Angelica’s dreams of a future in ECEC one step closer with Bamara’s support

NDIS and registered provider Bamara has been supporting 22 year old Wiradjuri woman Angelica Bailey-Forrester to reach her goal of working in early childhood education and care (ECEC). 

Ms Bailey-Forrester, who lives with a mild intellectual disability, is about to commence her Certificate III in Early Childhood Education, and dreams of becoming an early childhood teacher. Her interest in the sector has been forged thanks to her volunteer work with a local pre-school. 

“I like to work with children,” she said. “I like getting to know them. Hopefully, after this volunteer work and my studies, I can gain a traineeship and become a teacher.”

Bamara has been working with Ms Bailey-Forrester since early in 2023, with support  co-ordinator Tiffany Rowley arranging the placement after learning of her interest in working with children. 

Ms Rowley, who also arranges other aspects of Bailey-Forrester’s NDIS plan such as daily living, capacity building, social and community participation and employment supports, said she has been “amazed” at the progress made over the last 12 months.

“When I first met Angelica as her support worker, she was a very shy girl,” Ms Rowley said. “She lacked a lot of confidence. She wouldn’t engage. She had poor eye contact. She would have trouble getting motivated. But over the past few months, since being her support co-ordinator, Angelica has bloomed so much. I’m so proud of her. The growth in Angelica is just unbelievable.”

As well as pursuing tertiary education, Ms Bailey-Forrester is also working toward her drivers licence, which will further support her employment ambitions. Through Bamara’s Driver Licensing Access Program she does weekly lessons as she works towards obtaining her provisional licence.

“When we met with Angelica’s plan manager the other day, he nearly fell out of his chair,” Ms Rowley said. 

“He couldn’t believe how much Angelica has come out of her shell in such a short time. I think the NDIS has played a massive role in Angelica’s life. If it wasn’t for the NDIS and Bamara, she wouldn’t be where she is today.”

The pair are both looking forward to participating in NAIDOC Week and celebrating the 2024 theme of ‘Keep the Fire Burning! Blak, Loud and Proud’.

Angelica is one of more than 17,000 First Nations participants in New South Wales benefitting from the NDIS, and said NAIDOC is the ideal time to celebrate her culture.