Resource Library

Reasonable and Necessary: Challenging NDIS decisions: Expert advice to get the support you need

Closing date: August 10, 2023

On this episode of Reasonable & Necessary, Dr George speaks with Mitchell Skipsey from the Public Interest Advocacy Centre (PIAC) and NDIS participant and activist, Felice Vaiani, about NDIS appeals and what to do when your NDIS plan doesn’t meet your needs. This episode is full of lots of great advice, and important things to … Continued

New Mental Health and Wellbeing Act 2022: Sector briefing

Victoria will have a new Mental Health and Wellbeing Act from 1 September 2023. The new Act replaces the Mental Health Act 2014. It has new rights-based principles that promote the values, preferences and views of Victorians with mental illness or psychological distress. The new principles guide how service providers should deliver assessment, treatment, care and support.

NDIS Quarterly Reports

Data outlined in the latest Quarterly Report highlights significant progress by participants, their families, carers and wider disability networks including participants experiencing increased choice and control, opportunities to participate and engage in their communities and workplaces, make friends and spend their time as they choose. It also outlines the partnership with First Peoples Disability Network to co-design a new First Nations Strategy and action plan that reflects the goals and hopes of First Nations people with disability. This is timely with 9.9% of new participants identifying as First Nations people this quarter

Restrictive practices: A pathway to elimination

The report describes restrictive practices as physical, chemical or environmental restraints and seclusion that are legally, socially or professionally sanctioned. The report also includes involuntary health treatment, guardianship, financial management, and any other non-consensual or coercive action against an individual’s will as a restrictive practice.  It concludes that restrictive practices are at odds with the human rights of people with disability. The report has an eight point plan to stop restrictive practices including…

Shine a Light: Understanding vulnerability at the intersection of disability and electricity services

Power outages put customers at risk, affecting their well-being and daily routines. This can lead to distress and challenges in self-care. While we know outages are inconvenient for all customers, they can affect customers managing disabilities in more serious ways. This report includes a number of recommendations for AusNet to reduce the identified risks amongst customers experiencing vulnerability. also included are three customer profile summaries, which offer a deeper understanding of the daily experiences of vulnerable customers.

Disability Pride Starts Here

This project features content and resources about disability pride created by disabled young people.  It aims to encourage all Victorians to see disability as a strength. Shifting the community perception of disability is an essential part of helping to remove the barriers disabled young people face across all aspects of their lives. There are resources for employers, organisations, the wider community and disabled young people. Around 30 disabled young people in Victoria participated as part of the Project Advisory Group.  The Gallery is an opportunity to meet the content creators and check out their amazing art, videos, poems, written pieces and more.

The difference between unfair treatment and unlawful discrimination

Many people with disabilities face barriers in accessing systems and are treated unfairly. But when is it simply unfair or unjust treatment, and when is it unlawful? Is it a breach of disability discrimination law or is it a breach of other disability laws? In this Advance Your Advocacy Practice session, Julie Phillips, Manager of Disability Discrimination Legal Service, explores the fine line where unfair treatment tips into unlawful disability discrimination. She clarifies when to seek legal advice and how the complaints processes work in Victoria compared to federal systems.

Having a go: Making individualised living a reality

This home and living capacity building report is part of working to develop a new approach to home and living.  The research explores supports NDIS participants use to build their capacity to work towards their home and living goals. The report identifies 4 key areas for action that can help participants work towards achieving their home and living goals.

Access Hub: Helping you connect

Access Hub provides information about communication options and services to assist you  to make a phone call and connect online, including the National Relay Service, for people who are d/Deaf, hard of hearing and/or have speech communication difficulty.  You’ll find information in plain English, Auslan, pictures and videos, accessibility features such as high contrast text and easy ways to find the information you need

Parents with disability and their experiences of child protection systems

The report states that the combination of disability and risk is one of the most explicit forms of discrimination parents with disability face. This is magnified for First Nations parents with disability. The findings indicate that law, policy, practice and funding reforms are necessary for parents with disability to uphold their human rights and look after their children where practicable. Twenty-seven recommendations are made in the report.

Reproductive coercion and abuse

This practice guide is for non-specialist practitioners working in areas that increase the likelihood of exposure to women experiencing Reproductive coercion and abuse RCA but do not have specialist training or experience in domestic and family violence. RCA refers to any deliberate attempt to dictate a person’s reproductive choices or interfere with their reproductive autonomy and is typically perpetrated against women, and other people with female reproductive organs, in a context of fear and control within an interpersonal relationship

What we have heard report

s from individuals and organisations who have already submitted feedback to the Review. Part A draws out the five most challenging and important issues given the Terms of Reference from Ministers and your feedback. Part B provides more detail on 10 areas identified for improvement.

Why it Matters resources

This series of booklets covers topics including advocacy, employment and succession Planning.  They offer practical advice to help you advocate and build safeguards  for your family member with disability, and will assist you  to have the conversations you need to have in order to prepare for the future, working towards a more inclusive and valued life that improves the economic, social, and personal well being of your loved ones.