DRiP Disability Register information for Participants

Starting with a new provider can feel scary. You're vulnerable, you're trusting someone new with your care, and you're wondering: will they get me?

But then something beautiful happens.

A provider who takes time to really listen. Who asks what matters to YOU, not just what's in the file. Who remembers your name, your preferences, your boundaries. Who shows up on time. Who follows through. Who treats you like a person, not a case number.

These are the providers who understand that onboarding isn't just paperwork — it's the foundation of trust.

We want to hear YOUR stories. 💧

Have you had a provider who welcomed you with genuine care? Who made you feel safe and respected from day one? Who went the extra mile to make sure you felt supported? Who listened when you said something wasn't working and actually changed it?

Those stories matter. They show what's possible. They inspire others to expect better. They celebrate the providers who are doing it right.

Comment below and share your story. Tell us about the provider who made you feel welcomed, valued, and truly supported. Let's celebrate the ones who get it.

Because when providers do this well, it changes everything. It builds trust. It creates safety. It empowers participants to thrive.

If you're starting with a new service, know this: you deserve to be welcomed. You deserve clarity, respect, and genuine support from day one.

Know what to ask before you need to ask it. 💧

This speaks volumes.....

Disability Discrimination Recap: Our biggest message to the federal government in our recent disability discrimination report was our legislation must have teeth! We need a human rights act and a Disability Discrimination Act that serves us.

As our passionate lived experience advocates Dr Rita Kleinfeld-Fowell and Amanda Ellis wrote in a joint submission we made to the Disability Discrimination Act Review with Sussex Street Community Law Service, “It is vitally important that the disability human rights we have enshrined in the United Nations Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities are reflected in Australian laws and statutes.

“The Disability Discrimination Act 1992 must have teeth to ensure our rights are respected but it must also must not carry the potential sting for us that it currently has.

“Our DDA Act must be supported by a Disability Rights Act and true culture change in the community to ensure disability rights are respected and upheld.”

Our Sussex Street Community Law Service and PWdWA submission was titled Sussex Street and PWdWA’s Review of Opportunities to Reform Australia’s Disability Discrimination Act 1992 and it made some key points:

* Align the DDA with the UN Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities – our CRPD
* Introduce positive responsibilities or duties for key personnel and organisations, including employers, educators, and service providers
* Ensure co-design and lived experience are central to reform
* Move beyond individual complaints to making systemic and cultural change

Our DDA, Disability Discrimination Act needs to be changed and we need the federal human rights Act the Royal Commission into Violence, Abuse, Neglect and Exploitation of People with Disability asked for too.

Sussex Street’s Head of Disability Law Practice Rita and PwdWA’s Systemic Advocate Amanda put forward some major changes for us that could be made to our Act to make it serve us better.

The main reform areas they suggested for us were:

1. Update definitions – We need to modernise the definition of disability, address intersectional discrimination, and embedding CRPD principles in legislation.
2. Shift to a positive duty – We need to shift from reactive complaints-handling to a proactive prevention of discrimination.
3. Ensure inclusion in employment and education – We need to clarify the inherent requirements we have in various settings, mandate co-design and inclusion, and prohibit exclusion.
4. Enable access to justice – We need to strengthen anti-harassment and anti-vilification laws, ensure online protections, and meet justice system obligations.
5. Undertake an exemptions review – We need to tighten up permanent and temporary exemptions to our disability discrimination laws.
6. Modernise specific provisions – We need legislation that considers our assistance animals, mandatory Disability Action Plans, and stronger enforcement of our Disability Standards.
7. Ensure holistic modernisation – We need legislative clarity, better support for duty-holders, and systemic reforms.
8. Undertake systemic advocacy and ensure enduring change – We need embedded co-design practices, representative actions, and future-proofing of our Act.

Besides the detailed feedback our community members have given us this year, Rita and Amanda have taken into consideration the thousands of hours our community has put in over the years telling our government, advocates and the Disability Royal Commission what changes need to be made to our disability legislation to effect change across the country.

Our authors also considered the detailed suggestions our Royal Commission made on what should change in the DDA and the government response in its issues paper.

We are confident specific improvements can be made to benefit our communities and look forward to being involved in any future consultation on the possibilities for reform of the Act.
https://pwdwa.org/what-we-do/systemic-advocacy/

—People with Disabilities WA

Your support provider should work FOR you, not against you.

There ARE providers out there doing incredible work. Providers who listen, who show up, who genuinely care about your wellbeing and respect your rights. If you have one of those — hold onto them, and let them know they're valued.

But if your current provider isn't listening, isn't delivering, or isn't respecting your needs — you have the right to change. Full stop. That's not disloyal. That's self-advocacy.

Here's what matters: YOU get to decide what good support looks like. And if it's not working, you have the power to make a change.

