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Mandi with her parents.
Mandi with her daughter Harli.
Children enjoyed the experience of My Puzzle House.
A safe space lost By Afraa Kori My Puzzle House, a specialised play centre for children with disabilities, closed its doors on 5 January 2025, after a five-year run. The sudden closure has left a community in shock, mourning the loss of a vital safe space that brought joy and inclusion to countless families. Since the recent changes to the NDIS, several clients have stopped using the services or significantly reduced their hours of service. The specialised school holiday program, which was typically very popular and hosted between 15 and 20 children each day, saw a significant decline in attendance during the current school holidays, with only 5 to 10 children booked in each day. Founder of My Puzzle House, Mandi Marchant said parents were deeply saddened that their children could no longer attend the program, as significant cuts to their NDIS funding had made
it impossible to fit the program into their revised budgets. “We have had an abundance of messages on our social media letting us know that they are very sad about the closure. We have had children crying because it’s the only place they feel safe and free to be themselves. It’s absolutely heartbreaking,” she said. “We have many support workers who rely on My Puzzle House as the indoor space to take their clients. The Adult group that comes in every Thursday are devastated.” My Puzzle House was also attempting to set up an Adult Daily Program and Before and After School Programs but unfortunately the NDIS changes affected them too quickly and they were not able to establish these programs quick enough. Continued page 2
The early stages of building the place. (Supplied)
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