Media Item

Disability royal commission: People living with disability paint a bleak picture of education exclusion and neglect

Source: Lens
Author: Kate De Bruin
Posted October 27, 2020

At Public Hearing 7, focused on “barriers to accessing a safe, quality and inclusive school education and life course impacts”, the commission received submissions and heard raw and compelling oral testimony from young people and their families who described experiences of exclusion, violence and neglect.  Collectively, their testimony painted a sobering picture of how the education system continues to fail many people with disability.

Victorian tutor recruitment program needs strong autism focus says peak body

Author: Disability Support Guide
Posted October 27, 2020

The Victorian Government’s pledge to recruit and deploy 4,100 tutors across the State’s schools in 2021 must be coupled with specialised supports to ensure the program is accessible to and inclusive of autistic students, says Victorian peak autism body Amaze.

‘YPIRAC is a wicked problem that can only be solved by working across sectors’

Source: Pro Bono News
Author: Di Winkler
Posted October 27, 2020

Young people often end up in aged care because they fall through the gap between hospitals and the disability service system. The two systems operate on completely different time frames. For example, if a young person has a very severe brain injury, as soon as they are medically stable there is pressure to move them out of a hospital bed. But disability services take weeks or months to determine if a suitable housing and support option is available.

Greater privacy protections promised for disability royal commission

Source: Pro Bono News
Author: Luke Michael
Posted October 27, 2020

Attorney-General Christian Porter announced on Tuesday that the government will amend the Royal Commissions Act 1902 to guarantee that written submissions will remain confidential even after the royal commission concludes.

The five biggest mistakes when undertaking advocacy

Source: Pro Bono News
Author: Neil Pharaoh.
Posted October 27, 2020

Take a few moments to check the most common mistakes social purpose organisations make when it comes to advocacy, campaigning and engagement with government – are you doing any of them?

‘Sleepy’ disability watchdog under fire amid accounts of abuse

Source: SMH
Author: Dana McCauley
Posted October 16, 2020

A disability advocate has detailed harrowing stories of abuse against some of Australia’s most vulnerable people – from physical assaults to being put in cages – by those paid by taxpayers to care for them.

Advocates say royal commission must #MakeItSafeToSpeak

Source: Pro Bono News
Author: Luke Michael
Posted October 15, 2020

Disability advocates fear the most severe cases of systemic abuse will not be exposed during the royal commission unless greater privacy protections are given to people making submissions.   

A ‘jobs’ budget must include accessible jobs for people with disability

Author: Mirage News
Posted October 9, 2020

“It’s well recognised that people with disability face multiple barriers to finding and keeping paid work,” said Romola Hollywood, Director Policy and Advocacy, People with Disability Australia (PWDA). “Without targeted measures, in a tightening labour market, people with disability will continue to be excluded from mainstream employment. This budget has missed a critical opportunity to turn the tables, and that is a shame.”

Busting transport myths

Source: Disability Service Consulting (DSC)
Author: Rob Woolley
Posted October 9, 2020

Transport is possibly the most frustrating element of NDIS service delivery. It’s boggled our minds and frustrated us for years. It’s a complex cocktail of links to old service systems, mainstream interfaces, unclear information and out-of-date workarounds. And it only accounts for 3.7% of all NDIS spend – what a lot of stress for 3.7%!

People with disability denied care choices

Source: Canberra Times
Author: Ethan James
Posted October 2, 2020

Far too many people with a disability are denied choices about their accommodation, often leading to neglect and abuse, a royal commission says. It said a shift from large housing complexes to smaller group homes had not eliminated institutional forms of violence, abuse, neglect and exploitation.