Advocacy WA

25/08/2025

🤔 “There are so many Advocacy WA workshops… should I attend?”

✅ The answer is YES.
Every workshop is practical, free, and built on lived experience.

We’ve got sessions on:
✨ Your Rights, Your Supports, Your Service
✨ Self-Advocacy
✨ Safe, Quality & Collaborative Services (for providers + workers)
✨ NDIS Access & Appeals
✨ Disability Support Pension

Whether you’re a person with disability, a family member, carer, or worker — there’s something here for you.

The only wrong choice? Not coming along.
📅 Check out what’s coming up and book your spot today:
👉 https://events.humanitix.com/host/advocacywa

22/08/2025

📢 Media Statement: Advocacy WA responds to Minister Butler’s National Press Club Speech

“Strengthened integrity measures and the new advisory committee reflect our call for transparency, quality and genuine co-design — nothing about us without us.

What was not welcome was talk of further cuts to the scheme. People living with disability in rural WA already have the lowest plan utilisation rates because there are so few providers and allied health professionals in their communities. Recently announced pricing cuts are only going to exacerbate this issue.

Advocacy WA calls on the Minister to review rural pricing and ensure those living in regional Australia are able to access the same level of supports as their city counterparts.”

Read our full response from CEO Stuart Schonell here :
https://www.advocacywa.org.au/news-updates/media-statement-response-to-minister-butlers-national-press-club-speech-20-august-2025

Bunbury WA, 22 August 2025. Advocacy WA, representing thousands of people living with disability and their families in regional WA, welcomes some aspects of Minister Mark Butler’s address to the National Press Club on 20 August 2025, but highlights issues that are yet to be addressed. The Minister...

21/08/2025

📣 Free NDIS Workshop – Harvey 📣

Applying for the NDIS or appealing a decision can feel confusing and stressful — but you don’t have to do it alone.

Join us on the 3rd of September at the Harvey Community Resource Centre for a free, interactive workshop run by experienced disability advocates.

We’ll cover:
✅ Who can apply for the NDIS and what information you need
✅ How to make a strong access request
✅ What to do if your application is rejected
✅ How internal reviews and appeals work
✅ Where to get advocacy help and support
✅ Tips to feel confident speaking up for yourself

👥 This workshop is for people with disability, family members, carers, and support workers — everyone in your support network is welcome.

📅 Date: 3rd September
📍 Location: Harvey Community Resource Centre

Because everyone deserves access to the supports they need — and the confidence to ask for them.

21/08/2025

Public Consultation Now Open: Review of the Disability Discrimination Act

The Australian Government is reviewing the Disability Discrimination Act (DDA) as part of its response to the Disability Royal Commission. This is a crucial opportunity to strengthen protections, improve safety, and create fairer laws for people with disability across Australia.

Your voice matters.
Your experiences, insights, and ideas can help shape the future of disability rights in this country.

🔹 You can contribute by:

Making a submission to the Issues Paper

Completing the community survey

Find out more here 👉 https://buff.ly/QiX7CIc

📅 Consultation closes: 24 October 2025
✅ Easy Read and Auslan versions of the Summary Issues Paper are available through the link.

Together, let’s make sure disability rights are protected and strengthened for generations to come.

Find and participate in consultations run by Attorney General's Department

20/08/2025

“Put them in an institution. Try again for a normal one.”

This isn’t just a saying from the past. It’s what parents of a baby born with disability in the 1970s were told by doctors.
That baby was a real person. Their family was told to hand them over, to walk away, to try again for a “normal one.”

This was the reality for so many families: children separated from their parents, people with disability hidden away in institutions, denied dignity, denied opportunity, denied their rightful place in community.

It wasn’t until the 1980s that the disability rights movement began to change this story — to demand equality, to fight for respect, to say clearly: we belong.

And yet, the voices heard in the Disability Royal Commission show us that abuse, neglect, and exploitation are not just history. They are still happening today.

For Larissa Beeby, Community Project Manager at Advocacy WA, this lived history is why the workshops matter so much:

“When I hear these stories, I feel the weight of them. This was someone’s life. This was someone’s family. We cannot let history repeat itself. Knowledge is power — and that’s why it’s so important to me to share these workshops with as many people as possible. Because when people with disability, families, and communities know their rights, they can speak up, be heard, and help build services that are truly safe and respectful.”

🌟 Your Rights, Your Supports, Your Service is about turning lived experience into change.

📍 Regional and online sessions across 2025
🎟️ Register here: https://events.humanitix.com/host/advocacywa

Because rights aren’t optional. They’re the foundation of dignity, safety, and belonging.

