BPD Community
BPD Community is a grassroots, peer led, independent not for profit organization dedicated to providing a voice for all members of the BPD community in Victoria.
BPD can be a very isolating illness for all those affected. BPD Community exists to help ease that sense of isolation and replace it with a supportive community of like minded people who understand the challenges of BPD. It replaces the stigma and discrimination that exists with hope and optimism.
Our Story:
In Oct 2014 a National BPD Conference was held at Darebin a Melbourne suburb. The conference created a groundswell of support to establish a group to actively work to address the issue of stigma and discrimination and to promote hope and optimism.
A group of people began to develop and implement activities to meet the needs of the BPD community in Victoria. Out of this a not for profit company was established, BPD Community Victoria Ltd (BPD Community) was registered with ASIC in May 2015. In July 2016, ACNC granted us Gift Tax Deductibility status and Fringe Benefits Tax Status. Meanwhile our work continues…
Our mission:
To replace stigma and discrimination with hope and optimism.
Our vision:
To create a compassionate community.
Our values: Collaborate / Acceptance / Respect / Empathy
Collaborate: We are a collaborative organisation, working with people in our community to replace stigma and discrimination with hope and optimism. We work collaboratively with other organisations wherever we can. Collaboration implies a relationship amongst equals and that underscores our philosophy, ours is a community of equals
Acceptance: A key concept in BPD. If we radically accept, we actively work at changing what we can while accepting what we can't. Acceptance encourages a non-judgemental approach to life. At BPD Community we accept and welcome everyone into our community and we work to bring about change.
Respect: We treat others with respect and dignity. Respect for others and ourselves is integral to knowing who we are and the organisation we strive to build. With respect we can identify what we can do to achieve change and continually work on it. With respect we can define our limits and respect for others can bring us to humility and reinforce our equality.
Empathy: The ability to walk in the shoes of another, it enables us to understand. With empathy we can listen to what others say without our own imperatives drowning out their voice. Empathy teaches us what we haven't experienced ourselves, it enriches us and develops our capacity for compassion.
The primary goals of BPD Community Victoria are:
- to educate, support and advocate for people living with borderline personality disorders (BPD) in Victoria;
- to provide education and support services to carers and, or family members of people with BPD; and
- to provide education for clinicians and people working with people with BPD and their families.
Our Culture:
Compassion is a bird with two strong wings: giving and gratitude. At BPD Community we collaborate, giving generously; grateful for the opportunity to create positive change. At BPD Community, we care.
Our Code of Governance:
To access the full document, click on the image
Good governance is a process of continual improvement for our organisation.
We have laid solid foundations for this in our Code of Governance.
Principle 1: The board will provide good governance and leadership by implementing community control.
Principle 2: The board will provide good governance and leadership by understanding their role.
Principle 3: The board will provide good governance and leadership by ensuring delivery of the organisation’s objectives
Principle 4 The board will provide good governance and leadership by working effectively both as individuals and as teams.
Principle 5: The board will provide good governance and leadership by exercising effective control.
Principle 6: The board will provide good governance and leadership by behaving with integrity.
Principle 7: The board will provide good governance and leadership by being open and accountable.
Our Code of Ethics:
To access the full document, click on the image
BPD Community's Code of Ethics makes explicit the expectations of behaviour within our organisation. We pride ourselves in our values informed ethics and share them with you here.
1. Commitment: I took up this position to work for something larger than myself. I will carry out this work honestly and in fairness to everybody involved, placing the interests of others before my own.
2. Compliance: I will work within the law, and within the rules, and I will see that BPD Community does too.
3. Conflicts: In my dealings with BPD Community, I shall be honest and open, and shall not take any advantage of my position on the board.
4. Confidentiality: I shall keep secret any secrets that have been entrusted to me, and I shall freely tell anyone anything they are entitled to know.
5. Conscientiousness: I shall do my job fully and without reservations.
6. Communication: I shall know what the organisation does, and why, and I shall tell the world about it
7. Community: I will treat the people involved with BPD Community respectfully, fairly and without prejudice.