Beyond Barriers Support

17/11/2025

Check out the social groups we run at Beyond Barriers Support!

Our Art Club is running right through the Christmas period.
Our Bowling and Adults DnD have availability; however, our Non-Binary and Under-18 DnD groups are currently full. We’re now taking expressions of interest for our Social Gaming Club and Outdoor Recreation group to start in the new year! (times for these groups may change)

You might feel anxious about joining a new group right now, and that’s completely okay. Our goal is to support you in building confidence and social skills over time so that things like starting a new job, volunteering, or even creating your own club feel achievable and within reach!

Send us a message if you’d like to get involved!

12/11/2025

Eat the Street is on this weekend!!

Just a quick reminder to our wonderful participants and community. Eat the Street is happening this weekend, and we encourage everyone to get out and enjoy all the amazing food and entertainment on offer!

Please note: there will be loud music, dancing, and bright lights, which might be overstimulating for some.
To make the most of your day, we recommend:
🎧 Bringing soundproof headphones
🌀 Keeping a favourite fidget toy handy
🌳 Identifying a few low-stim or quiet spaces around town
⏰ Visiting earlier in the day (between 12–3 PM) for a calmer experience
🤝 Or reach out to one of our friendly support workers if you’d like a bit of help navigating the event.

Most importantly, have fun, stay comfortable, and enjoy connecting with our wonderful local community! 💛

ONE WEEK TO GO!

Get ready for Norco Eat the Street on Saturday, 15 November, from 12pm–7pm along Keen Street, Lismore!

Taste your way through almost 40 incredible food vendors, enjoy live music, grab a drink at The Quad Bar and catch all the action at the Pie Eating Competition and Barista Smackdown.

It’s a full day of flavour, fun and local vibes, you won’t want to miss it!

👉 For all the delicious details, visit: www.visitlismore.com.au/eatthestreet

21/10/2025

💙 Invisible Disabilities Week 💙

A shout-out to our incredible community!, to our fellow dyslexic thinkers, those who are hard of hearing or low vision, our autistic and ADHD friends, those living with chronic pain, mental health conditions, or sensory differences and everyone whose disability isn’t always visible.

We see you. We honour your experiences. And we celebrate the unique strengths, perspectives, and creativity you bring to our world.

This week (and every week), let’s celebrate the diversity that exists within disability and remember that no two journeys are the same.

It’s Invisible Disabilities Week (19–25 October)! 🌻

Around 80–85% of people with a disability have one that isn’t visible. These include neurological, cognitive, sensory, mental health, and chronic conditions that aren’t always immediately apparent.

Not all disabilities are visible — but a little understanding and kindness can go a long way in making everyone feel seen and supported.

Image description: A green graphic with sunflower design promoting Invisible Disabilities Week, 19th–25th October. It features a Sunflower lanyard, a person icon with a sunflower, and the Hidden Disabilities Sunflower logo.

13/10/2025

🎮✨Beyond Barriers Support at PAX 2025! ✨🎮

It’s no secret our team (and many of our participants) are passionate about gaming and anime. This weekend, we ventured beyond the Northern Rivers shire 🧙‍♂️ to PAX Melbourne, on a quest to explore how the gaming world is leading the way in disability inclusion and neurodiversity acceptance.

From low-stimulation rooms by Beyond Blue to inclusive panels and sensory-friendly spaces, PAX showed what true accessibility in community looks like. 💙

We connected with businesses and creators working in the ASD and tabletop spaces to learn, collaborate, and bring fresh ideas home, helping us shape social programs that reflect the diverse ways our participants connect, communicate, and belong.

Because at Beyond Barriers Support, we believe inclusion isn’t just about access, it’s about belonging. 🌈

Want to get involved?
Join our ever-growing community of gamers, creatives, and adventurers as we go beyond limits towards independence.

07/10/2025

We’re so excited to share that our Hidden Disabilities Sunflower wristbands and badges have arrived! 🌻

With summer events on the horizon, we want to make sure our participants feel supported wherever they go! whether that’s at the airport, the bank, or out in the community. 💛

The sunflower is an internationally recognised symbol that lets others know that someone may need a little extra time, space, or assistance. Our participants can now wear theirs anytime they wish to feel seen and supported. 🌞✨

28/09/2025

We might not have taken home an award at the Business NSW - Northern Rivers regional ceremony, but at Beyond Barriers Support we celebrate the real winners every single day, our amazing participants! We want to highlight some accomplishments our participants achieved recently:

💫 With just a little guidance from our employment services, one participant secured a job in Casino AND fully funded their very first solo trip to Melbourne, a massive step in independence and adventure!

