About

Gold Coast Community Lifestyles believes a Good Life is lived in community, is rich in relationships and roles and supports independence and capacity building.

Our Vision is a Good Life for ALL

Gold Coast Community Lifestyles is a community inclusion service that strongly believes that;

A Good Life includes, family, friends, a sense of belonging, connection to community, meaningful work/roles, opportunities to learn and develop, a place to call home and the chance to pursue your hopes and dreams.

Gold Coast Community Lifestyles is committed to creating an inclusive environments and support equality for all. We embrace diversity and condemn any kind of discrimination, we value and include people of all backgrounds, genders, sexualities, cultures, bodies and abilities in our community.

Everyone deserves the right to partake in all areas of society and be a part of their community.

Being part of your community will provide opportunities to build meaningful roles in life and reduce social isolation.

People keep people safe – being a visible and connected part of your community will provide natural safeguards that can counter vulnerability.

 

 

Other Services we provide

Privacy and Confidentiality

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Planning Services

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Community Development

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Training

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What makes us different

We work to a VISION

GCCL works with all our service users to create a plan based on fulfilling their vision and allowing their character and abilities to evolve. Supports are delivered to assist the individual and the family to make meaningful steps towards their goals and the lifestyle they choose to live. We try to match our participants with like-minded supports to achieve the best outcome for each individual’s plan.

GCCL is led by Families with lived experience

Nothing for us – without us.

When developing supports and services for people with Disability it makes sense to have that design be driven by the people it impacts.

Gold Coast Community Lifestyles has 3 Board members with lived experience of Disability, our office and support staff also include people with a variety of lived experiences of Disability. We believe this is crucial to the responsive, meaningful delivery of our supports and services

GCCL believes inclusion & community are the cornerstones​​

A modern society recognises it benefits from the wide range of lived experiences people have to share. Inclusion and integration enable the collection of all of our stories which allows for a breaking down of barriers and a better understanding of eachother. But most importantly, a rich community life enhances an individuals opportunities for valued roles and relationships, critical to a meaningful life.

GCCL was developed by people with disabilities and their families

Gold Coast Community Lifestyles was developed for people with a disability and their families who were in receipt of funding and in need of a service to be able to access funds for personal support needs. The primary people who developed Gold Coast Community Lifestyles were well aware that they did not require a service to provide this and were quite capable of directing their own supports, however it is a requirement from the funding bodies at the time, and was decided that they would set up their own service. 

Gold Coast Community Lifestyles Administration and Board knows that the person with disability and their family know their own needs better than anyone and give them the respect to do this with little intrusion from the service. The administration and Board are simply there as a necessity to facilitate autonomy for people and families to manage their own supports, and ensure legal obligations are met. 

Our Team

Leisa Cooke

Executive Officer

Kirsty Schmitt

Support Coordinator

Nicole Hinchcliffe

Support Coordinator

Sami Dunnachie

Support Coordinator

Steve Wood

Support Coordinator

Johanna Smith

Support Coordinator

Nicole Souness

Service Delivery Coordinator

Christa Brown

Service Delivery Coordinator

Tamara Grimmond

Service Delivery Coordinator

Cat O’Driscoll

Human Resources Coordinator

Sue- Ellen Collas

Office Administrator
jess

Jessica Morgan

Plan Manager

Kate Nolen

Finance Coordinator


Acknowledge of Country

Gold Coast Community Lifestyles acknowledges all First Peoples of this land and celebrate their enduring connections to Country, knowledge and stories. 

We specifically acknowledge the Traditional Custodians of the lands we live and where our services are provided, including the Kaurna, Ngarrindjeri, Wiraduri, Bundjalung and Barngarla peoples.

We pay our respects to Aboriginal and Torres Straight Islander Elders past, present and emerging.

We recognise the continuation of cultural, spiritual and educational practices of First Nations peoples, and we acknowledge that they never ceded sovereignty of their country.

