seven years. Tom holds many valued roles, such as business owner, homeowner, godfather and skydiver!

Safeguarding a Micro Enterprise for the future

A Micro Enterprise is a small business that offers a service or product based on a person’s interests, gifts, talents, and available resources. It is a form of Customised Employment. It starts with the person; then, a job role is crafted, not the other way around.

A Micro Enterprise provides the owner with many benefits, including the opportunity to learn new skills, establish a valued presence in the community, meet people, and, of course, generate income and perhaps even profit.

As with all small businesses, establishing and operating a Micro Enterprise requires some effort. It’s definitely not a set-and-forget model! So how can families and allies safeguard a person’s Micro Enterprise for the future?

In this presentation, Helen Neale will provide valuable insights, strategies, and tips on how to maintain and secure a Micro Enterprise by leveraging both paid and unpaid support. The session will give many practical ideas on who to engage, how to involve them, shared roles and responsibilities, and how to set up monitoring systems.

About this session

• Helen Neale will be presenting at the main Safeguarding the Future conference
• Thursday-Friday, 23-24 May 2024
• 9:00 am to 5:00 pm AEST both days

Register to attend the conference and/or the pre-conference webinars

Learn about the other conference speakers and their presentations

Pre-conference webinars

• Webinar 1 – Decision-making in everyday life – Janet Klees
• Webinar 2 – Medical safeguarding – Jo Massarelli and Cathy Ludlum
• Webinar 3 – Now is the time for vision – Darcy Elks

Main conference

• The secrets of fabulous skin self-direction – Margaret Ward
• Never too late to get a life – Josey McMahon and Cathy McMahon
• Building bridges to neighbourhood – Sarah Faulkner
• Safeguarding a Micro Enterprise for the future – Helen Neale
• Who is the person behind the behaviour, and what do they need? – Kane Morgan
• It’s a long game – Ann Greer, Valen Litster, and Sally Aubrey
• The importance of trust and relationship in supported decision-making – Kim Roots
• A sibling’s perspective – Rebecca Altaffer
• What happens when I cark it? – Linda Hughes
• Safeguarding Isaac’s good life through a Service for One – Sheree Henley
• More speaker details coming soon!

About the Safeguarding the Future conference

• Thursday-Friday, 23-24 May 2024
• 9:00 am – 5:00 pm both days
• Hotel Realm in Canberra
• Optional networking event on Thursday evening
• Three pre-conference webinars included in the main conference ticket
• Pre-conference webinar-only tickets are also available if you can’t attend the main event
• Flexible pricing is available for people with disability and their families from $0.00 to $225.00
• People with disability, their families, friends, and allies, support workers, education professionals, health professionals, and everyone interested in safeguarding the future of people with disability are welcome to attend.

Register to attend the conference and/or the pre-conference webinars