The State Government has announced an Expression of Interest (EOI) process seeking innovative solutions to the delivery of advocacy supporting people with disability, their families and carers across Western Australia.
Disability Services Minister Stephen Dawson said $2.5 million in funding was being provided to broaden the reach of the disability advocacy services including attracting new organisations into the traditional disability advocacy space.
The EOI is a response to feedback received earlier this year, when 35 organisations participated in an independently facilitated forum to determine how the remaining $2.5 million funding for advocacy services announced in May 2019 should be allocated.
Forum participants included many organisations that have not previously engaged with the Department of Communities, Disability Services, among them ten providers delivering services exclusively to Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander communities in regional and remote WA.
Participants identified several priority areas for funding, including targeted legal, justice and information services to assist people with disability navigate systems and leverage off existing advocacy support.
The EOI will close on December 4, 2019 and successful respondents will be announced in mid-December.
Details of the tender are available at https://www.tenders.wa.gov.au/watenders or alternatively, providers can search by contract number DSC0532019B at https://www.tenders.wa.gov.au
As stated by Disability Services Minister Stephen Dawson:
“Delivering advocacy services to people living with disability in Western Australia is a challenging job. The State Government is keen to work with the sector and hear their innovative proposals on how we can work together to achieve more.
“The EOI process is an opportunity to attract new organisations into the traditional disability space and help us achieve equity of access for people from different cultural backgrounds and geographic locations.
“The State Government is committed to ensuring that quality supports and services are maintained for people with disability and their families during the transition to the Commonwealth NDIS.
“The NDIS needs to work for everyone, and a properly funded and well-resourced advocacy sector is critical.”