💫 Another participant has been smashing their personal goals, cooking more, cutting back on ci******es and alcohol, and saving their hard-earned money for a dream trip to the V8 Supercars. Years in the making, and now within reach!

💫 After a long hospital stay, another participant has been courageously rebuilding their routines, exploring new passions, moving their body, nourishing themselves, and finding joy again, even when it feels easier to stay in bed. That strength is nothing short of inspiring.

These are the victories that matter most. These are the milestones worth celebrating. These are the true awards.

We couldn’t be prouder to stand alongside our participants and that's truly the reward for us!

Huge shoutout to all the support we had at the regional awards, Rainbow Roos , Silt Studio, Terania Consulting, Invercauld House and Connect Business Solutions we hope to see you all next year!

26/09/2025

We’re thrilled to share that Beyond Barriers Support has been nominated for not one, but two awards at this year’s Regional Business Awards! 🎉

✨ Outstanding New Business
✨ Young Business Leader – Corbyn Johnston

We feel incredibly grateful to be recognised alongside so many amazing local businesses. This weekend we’ll be celebrating by sharing a meal with friends, fellow businesses, and our community and no matter the outcome, we’re looking forward to a wonderful night. 💙

19/09/2025

🌿 Spring has arrived in the Northern Rivers!, and with it comes the joy (and sometimes overwhelm) of garden care. Whether you live with family, housemates, or on your own, keeping up with lawns and house tasks can feel like a lot.

For many of us, an “intimidating lawn” isn’t just about the grass, it can mean sensory overload from sounds, smells, and textures. For others, perfectionism can turn a simple task into something that feels impossible. And that’s okay. 💚

At Beyond Barriers Support, we know it’s not about getting everything done all at once, it’s about reducing overwhelm, breaking tasks into manageable steps, and finding sustainable ways forward.

✨ Body doubling
✨ Shared tasks to reduce monotony
✨ Building confidence and capacity through practice

This week, one of our amazing participants gave window cleaning and lawn care a go 🌱. Trying new things, swapping out tasks, and learning at your own pace are all ways we grow skills while keeping life more balanced.

House and garden maintenance don’t always come naturally, but with the right support, they can become opportunities for growth, connection, and independence!

Who else finds garden tasks a bit overwhelming? You’re not alone, and we’re here to support you.

16/09/2025

Big shoutout to Workforce Skills & Training in Lismore for running CPR and First Aid training with some of our team last week!

With our staff numbers growing, keeping our skills sharp is so important, whether it’s children or adults, being prepared can truly save lives.

A special thank you to Nancy, who has been running Workforce skills and training for over 10 years. A true local business, supporting locals, and making a real difference.

Nancy has some fantastic resources on her website and a FREE online mental health certificate, giving us even more ways to support our community. ❤️

03/09/2025

We are still absolutely blown away

To be recognised as Lismore’s Outstanding New Business is an honour we will never forget.

This journey started long before Beyond Barriers Support was born, from my (Emma’s) childhood, where I would help participants alongside my mum in her role as a support worker, to Corbyn’s years of service as a support worker, fire-fighter, and employment consultant. Those experiences shaped our big dreams of creating something different and deeply community-focused.

We owe a huge thank you to our incredible early team members for believing in what we could build together. Most of all, to our participants, who inspire us every single day.

This award belongs not just to us, but to everyone who has walked this path with us. 💙✨

Corbyn & Emma

2025 Lismore Business Excellence Awards

Outstanding New Business

WINNER

Beyond Barriers Support

02/09/2025

Find out what's happening in Lismore in September!, looking for a solo adventure?, or trying something new with a support person? Theres always something happening at the heart!

🎶🏏🎨 WHAT'S ON IN SEPTEMBER 🎨⚾🎶

Welcome to Spring! 🌸 Find out what's happening with our September What's On Guide, featuring events, tours and activities, entertainment, local attractions, markets and more.

Download and save a copy to your device, or print responsibly here
https://www.visitlismore.com.au/visitor.../whats-on-guide/

Having an event? Tell us about it and we’ll help promote it. Reach out on socials or contact us at tourism@lismore.nsw.gov.au