People with Disability Australia

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People with Disability Australia
AbbreviationPWDA
Formation1980
TypeNGO
PurposePeak disability rights and advocacy organisation
Location
  • Sydney
Region served
Australia-wide
President
Trinity Ford
Websitepwd.org.au

People with Disability Australia Ltd (PWDA) is an Australian national peak disability rights and advocacy organisation. Founded in 1981 and based in Surry Hills, Sydney.

PWDA is a Disabled Persons Organisation (DPO), with an elected board of people with disability, a national membership of people with disability and associate membership of people and organisations "committed to the disability rights movement".[1] PWDA is one of the funded national disability representative organisations for people with disability in Australia.[2] It's primary objective is represent the interests of Australian people with disability nationally and globally.[1]

President

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A list of former and current president(s) of the PWDA:[3][4][5][6]

  • 2002: Wendy Potter
  • 2003–2006: Heidi Forrest
  • 2007–2008: Robert Farley
  • 2009: Vacant
  • 2010–2011: Jan Daisley
  • 2012–2015: Craig Wallace[7]
  • 2016–2017: Bonnie Millen
  • 2018–2019: David Abello
  • 2020–2022: Samantha Connor[8]
  • 2022–2024: Nicole Lee
  • 2024–2024: Marayke Jonkers
  • 2025-: Trinity Ford[9]

History and mission

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PWDA was founded in 1980 as the NSW Handicapped Persons' Union. In 1984, they merged with the New South Wales chapter of Disabled Peoples' International, which was founded in 1981, and became Disabled Peoples International (NSW Branch) or DPINSW. In 1991, the organisations name was changed to People With Disability NSW Inc. (PWDNSW). [citation needed]

In 2002, PWDA's membership approved a repositioning of PWDA as a national disability rights and advocacy organisation. The name was changed to its current name: People with Disability Australia[10] to reflect this new positioning on 21 July 2003.[11] The principal reasons for the change were to position PWDA to undertake work on national policy issues.[10]

Between 2003 to 2006, PWDA played a valuable role in the development of the United Nations Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities (CRPD). They organised consultations both nationally and with members, made submissions, hosted seminars, and supported delegates to attend sessions of the UN Ad Hoc Committee. Through this work PWDA gained Special Consultative Status with the Economic and Social Council of the United Nations.[12]

From 2009 onwards, PWDA continues to participate in monitoring the implementation of the CRPD in Australia, and as a member of the NGO CRPD Shadow Report Project Group.[13] Along with the organisation's national work, PWDA has undertaken international development work in the Pacific since 2004.[14][15] This non-profit, non-governmental peak organisation has been described as "the national cross disability rights and advocacy organisation run by and for people with disability... [representing] the interests of people with all kinds of disability".[16]

PWDA appeared and gave evidence during the 2019–2020 Australian Disability Royal Commission.[17]

Controversy

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In 2020, an online feminist pressure group, 'Mad Fucking Witches' (MFW) were involved in a 'nasty' dispute involving a campaign to remove two sitting PWDA directors over claims of alleged abusive posts on social media. PWDA stated it was an internal matter, irrespective of the complaints under consideration submitted by MFW.[18][19]The Age reported that "both women [directors] deny they were abusive, but say they were highly critical of postings from the activist group [MFW] involving disabled people".[19] The attempt to remove them did not succeed.[18][20]

Activities

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Service provision

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PWDA provides the following services:[21]

  • Rights-related information, advice and referral services for people with disability and their associates
  • Short-term individual and group advocacy assistance to people with disability and their associates
  • Advocacy for reform around systemic issues that adversely affect people with disability and their associates
  • Representation of the sector of interest constituted by people with disability and their associates to government, industry and the non-government sector
  • Coordination of the sector of interest constituted by people with disability and their associates
  • Disability rights-related research and development around issues of concern to people with disability and their associates

Public Advocacy

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Since its inception in 2013, The NDIS is a key focus of PWDA, with extensive government lobbying and constructive contributions from PWDA and its members. In 2013, Wallace the president at the time said "People with disabilities should be given more choice and control over their funding, so they can purchase the services that suit them".[22]

In 2025, the NDIS has public support, but a poor reputation.[citation needed] PWDA affirming "the community will fight tooth and nail to protect it" and Steph Travers, a 2025 PWDA board director commenting "recent discourse has made her and the community feel like a political football"[23]

