Power to people’s elbow

A multimillion-dollar state-of-the-art community hub to support people living with disabilities is open for business.

Located on 22 Balmoral Road, the $4.5 million Empowering People in Communities facility was opened on June 24.

The site includes a dedicated space for community programs to be run and be a consolidated office headquarters for EPIC staff and a training room.

EPIC was launched in 2012 to provide locally governed services for people with disabilities and expanded to include parenting programs and employment support services in 2015.

EPIC chief executive Stephanie Soter, pictured, said the facility was a long time coming. “From the time we bought the land, it has been over three years to get to this point, and we had an 18-month build period,” she said. Ms Soter said there was no other facility like it in the Pilbara. “We should have the same ability to access services as anybody living in the metro,” she said.

“The reason why we built this was about the hub and the people we support.

“It was about having a place they could call their own, connect, share, and meet their dreams.”

Ms Soter said EPIC was planning a stage two build.

Ms Soter said EPIC’s services were available for a range of people, including low-income groups or those on release from prison.

“We don’t just support people with disabilities, and we support people that need support in the community, where there is a gap in the community,” she said.

EPIC also has offices in Roebourne, Newman, Port Hedland and Kalgoorlie.