Leisa Cooke

Executive Officer

Leisa’s background is in the Social sector, and she has 25+ years of experience in the community sector prompting inclusion (Many groups have been excluded from our society for generations and often still live at the margins). Leisa has worked in various roles in the disability sector including developing the family support program. In her corporate practice she wishes to ‘walk alongside’ through making truly inclusive choices for people with a disability and their family members. Leisa has been blessed to have family members with a disability and a close lived experience. 

Kirsty Schmitt

Support Coordinator

Kirsty has worked for GCCL for almost 7 years and has worked alongside the disability community for 20+ years here on the Gold Coast and previously in Sydney. She brings her years of experience to her role as well as a creative approach to problem solving and an empathic spirit to her connection with people and families. Kirsty provides our Support Coordination here at GCCL but across her time working in this community she has filled most of the roles at different times. Kirsty is a people person with a degree in Communications, Social Inquiry and a Diploma in Leadership and Management. She loves working with people and enjoys supporting people to move towards their best life. Kirsty is also a qualified Hatha Yoga teacher and has enjoyed teaching adults, kids in schools and in the home-schooling community. She has 2 beautiful kids of her own, loves reading, the beach, travelling and you can often find her in the sun with family and friends. 

Nicole Hinchcliffe

Support Coordinator

Nicole has 30 years of professional experience working with people to achieve their goals. She enjoys working with people and in 2020 was offered the opportunity to work with GCCL as a support coordinator for NDIS participants. Nicole is committed to understanding the lives and goals of the people that she works with. She values the opportunity to provide practical assistance to people navigating the NDIS. Nicole works to develop a collaborative relationship with participants and their families to assist them to reach their goals. She brings compassion and a broad understanding of the human condition to all of her relationships.

Nicole is a Psychologist with a Masters in Couple and Family Therapy. Her initial experience was working with people with intellectual and psychiatric disabilities. Since this time she has worked as a rehabilitation counsellor, family therapist, school psychologist and psychologist in private practice. Nicole looks forward to meeting with you.

Sami Dunnachie

Support Coordinator

Sami Dunnachie has been working alongside people with a disability and their families since 1999. Sami utilises Social Role Valorisation as a foundation for her work with people in a variety of settings inclusive of people with a disability, children in out of home care and in a hospital setting.  

Sami’s uses her wealth of experience and knowledge to understand and develop good relationships with people to work towards a Good Life. Sami delivers individual workshops in Community Development, and planning for people with a disability and their families.
Sami worked as a Consultant in the development of a Human Service, has volunteered on the board of her local neighbourhood centre and was President of the Human Service and Social Work Association at Griffith University where she obtained her degree in Social Work.
Sami loves being a Mumma to her newly adult child, loves to travel the world and would own a bookshop if she won the lottery. You will always find her with a book or 2 on the go! Sami loves living on the Gold Coast with the oceans and the mountains in reach.

Steve Wood

Support Coordinator

Steve is a dedicated social worker with over 15 years of experience in the field. Throughout his career, he has focused primarily on child protection, displaying an unwavering commitment to ensuring the safety and well-being of vulnerable children. Steve’s extensive expertise in child protection has enabled him to navigate complex cases, advocate for the rights of children, and provide vital support to families in crisis. His compassion, empathy, and strong interpersonal skills have made him a trusted advocate for those in need.

 Recognising the unique challenges faced by people with disabilities and their families, Steve is passionate about empowering individuals to lead fulfilling lives and access the necessary resources and services they require. His deep understanding of social work principles and dedication to social justice make him an invaluable asset in the NDIS sector, where he continues to make a positive impact on the lives of those he serves.

Nicole Souness

Service Delivery Coordinator

Nicole has been working for GCCL for nearly 4 years, firstly in the HR Coordination role and then as our Service Delivery Coordinator. She holds a Bachelor’s degree in Social Science along with PR/Marketing Certificates. Nicole has worked for not -for -profit organisations for several years along with having previous experience in the recruitment industry both here and overseas.  She is passionate about working in the Disability space and will continue to advocate for person centred approaches to supports, which enrich the lives of people with a Disability. 