They release a non-partisan federal election platform, featuring demands for election commitments related to people with disability from all parties and candidates.[24][22]

See also

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References

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  1. ^ a b "NSW Statutory Review of the Victims Rights and Support Act 2013 No 37" (PDF). People with Disability Australia. July 2016. Archived from the original (PDF) on 15 June 2025. Retrieved 15 June 2025.
  2. ^ "National disability representative organisations". Disability and Carers. Australia: Department of Social Services. 5 September 2018. Archived from the original on 19 March 2019.
  3. ^ "(Archive of) Who's Who". PWDA. Archived from the original on 9 December 2002.
  4. ^ "(Archive of) Our Staff and Board". PWDA. Archived from the original on 20 November 2010.
  5. ^ "(Archive of) Board Directors". PWDA. Archived from the original on 21 October 2013.
  6. ^ "(Archive of) Our Board". PWDA. Archived from the original on 27 February 2019.
  7. ^ Ireland, Judith (7 March 2014). "Budget savings should not be found at the 'expense' of Australians will disabilities". The Sydney Morning Herald. Nine Entertainment Co. Archived from the original on 2 July 2016.
  8. ^ "PWDA Board Elections". Members Email Campaign Archive. 13 November 2020. Archived from the original on 17 November 2020.
  9. ^ "Man with Down syndrome weighed 29kg at time of death, police say". Archived from the original on 14 March 2025. Retrieved 15 June 2025.
  10. ^ a b "PWDA – Our History". PWDA. 4 May 2018. Archived from the original on 4 May 2018.
  11. ^ "Historical details for ABN 98 879 981 198". abr.business.gov.au. Australian Business Register. 1 November 2019. Archived from the original on 3 November 2019.
  12. ^ "List of non-governmental organizations in consultative status with the Economic and Social Council as of 1 September 2016 (E/2016/INF/5)". United Nations. Economic and Social Council. 18 July 2017. p. 88. Archived from the original on 2 November 2019.
  13. ^ "Endorse the Shadow Report on the Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities". Disability Advocacy Resource Unit. The NGO CRPD Shadow Report Project Group. 25 May 2012. Archived from the original on 18 October 2018.
  14. ^ "Sydney Social Justice Network | Disability rights research collaboration". The University of Sydney. 18 July 2017. Archived from the original on 3 November 2019.
  15. ^ Sands, Therese (18 July 2017). "Capacity building through disability rights partnerships" (PDF). Crawford School of Public Policy. ANU. pp. 130–131. Archived (PDF) from the original on 25 March 2019.
  16. ^ "Submission to the 2017/2018 Federal Budget" (PDF). Australian Government Treasury. Disabled People's Organisations Australia. January 2017. Archived (PDF) from the original on 23 August 2020.
  17. ^ Barro, Christiane (15 October 2020). "Story of Hope: How an AFLW star has to learn how to explain the unexplainable". The New Daily. Motion Publishing Pty Ltd. Archived from the original on 18 October 2020.
  18. ^ a b Kruger, Colin; Brook, Stephen (26 August 2020). "Disability group split by activist battle". The Sydney Morning Herald. Nine Entertainment Co. Archived from the original on 26 August 2020.
  19. ^ a b Brook, Stephen; Hutchinson, Samantha (11 August 2020). "Disability Dispute". The Age. Nine Entertainment Co. Archived from the original on 14 August 2020.
  20. ^ Hutchinson, Samantha; Brook, Stephen (8 September 2020). "From swear word to acronym: feminist group tones it down". The Sydney Morning Herald. Nine Entertainment Co. Archived from the original on 9 September 2020.
  21. ^ "Community Resources: People with Disability Australia". Intuit Benefits (Australia). 2019. Archived from the original on 31 October 2019.
  22. ^ a b "Conflict over service delivery under the NDIS". www.abc.net.au. 18 November 2013. Archived from the original on 18 June 2024. Retrieved 15 June 2025.
  23. ^ "There's another problem facing the NDIS. It's probably not what you think". Archived from the original on 1 May 2025. Retrieved 15 June 2025.
  24. ^ "People with Disability Invisible in Election Debates and Housing Promises - News Hub". News Hub - Medianet News Hub archive (Press release). 17 April 2025. Archived from the original on 17 April 2025. Retrieved 15 June 2025.
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