Tag: 2024
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Joint Budget Submission 2025-26
The ACT Disability Directed Advocacy Caucus is pleased to make a submission to the community consultation process for the 2025/26 ACT Budget.
The ACT Disability Directed Advocacy Caucus is made up of Women with Disabilities ACT, Advocacy for Inclusion and ACT Down Syndrome and Intellectual Disability. We advocate together representing Canberrans with disabilities.
In our submission we have identified five key priorities for consideration and targeted investment.
These are:- Rescue package for ACT disability advocacy
- Funding people with disability to engage in foundational support reforms
- Funding for reform policy capacity in the ACT Government
- Meeting critical unmet needs
- Delivering government election commitments
We have two main urgent priority funding asks to address the disability advocacy funding crisis and enable people with disability to engage with government reforms, support the foundational supports implementation and stocktake, audit and surface capacity to deliver tier one foundational supports.
We also seek better government delivery capability and funding to deliver government election promises and address key priorities and support gaps.
You can read our full submission below. -
Workshop 2: Surviving & Thriving in the holiday season with Yenn Purkis
Event description
This workshop was held at Northside Community Services on December 16th 2024, and online on December 17th 2024.
The workshop covered:
- Managing sensory overload
- Family conflict
- Traditions
- Spending time with chosen family
- Survival strategies.
The holiday season can be challenging and isolating for many with disabilities. Author and advocate Yenn Purkis shared and discussed tips and tricks to survive and thrive.
Workshop recording
The recording of the online version of the workshop will be available soon.
You can access the slides below.
Workshop resources
You can access the workshop resource booklet below. The first booklet is designed to be printed, and has graphics. It will not load in your browser as the file size is large. The second one has the same content, but is text and images only.
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Joint submission to the General Foundational Supports consultation
Last week WWDACT, along with Women with Disabilities Australia and Women with Disabilities Victoria, made our submission to the General Foundational Supports consultation process. This submission includes the survey report from our joint survey a couple of months ago, which received just under 200 responses nationwide. A massive thank you to everyone who contributed to this work, through a survey submission, conversations with our team, or feedback on the final product.
We’re looking forward to continuing working with the ACT and Federal governments, along with our sister organisations, as they keep developing this new system of supports.
You can download and read the submission and report using the links below.
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Policy Advisory Committee – vacancy
The WWDACT Policy Advisory Committee (PAC) is looking to fill a vacancy for 2025.
The PAC advises our policy team on issues affecting women, girls, non-binary and gender diverse people with disabilities in the ACT. We meet monthly over Zoom, on the first Monday of the month from 11am – 1pm.
Our PAC has 6 members, all of whom identify as women, girls, non-binary and/or gender diverse people with disabilities.
Who is eligible to be on the PAC?
To be on the PAC you must be:
- A woman, non-binary and/or gender diverse person
- A person with disabilities / disabled person
- Living, studying or working in the ACT or surrounding regions (for example, Yass and Bungendore)
- Over 18 years old
It is open to anyone who identifies as a person with disabilities or disabled person. You do not need a diagnosis in order to be eligible for the PAC.
We try to ensure our PAC represents a diverse range of experiences. Everybody is welcome to apply! However, we especially encourage applications from the following groups:
- A young person with disabilities (under 25)
- Trans, non-binary and/or gender diverse
- Part of the LGBTQIA+ community
- Aboriginal and/or Torres Strait Islander
- Culturally and Linguistically Diverse (CALD) and/or a Person of Colour (POC)
- An older person with disabilities (over 65)
What does the PAC do?
The PAC discusses issues that WWDACT is actively working on, primarily in disability policy. These include (but are not limited to):
- Healthcare and health literacy
- Gendered violence prevention
- Disability supports
- ACT Government priorities (including disability strategies, inquiries, budget process and election)
- Parenting and raising children
- Data collection about people with disabilities
You don’t have to have lived experience or extensive knowledge of all of these areas in order to apply! We will support you to learn about areas you don’t know much about.
The WWDACT team uses stories and information from these discussions to inform their policy work (including submissions, meetings with government and other stakeholders, and deciding our broader advocacy priorities). Sometimes we invite MLAs (members of the ACT Legislative Assembly) or other organisations to come along to our meetings and we can share stories with them directly.
The PAC also has opportunities to access training, or to be supported with their own projects by WWDACT if capacity allows.
How do we choose our new members?
We try to maintain a diverse range of lived experience across our PAC. This includes people with different disabilities or disability types, different intersecting identities, and other relevant lived experience (for example, as a carer or a survivor of violence).
