Disability Support IRC

The Disability Support IRC has been established to respond to the increasing demand for disability support workers, driven in particular by the rollout of the National Disability Insurance Scheme (NDIS).

The IRC’s work includes addressing the current and future competencies and skill requirements for new workers entering the sector and existing staff needing to upskill in the vocational education and training (VET) and sector.

The Disability Support IRC is responsible for:

• reviewing and updating national training package qualifications, skill sets and units of competency needed by the disability support sector
• working with other IRCs which have an interest in qualifications relevant to the disability support sector to ensure industry needs are considered and met.

Further information about the role of IRCs and how they will operate can be found in the IRC Operating Framework.

Disability Support IRC Structure

Category	Organisation or area of expertise	Member	State/ Territory
Peak bodies, associations and Government	National Disability Insurance Agency (NDIA)	Ms Liz Neville	VIC
	NDIS Quality and Safeguards Commission	Mr Abel MacDonald	NSW
	Mental health	To be appointed by Secretariat
	National Disability Services	Mr Will Kestin	TAS
	Allied Health Professional Australia (AHPA)	Ms Catherine Olsson (Speech Pathology Australia)	VIC
Industry/employer	Disability Services providers	Ms Judy Williamson (Cerebral Palsy Alliance)	NSW
		Mr Benjamin Keast  (ARC  Disability Services)	QLD
	Rural/remote disability service provider	Mr Paul Morgan (Goldfields Individual & Family Support Association (GIFSA))	WA
Industry, employers, peak bodies, associations	Assistive technologies expertise	Ms Robyn Chapman (Assistive Technology Australia)	NSW
	Consumer advocacy group/body	Mr Ross Joyce (Australian Federation of Disability Organisations)	VIC
Employee representatives	Australian Services Union (ASU)	Ms Jan Primrose	NSW
	Health Services Union (HSU)	Ms Leigh Svendsen	VIC
Total	12 members