Community Update

Supporting Accessibility - North Shore Disability Resource Centre

Van set up

Neptune has supported the North Shore Disability Resource Centre (NSDRC) with a targeted, three-year donation to support a new offering: Canada’s first mobile multi-sensory environment. A multi-sensory environment is a dedicated space where sensory stimulation can be controlled. The activities therein can be presented in isolation or combination, packaged for active or passive interaction, and matched to fit the therapeutic and/or educational needs of the user.

This unique, mobile concept means that the space can be offered to individuals with disabilities around the North Shore, and support public events like the Museum of North Vancouver’s sensory friendly days. Multi-sensory environments can be beneficial to people of all abilities: they can be impactful for people on the Autism Spectrum or with other cognitive challenges, for older adults living with dementia, people with attention deficit or hyperactivity disorders or people who have had brain injuries.

“A mobile facility makes this much more accessible to more people, so having this space in a van has been a game-changer,” says Kathleen Jessop, Director of Community Based Services at NSDRC. “The funding from Neptune has gone towards staffing, maintenance and equipment for the van, and we are able to offer our services to a broad range of individuals in need of calm or those feeling agitated and anxious or disconnected and withdrawn.”

The van can be booked online, and is available on a sliding fee scale at nsdrc.org

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