Posted June 23, 2020
Three special schools in Melbourne will be investigated over a series of allegations of “violence, abuse and serious neglect” of students with disabilities over the past 10 years. Victoria’s Department of Education and Training has launched an investigation into multiple claims of mistreatment of vulnerable children at Marnebek School in Cranbourne East, Jackson School in St Albans and Southern Autistic School in Bentleigh East.
Posted June 18, 2020
“Vulnerable participants are not routinely identified and assigned ongoing support coordination in their NDIS plan,” the interim report states. It found there was no requirement for care providers to allocate at least two workers to cater for each client and no requirement for carers to have regular supervision.
Posted June 18, 2020
Gaps exist in the system to protect disabled people under government care, with a dozen issues identified by a South Australian task force examining the case of an Adelaide woman who died in appalling conditions. The group’s interim report was released on Tuesday and found 12 areas that required attention, with most within the Commonwealth’s jurisdiction.
Posted June 12, 2020
Celebrating his 10th “truly free” day of freedom since he was 16, Indigenous man Daryl Carr, 35, who has a mild intellectual disability, had a single message. “I don’t want to see the mob go through what I went through,” said Mr Carr, a Wiradjuri man who has spent most of his life behind bars. He was released from prison in late May after a NSW Supreme Court judge found that Mr Carr had been cruelly detained on a five-year extended supervision order for 11 years, sometimes for “minor breaches”.
Posted June 5, 2020
The death of NDIS participant, Ann Marie Smith, in South Australia is absolutely shocking and the circumstances that led to her death must never be allowed to happen again.
Posted May 28, 2020
Harris’ sister Leanne Longfellow told Inq she couldn’t believe there had been no protocols breached in the lead-up to Harris’ death. His body wasn’t discovered until around two months after he died, when Longfellow — who lives interstate — called NSW Police to conduct a welfare check.
Posted May 28, 2020
More details have emerged from a number of investigations into the death of Adelaide woman, Ann Marie Smith, who police say died as a result of shocking neglect last month. The acting head of South Australia’s Human Services Department today told a parliamentary committee there had been several “flags” against her carer, Rosa Maoine and the company that employed her – Integrity Care over the years.
Posted May 25, 2020
The Federal Court recently decided it was reasonable and necessary for an NDIS participant to receive funding for sex work. Sara digs into the must-read details of this fascinating ruling.
Posted May 22, 2020
The Federal Government says it “wants answers” on the death of disability care recipient Ann Marie Smith in what police described as “degrading circumstances”, as pressure mounts on federal and state authorities to explain how her case was overlooked.
Posted May 22, 2020
The essence of human rights is the right of everyone to live a dignified life. A life with shelter, food, access to health care, safety, inclusion in the community and respect. As a community we should value human rights because we value people. People from all backgrounds, living circumstances and abilities. People like Ann-Marie. A police investigation is now underway, and Ann-Marie’s death has been declared a major crime.
Posted May 22, 2020
She died on April 6 from severe septic shock, multi-organ failure, severe pressure sores, malnutrition and issues connected with her cerebral palsy after being stuck in a cane chair for 24-hours-a-day for more than a year.
Posted May 18, 2020
The case of an Adelaide woman who died after being left by carers in a cane chair 24-hours-a-day for a year shows the community still does not value people with disabilities as much as it should, advocates say. Her death, which Detective Superintendent Des Bray described as happening in “disgusting and degrading circumstances”, is now the subject of a manslaughter investigation.
Posted May 14, 2020
Sex workers are a “reasonable and necessary” item to be funded by the NDIS, the Federal Court has ruled. Disability advocates welcomed what they described as a landmark decision and said the NDIA must accept it.
Posted May 4, 2020
A disability carer allegedly secretly filmed videos of himself physically and verbally abusing five vulnerable adults and sexually abusing two children in western Sydne
Posted March 10, 2020
Mrs Kidd said there were institutional failures to keep Australian children safe, as she and others had raised concerns with the disability service about Lizzul’s actions before the November date when Lizzul administered the morphine.