In the application, we will ask you about your knowledge and experience in the disability sector and disability advocacy. This is just for us to learn more about you and your passion for disability advocacy. You don’t need to have any experience to be eligible to apply.
Administration information
The PAC meets 10 times per year. In 2025, meetings will start in March and run through to December.
We usually meet on the first Monday of the month, for 2 hours. Meetings are from 11am – 1pm.
We meet online over Zoom. Automatic closed captioning and transcripts are provided. A meeting agenda and papers are provided at least a week before our meetings, and minutes are shared within 2 weeks after the meeting.
We will do our best to meet other access needs – please let us know what would help you to participate.
PAC members are remunerated $250 per session, in the form of a gift card.
The full terms of reference for the PAC are available below as a PDF.
How to apply
You can find a link to the application form below.
We accept video and audio submissions, as well as written application forms. Let us know if we can make the form more accessible for you.
We might contact you for a brief interview before you are formally accepted onto the PAC.
This year there is only one vacancy on the PAC. However, WWDACT frequently holds policy consultations with our broader membership. Please indicate on the form if you would like us to send you other opportunities for policy and advocacy with us.
More questions?
If you need more information about the PAC and the application process, you can email
Pippa, WWDACT Policy Officer (policy@wwdact.org.au)
or Kat, WWDACT CEO (ceo@wwdact.org.au).
Applications close on 10 February 2025.
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Workshop 1: Navigating the Health System & Self Advocacy with HCCA
This workshop was run online on 18th November 2024, and in-person at Ainslie Arts Centre on 21st November 2024.
The workshop was run by HCCA (Health Care Consumers Association ACT).
It covered 4 topics:
- Key health services in the ACT
- Booking and preparing for a medical appointment
- Getting the most out of your appointment; including your rights and how to to speak up for yourself
- Following up after your appointment; health records and scripts
You can find out more about the workshop content by visiting HCCA’s website.
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MEDIA RELEASE: Disability groups flag health priorities ahead of ACT election forum
A united front of ACT disability groups is flagging access to health care as a key priority for the 1 in 5 Canberra voters with a disability a day out from an ACT Disability Town Hall event kicking off tomorrow from 12 noon.
ACT Down Syndrome and Intellectual Disability, Women with Disabilities ACT, Mental Health Community Coalition ACT and Advocacy for Inclusion have come together to say access to critical acute,primary and preventative health care is a key priority as we approach the October voting period.
They point to data which reveals 1 in 4 people with disability find it difficult to access a GP while 1 in 3 find it challenging to access specialist health services. In addition, Bulk-billing rates in the ACT have long been declining but there have is further deteriorations with only 3.8 per cent of clinics bulk-billing all patients at the end of 2023.
With the ACT taking on new responsibilities for Foundational Supports following the NDIS review the groups call for prompt implementation of the ACT Disability Health Strategy and a focus on other services, programs and upgrades to improve access.
You can read the media release below.
Election comment authorised by Kat Reed for Women with Disabilities ACT
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Survey: Shaping Foundational Supports – Your Voice Matters
The Australian Government is exploring a new system of disability supports called “Foundational Supports”.
These supports will be available outside the NDIS, and they aim to fill the gaps in existing services for people who may not be eligible for the NDIS.
Why Foundational Supports Matter
Foundational supports are vital because they ensure that everyone in the disability community has access to the help they need.
Support will cover essential areas like:
- Daily Living: Assistance with everyday tasks and activities.
- Community Access: Support to participate fully in your community.
- Skill Development: Opportunities to learn and grow.
Take Our Survey
Please take a few minutes to complete our short survey and tell us what kind of foundational supports would make a real difference in your life.
Your feedback will directly inform our advocacy efforts and help us ensure that these new supports truly meet the needs of our community.
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Join us for our election event!
Disability is shaping up as a major issue in the approaching ACT Election.
In the lead up to the election Women with Disabilities ACT, in partnership with Advocacy for Inclusion, ACT Down Syndrome and Intellectual Disability, and the Mental Health Community Coalition ACT, is offering a town hall style event with a difference.
Local candidates and voters are invited to hear about a range of disability priorities and issues across portfolios and affecting individual electorates. Our MC will be ABC journalist Emmy Groves.
This is not a traditional election debate but more an opportunity to hear, learn and reflect. We are hoping you can join us to hear about the issues affecting Canberrans with disability, and for candidates to share with us their election priorities that support people with disability.
When: Thursday 26 September 2024, 12pm – 2pm
Authorised by Kat Reed for Women with Disabilities ACT