Before you choose or change:
🔹 Know what you actually need (be specific about it)
🔹 Ask the hard questions upfront (response time, communication style, experience with your disability)
🔹 Check their track record (ask other participants, read reviews, trust community feedback)
🔹 Get it in writing (what they're committing to, how they'll support you)
🔹 Trust your gut (if something feels off, it probably is)

When you're changing:
🔹 Document what went wrong (dates, incidents, impacts — this matters)
🔹 Communicate clearly with your current provider (in writing)
🔹 Notify your support coordinator or the NDIS (they need to know)
🔹 Don't rush — find the right fit, not just any fit

Your support coordinator, your provider, your support workers — they work for YOU. Not the other way around. You have the right to expect respect, accountability, and genuine support.

You deserve providers who listen, who show up, who respect your rights, and who actually help you live the life you want. And you have the right to find them.

Know what to ask before you need to ask it. 💧

🌈 International Disability Day — December 3rd

Disability doesn't exist in isolation. Our identities are layered, interconnected, and complex. Being disabled AND Aboriginal, disabled AND LGBTQIA+SB, disabled AND from a CALD background, disabled AND aging — these aren't separate experiences. They're intersecting realities that shape how we navigate the world, access support, and claim our rights.

Today we celebrate the human rights of ALL disabled people — particularly those at the intersections, whose voices are too often left out of the conversation.

Your disability + your culture + your identity = your whole self deserves recognition, respect, and power.

Know what to ask before you need to ask it. 💧

Crisis Prevention isn't just a buzzword. It's survival. It's the difference between staying afloat and drowning.

If you're living with disability and navigating NDIS, you know this already.

Crisis doesn't announce itself. It creeps in quietly. One provider who doesn't listen. One incident that wasn't reported. One right you didn't know you had. One missed appointment because the system failed you. One moment where you realise no one's actually got your back — and suddenly you're in freefall.

You've watched it happen. Maybe it happened to you.

You've seen incidents spiral because no one documented them. You've seen participants lose their funding because they didn't know how to escalate. You've been the person at 2am wondering if you should call an ambulance or if this is just another night of managing alone.

That's the reality of living with disability in a broken system.

Crisis prevention means:
🔹 Knowing your rights BEFORE you need them (not scrambling in panic)
🔹 Having clear escalation pathways so small issues don't become catastrophes
🔹 Understanding incident management so you can protect yourself
🔹 Building accountability into your support from day one
🔹 Having tools ready, not scrambling when crisis hits

You deserve support that's proactive, not reactive. You deserve to know what to ask before you need to ask it.

That's what DRiP is built for. 💧

🌈 Autism — Always Unique, Totally Intelligent, Sometimes Mysterious

Autism isn't something to fix. It's a different way of processing, thinking, and experiencing the world. And that's powerful.

Autistic disabled people bring pattern recognition, deep focus, creative thinking, and honest communication to everything we do. We see connections others miss. We care fiercely. We build systems that make sense.

If you're autistic and navigating NDIS, you deserve support that gets YOU — not support designed for someone else. Your sensory needs matter. Your communication style matters. Your way of learning matters.

DRiP is built WITH autistic people in mind. Our resources are clear, visual, structured, and respect how your brain works. No hidden meanings. No overwhelming jargon. Just straight-up information you can trust.

You're not broken. You're neurodivergent. And that's exactly who we're here for. 💧

The Power of "Show Me"
📋 Two Words That Change Everything: "Show Me" 💧
When a provider says: "That's our policy," "Everyone does it this way," "You can't do that," "That's not allowed," "We've always done it like this"
Your response: "Show me."
"Show me where that's written." "Show me the policy document." "Show me in my service agreement." "Show me in the NDIS guidelines." "Show me the legislation."
Because here's the truth: Half the time, "policy" means "what's convenient for us." Half the time, "not allowed" means "we don't want to." Half the time, "that's how it works" means "we haven't been challenged."
When you ask "show me," you're: Demanding transparency, holding them accountable, separating fact from fiction, taking back control.
And if they can't show you? Then it's not a rule. It's a preference. And preferences don't override your rights.
"Show me" is your superpower. Use it.
Drop a 💧 if you're ready to start asking "show me."
Know what to ask before you need to ask it.

Your Plan, Your Rules
💪 Your Plan, Your Rules 💧
Let's get one thing straight: This is YOUR plan. YOUR goals. YOUR life.
Not your provider's convenience. Not your planner's preference. Not what's "always been done."
You have the right to: Choose your own providers, change providers when not working, say no to services you don't want, request services that help YOU, question everything, demand better.
You're not being difficult. You're not being demanding. You're exercising your rights.
The NDIS exists to support YOUR goals—not to make you fit into someone else's box.
You don't need permission to advocate. You don't need to be "grateful" for substandard service. You don't need to accept "that's just how we do it."
You need information, confidence, and knowledge that you deserve better.
Drop a 💧 if you're done settling for less than you deserve.
Know what to ask before you need to ask it.

🍃 Wellness Wednesday: The Invisible Labour

You're the one who makes endless phone calls, fills out countless forms, attends every appointment, advocates when no one else will.

And you're exhausted.

Discussion: How do you navigate the tension between caring for others and caring for yourself?

Share your truth below. You're not alone in this. 💧