Plan first, don't 'retrofit': delivering on the promise of the NDIS for Aboriginal and CALD people in NSW
The NDIS is intended to be a once in a generation economic and social reform aimed at supporting a transformation of the lives of people with a disability in Australia, with a vision to optimise the social and economic independence, participation, choice and control of people with disability.
The Plan first, don’t retrofit report suggests that delivering on the stated outcomes of the NDIS presents a range of additional challenges for many people from CALD and Aboriginal communities because of a range of factors including language barriers, the way people access information, social and economic disadvantage, varying levels of informal support, isolation and how various communities think about and relate to the concept of disability. Overcoming these barriers so that Aboriginal people and people from CALD communities have equitable access to the NDIS and its benefits will require an approach that learns from and builds upon past experiences, to do things smarter and more effectively.
Examination of the roll-out to date suggests that the full implementation of the NDIS represents an opportunity to engage more effectively from the outset, to achieve genuinely better outcomes for people in Aboriginal and CALD communities.
Our report identifies a number of broad ‘enablers’ and more targeted recommendations that can change and improve the way that the NDIS engages with and works more effectively for CALD and Aboriginal people with disability.
Think Tank
On Thursday 10 March, NCOSS held a Think Tank with representatives from the community sector and government to come up with specific, practical ways to act upon and progress the recommendations of this report and ensure that as the NDIS rolls out, we enable better and more effective engagement with Aboriginal and CALD people with disability, and deliver on the promise of the scheme for people in those communities.
Read the full wrap up from the Think Tank.
Watch NCOSS Senior Policy and Advocacy Officer, Carolyn Hodge talk about the purpose of the report at the event.