Brendan Simpkins

TED de Lyster has a vision.

In 1991, Mr de Lyster and wife Diana established Windamere Park, a disability service provider located in Buckland Park on the fringes of the City of Playford.

Windamere provides a range of programs for its clients with intellectual disabilities and other neurodevelopmental disorders.

Short-term accommodation is available, with the aim to assist the transition from home to future living options or to give them a short-term away from home experience to help develop independent living skills.

But Mr de Lyster hopes to go further, taking inspiration from the pioneering The Hogewey village on the outskirts of Amsterdam.

The Hogewey is a gated village for dementia sufferers and features a town square, supermarket, café and pub.

More than 150 residents live independently at The Hogewey, but have access to 24-hour care from doctors, nurses and carers.

It was opened in 2009 with support from the Dutch government.

The concept allows for the residents to live as much of a normal live as possible in an inclusive community, with access to quality-care when needed.

Mr de Lyster hopes to roll out a similar concept at Windamere, creating an independent living community for clients with disabilities, with support staff on hand.

To start, 15 homes would be established on site at Windamere.

“There will be three people in each (house),” Mr de Lyster said.

“It will be a separate apartment with their own garden with a central area in the middle.

“They have their individuality… they can walk here if they want to but it’s a choice, maybe they won’t want to come to Windamere but at least they can.

“That would be 45 people we would be supporting, that’s at least 200 staff.”

The number of houses is likely to grow significantly in the future as demand increases.

Already Windamere caters for more than 400 clients and conducts interviews almost every day for new clients to join.

The project has the support of Playford Council’s elected members.

In December, councillors voted to endorse the construction of 15 allotments at Windamere with individual titles.

Land at Windamere has been rezoned from horticulture to allow for the 15 homes to be built on the property.

Approval had been granted to build the houses but without individual titles, preventing parents to seek finance to purchase the house due to a Limited Land Division Overlay.

It is envisioned that the community will be integrated with the nearby Riverlea development, allowing residents to visit the facilities nearby and vice versa, giving freedom rather than an institution-like environment.

Windamere has created a petition which will be presented to planning minister Vickie Chapman which seeks support to build the 15 houses with individual titles.