📖 Read the full article on our website here:
https://www.advocacywa.org.au/news-updates/put-them-in-an-institution-try-again-for-a-normal-one

👩‍💻 Meet Larissa: Why Advocacy Is So Important To Me (Host of Your Rights, Your Supports, Your Service): https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=L8s-1JfuqnI

Do you know your rights under the NDIS?You have the right to feel safe, respected, and heard — and to speak up when something isn’t right.In this free worksh...

19/08/2025

✨ Two Workshops. One Shared Goal: Rights-Based, Quality Services. ✨

At Advocacy WA, our mission is to empower people with disability, their families, and communities to create safer, stronger, and more respectful services.

That’s why we’re leading Your Rights, Your Supports, Your Service — a free workshop series designed to build confidence, accountability, and real change in the NDIS space. We’re proud to be joined by our friends at Enable WA to make this happen.

🗣️ Participant & Support Network Workshop
Facilitated by Larissa Beeby, Community Project Manager at Advocacy WA.
For people with disability, their families, friends, and support workers. This interactive session gives practical tools to understand your rights and speak up when something isn’t right.

👩‍🏫 Provider Workshop – Ensuring Safe, Quality, and Collaborative Services
Facilitated by Sarah Pepper, Quality & Safeguards Manager at Enable WA.
For registered NDIS providers and sole traders who want to embed rights-based, person-centred practice into everyday service delivery — going beyond compliance to deliver genuine quality.

📍 Regional and online sessions across 2025
🎟️ Register here: https://events.humanitix.com/host/advocacy-wa

Because knowing your rights is power. 💪

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8fFsx0BUmYM

Two Workshops. One Shared Goal: Rights-Based, Quality Services.Enable WA and Advocacy WA are proud to present Your Rights, Your Supports, Your Service — a fr...

18/08/2025

✨ Meet Emma – Our Co-Facilitator for Busselton & Margaret River Workshops ✨

Behind the scenes, Emma from our community team has been busy creating powerful videos that show real-life examples of when support isn’t right – and most importantly, how we can make it better.

Now, she’s stepping out from behind the camera and will be live and in person at our upcoming workshops in:
📍 Busselton – 27th August
📍 Margaret River – 28th August

Emma brings her own lived experience to these sessions, making sure the conversation is grounded in what really matters for people with disability and their families.

Don’t miss this chance to learn, reflect, and take away practical tools to create safer, stronger, and more respectful support.

👉 Book your spot here: https://events.humanitix.com/host/advocacywa

18/08/2025

🌟 What has the Advocacy WA community team so excited right now? 🌟

We’ve just locked in the dates for our online workshops as part of the Your Rights, Your Supports, Your Service road tour — and bookings are now live! 🙌

These workshops are all about making services safer, stronger, and more respectful. Whether you’re a person with disability, a family member, or someone working in the sector, there’s a session for you. Here’s what’s coming up:

👩‍⚕️ Ensuring Safe, Quality and Collaborative Services
For NDIS providers, frontline workers, and community organisations
Practical tools for embedding rights in service delivery, navigating the Practice Standards, and managing complaints and restrictive practices in line with best practice.

🗣️ Self-Advocacy Workshop
For people with disability, young people, and peer mentors
Build the skills and confidence to use your voice — ask questions, make decisions, and speak up when something isn’t right.

🤝 Rights and Support: What You Need to Know
For people with disability, families, carers, and informal supporters
Understand what good, respectful support looks like, and learn how to speak up safely and effectively when it isn’t happening.

📅 Upcoming Road Tour Dates:

Manjimup – 18th August

Busselton – 27th August (with Emma from our community team co-facilitating!)

Margaret River – 28th August (with Emma co-facilitating too ✨)

Eaton – 10th September

Australind – 8th October

Dalyellup – 5th November

Roelands – 12th November

Brunswick – 19th November

💻 Online Workshops:

18th September

16th October

13th November

👉 Explore and book all events here: https://events.humanitix.com/host/advocacywa

We can’t wait to see you in person or online — because knowing your rights and using your voice changes everything. 💙

18/08/2025

🌏 International Day of People with Disability – Bunbury 2025 🌏

This year, we’re working closely with the passionate team planning Bunbury’s International Day of People with Disability (IDPwD) celebrations. Together, we want to make sure the event reflects what truly matters to the people who live, work, and connect here.

And that means hearing from you. 🫶

Your voice shapes what this day will look like, whether it’s the kinds of activities you’d like to see, the barriers that need to be removed, or the ways we can make the celebration more inclusive and welcoming.

✨ Every idea counts. Every perspective matters. This is your event, your community, your chance to help create something meaningful.