Originally heralding from South Africa, Nicole spent most of her years in Sydney, as well as living in Edinburgh Scotland with her husband. A mother to two beautiful children and in her down time she loves nothing more than travelling and experiencing new places and cultures, staying fit and active with yoga and relaxing with a good book.

Christa Brown

Service Delivery Coordinator

Christa has been working for GCCL since 2019, firstly as a Support Worker and now as a Service Delivery Coordinator. Christa’s family experiences have been instrumental in shaping her professional path, she has a sister and twin daughters with a disability which has taught her skills and life experiences. Christa holds a Cert IV in Disability along with a partial diploma in Nursing and other certificates. Working in the disability sector is perfect, as she has a passion for helping others and her experience and positive attitude helps understand our participants, and their choices around how they live their life and how they would like support provided. Outside of work Christa cherishes spending time with her family and her two Labradors, enjoying nature and loves retail therapy. 

Tamara Grimmond

Service Delivery Coordinator

Tamara has been working for GCCL since 2019, firstly as a Support Worker and has now moved into a Service Delivery Coordinator role. Tamara has a background working as a disability support worker and continues to support individuals as well as doing Service Delivery Coordination. She has a cert lll in Disability and a cert lV in Allied Health. Tamara started off Supporting individuals with Spinal Cord Injuries for a few years prior to joining GCCL and has since expanded to assist with all different needs and Disabilities. She is well-travelled and continues to grow and help other’s reach their goals. Tamara Re-located from Canada to Australia in December 2013 and has called the Gold Coast Home since 2016. She is the mother of 2 young children and spends most of her time Camping, Mountain Biking or in the outdoors in her spare time.   

Cat O’Driscoll

Human Resources Coordinator

Cat became a part of the GCCL team in October 2019 as HR Coordinator and helmed the implementation of a new computer program for support workers to ease the pressure of the manual processes within the office.   Coming from a Construction background, Cat has managed to step into the role bringing resourceful experience, a can do attitude with a positive and refreshing outlook to the service.

 Cat takes pride and sees the value in Choice and Control of the GCCL Participants and enjoys being a part of the process of employing staff based on the Participants individual needs.   Also a Personal Trainer, motivating and inspiring people is something that comes naturally to Cat. In her downtime Cat can be found at the gym or at the beach, or off on a hiking adventure.

Sue - Ellen Collas

Office Administrator

Sue-Ellen has been a part of the team since 2019, as our wonderful office administrator. For 3 years she has been manning the phones, dealing with participants plans and welcoming new comers. In Sue-Ellen’s downtime, she loves to read and is an accomplished martial artist in the form of kyokushin karate. As a loving mother of 2 beautiful children, and grandmother of 2 grandchildren. Sue-Ellen and her husband relish in family time whenever they can get it.

Jessica Morgan

Plan Manager

Jess has been working for GCCL for about 4 years, firstly in admin and as a support worker, and now she works alongside Judy in finance to assist with plan management. Jess has a certificate in business, and life experience, as having a sister with a disability has helped her in this role. She is passionate about working in this sector alongside her family as her goal is to always support her family and others by being understanding and kind. GCCL’s values and principals run alongside Jess’s own, and she feels privileged to be a part of such a unique service.

Kate Nolen

Finance Coordinator

Kate joined the team in 2022 as Finance Coordinator, working alongside Jess in the Finance Team. Although new to the industry, Kate comes with over 10 years of admin and finance experience and has loved getting involved in a not-for-profit organization that really cares for their clients and staff.

Kate also comes with personal experience as she navigates the NDIS for her daughter, she understands that supporting a person with a disability can be stressful and sometimes lonely but with the right support, everyone can live and enjoy the rich life they deserve.

In her free time, you will find Kate at the gym, hiking, drinking coffee or going on adventures with her cute Cavoodle Ziggy.