The National Disability Insurance Agency (NDIA) funded NEDA and the Federation of Ethnic Communities’ Council of Australia (FECCA) to employ 67 Full Time Equivalent Community Connectors to remove barriers in accessing and navigating the NDIS for Culturally and Linguistically Diverse people. The project ran for one year from 2020 to 2021 and was based on partnership with 23 sub-contractors, who included NEDA member organisations, to deliver assertive outreach and person-centred supports to CALD people with disability in accessing and navigating NDIS and connecting to other relevant mainstream supports.
Assertive outreach to find people in need of support was promoted via community organisations and disability rights organisations and over 1,441 people were supported to access and utilise the NDIS, and other mainstream supports. The final project evaluation documented the barriers CALD communities face in obtaining entitlements under the NDIS and identified promising practices for addressing these. This helped to inform subsequent investment in this area by the NDIA which adopted the program’s approach.
