Australia’s Disability Strategy Advisory Council
Australia’s Disability Strategy Advisory Council (the Advisory Council) was established in December 2021 when Australia’s Disability Strategy 2021-2031 (ADS) was launched.
All members of the Advisory Council are people with disability.
The Advisory Council’s role and work
The Advisory Council’s role is to advise Australian governments and disability ministers on the implementation of ADS. It is responsible for reviewing and advising on progress of ADS features that aim to drive actions and improvements for people with disability, including:
- Targeted Action Plans
- Outcomes Framework
- Associated Plans
- ADS reports and reviews
The Advisory Council provides its advice to all levels of government including the Australian, state, territory and local governments. This is because all governments signed up to ADS and are involved in the implementation.
The Advisory Council has a direct connection to disability ministers, with the Council Chair to attend disability ministers meeting twice a year.
The Advisory Council are scheduled to meet four times in 2024, with out-of-session meetings as required.
In 2023, the Advisory Council formalised the connection with other state and territory disability advisory councils and meet through a Jurisdictional Leads meeting. The Advisory Council have established a Housing Working Group that commenced at the beginning of 2024.
Advisory Council documents
As it becomes available, the Advisory Council’s work will be published on this website.
Advisory Council Terms of Reference
Advisory Council meeting Communiques
In accordance with its role, the Advisory Council’s Terms of Reference have been reviewed for 2024 and the updated Terms of Reference were endorsed by all governments at the February 2024 Disability Reform Ministers Meeting.
Membership
The Advisory Council is made up of 12 positions, which includes the Chair, core members, four rotating state and territory disability council representatives and two special advisers.
Members are drawn from a range of states and territories. Sub-groups of the Advisory Council are set up as required.
Advisory Council core members are all people with disability, and includes women; First Nations people; culturally and linguistically diverse (CALD) people; young people; and people with lived experience of rural and remote communities. Only state and territory disability council representatives and special advisers of the Advisory Council can be people without disability.
The membership provides a cross section of people with experience in similar roles and people new to an advisory role that can provide a ‘fresh voice’.
The special advisers have Australian Government experience, experience in Commonwealth and State relations and a background in disability policy. The special advisers support the Council members by advising on government relations and relevant policy.
|
Role |
Name |
Position |
Organisation |
|---|---|---|---|
|
Chair |
Jane Spring AM |
Chair Chair Vice President |
Disability Council NSW University of Sydney Sports Foundation Institute of Public Administration Australia - NSW |
|
Member |
Cindy Liu |
Founder and Co-Chair |
Multicultural Youth Advocacy Network/s |
|
Member |
Seriako Stephen |
Board member |
First Peoples Disability Network Australia |
|
Member |
Natalie Wade |
Principal Lawyer |
Equality Lawyers |
|
Tasmanian Representative |
Katherine Elliston |
Deputy Community Chair |
Premier’s Disability Advisory Council |
|
Australian Capital Territory Representative |
Renée Heaton |
Chair |
ACT Disability Reference Group |
|
Western Australia Representative |
Rita Kleinfeld-Fowell |
Member |
WA Ministerial Advisory Council |
|
Queensland Representative |
Nigel Webb |
Member |
QLD Disability Advisory Council |
|
Special adviser |
Kathy Hough |
Chief Executive Officer |
Far North Community Services |
|
Special adviser |
Helen McDevitt |
Chair |
ACT Disability, Aged and Carers Advocacy Service |