📋 Please take a few minutes to share your thoughts by Friday 30 August.
👉 https://forms.office.com/r/9pKKDapMQe

The more voices we hear, the stronger and more inclusive this event will be. Please also share this survey with your networks, family, and friends because together, we can make a celebration that truly belongs to Bunbury. 💙

18/08/2025

💡 Brain Injury Awareness Week (18–24 Aug)
Not all disabilities can be seen. Around 1 in 45 Australians live with a brain injury, but many go unnoticed, misjudged, or misunderstood.

This week, we’re calling for visible change for invisible disabilities.
Small acts of empathy create safer, more inclusive spaces for everyone.

👉 Learn more: synapse.org.au/brain-injury-awareness-week

This Brain Injury Awareness Week (18–24 August), we’re calling for visible change for invisible disabilities.
Around 1 in 45 Australians live with a brain injury - but the true number is likely much higher. Many people can’t access a formal diagnosis, or don’t even know they should seek one.
Brain injuries aren’t always obvious. They can affect memory, sensory processing, energy levels, mood, and how the brain interprets the world, and no two experiences are ever the same.

Take a wedding, for example. A celebration for most, but for someone with a brain injury it can mean:
- Sensory overload from music, lights, and crowds
- Pressure to socialise
- Draining levels of constant stimulation

You may never realise they’re struggling.
Because they’ve been told they “look fine.”
Because explaining takes energy they don’t have.
Because they fear judgement or being excluded.
Invisible disabilities deserve visible change.

This BIAW, we’re asking everyone - whether at a wedding, in a workplace, classroom, or queue - to meet others with empathy.

You never know who is quietly using every ounce of strength just to be there.
Small acts make a big difference. Look beyond appearances. Create safe, inclusive spaces.
Because while the party might last a few hours, the effects of brain injury last a lifetime.

Get involved. Share the message. Start a conversation.
Learn more at synapse.org.au/brain-injury-awareness-week
Read "Walking their journey": https://synapse.org.au/brain-injury-awareness-week/biaw-2025-walking-the-journey/

14/08/2025

🌟 It’s Always Okay to Speak Up 🌟

The disability rights movement has always fought for one simple truth: our voices matter. From “Nothing about us without us” to the push for equal access and dignity, progress has been made — but the fight for safe, respectful, person-centred services is far from over.

In 2025, rights aren’t just words in a policy document. They’re the foundation for safer, stronger, more respectful disability services. But rights only protect us when we know them, use them, and have the confidence to speak up when something isn’t right.

That’s why Advocacy WA’s Your Rights, Your Supports, Your Service roadshow is travelling across the South West — bringing three free, face-to-face workshops to local communities.

These sessions aren’t boring PowerPoints or tick-box compliance. They’re practical, grounded in lived experience, and built for real life.

💬 Ensuring Safe, Quality and Collaborative Services – For NDIS providers, frontline workers, and community organisations.
Good services don’t just “tick boxes.” This workshop digs into how to embed rights into every support, meet Practice Standards without losing humanity, and address complaints or restrictive practices in ways that respect the person first.

🗣 Self-Advocacy Workshop – For people with disability, young people, and peer mentors.
Speaking up isn’t always easy. We’ll build skills to ask questions, make decisions, and say “no” when something isn’t right – so you can stand in your power with clarity and confidence.

🤝 Rights and Support: What You Need to Know – For people with disability, families, carers, and informal supporters.
Good support means dignity, respect, and safety. Learn how to spot when that’s missing, understand restrictive practices, and speak up effectively without fear.

Whether you’re a provider, a support worker, a family member, or a person with disability – these workshops are for you. Come for one, or stay for all three. The choice is yours.

📅 Find your local workshop & RSVP: https://events.humanitix.com/host/advocacywa
📧 Questions? Email community@advocacywa.org.au

Because in today’s world, knowing your rights isn’t optional – it’s essential.
And it’s always okay to speak up. 💪

13/08/2025

🌟 Opportunity for Young People with Disability! 🌟

Our friends at the Youth Disability Advocacy Network (YDAN) are creating a bold new disability rights campaign — and they want YOU to be part of the co-design team!

This is your chance to:
✅ Share your lived experience
✅ Shape the campaign message
✅ Be paid for your time

YDAN is looking for a diverse group of co-designers — especially if you’re LGBTQIA+, First Nations, culturally and linguistically diverse, regional or rural, neurodivergent, or chronically ill.

📅 Expressions of interest close 25 August 2025
💬 Be seen. Be heard. Be paid.

🔗 Apply here: https://forms.office.com/Pages/ResponsePage.aspx?id=THuSkh1xB0W0aKCJ8LDvzKJge21AoQdOqtOvyCzJHeJURUk1MU1DNUY2MlVPMFpKU0Q5V0oxWEIzOC4u