People with disability have the same human rights as everyone else — to freedom, respect, equality and dignity. Yet many continue to face violence, discrimination and exclusion in systems that should protect them. We lead systemic advocacy to defend these rights and demand change. Our goal is to increase awareness of disability rights, strengthen rights protections, end abuse, and make sure justice systems uphold the dignity and human rights of all people with disability.

A group of people with disability are sitting at a table, looking at documents.

Australia’s human rights commitments must be strengthened

Advocating for a harmonised approach to rights protection

Australia was one of the first countries to ratify the UN Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities (UNCRPD) in 2008. However, it has not passed national laws to make the Convention enforceable in practice.

The UN Committee on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities has repeatedly raised concerns about this gap in legal protection. Parliamentary inquiries have also recommended that South Australia and the Commonwealth adopt human rights legislation. JFA Purple Orange supports these recommendations and calls for a consistent, national approach to protecting rights.

The UN Committee continues to highlight serious concerns. These include:

  • Segregated education, employment and housing systems

  • Inaccessible buildings and services

  • Forced treatment and indefinite detention

  • Restrictive practices and substitute decision-making, including under guardianship laws

Australia must take stronger action to uphold the rights of people with disability.

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Responding to the Disability Royal Commission (DRC)

Australia must act on the Commission’s findings and end segregation

The final report of the Disability Royal Commission (DRC) confirmed widespread violence, abuse, and neglect of people with disability. It also highlighted how segregated settings continue to violate people’s rights. These include:

  • Institutional living

  • Segregated schools or classrooms

  • Disability-specific employment settings

JFA Purple Orange supports the full implementation of the DRC’s recommendations. For more information about our position, see our Violence, Abuse, Neglect and Exploitation page.

We continue to call for an end to all forms of segregation.

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Our rights-based approach

We centre lived experience and inclusion in all areas of our work

JFA Purple Orange uses a human rights approach across all of our advocacy and community work.

We raise awareness of rights among people with disability and the wider community. We also support schools, employers, and service providers to adopt inclusive practices through our Road to Employment and Disability Inclusion Training projects, as well as our training and consulting services.

Our systemic advocacy covers a wide range of areas, including:

Read more about our Areas of Work.

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Standing up for rights and justice

Advocacy and inclusion protect rights

Independent advocacy plays a vital role in protecting people’s rights and wellbeing. JFA Purple Orange calls for strong State and Commonwealth funding for:

  • Individual advocacy

  • Peer and representative group advocacy

  • Systemic advocacy

We also support our peer networks to build self-advocacy skills and engage directly with government. At the same time, we advocate for a more inclusive justice system.

Many parts of the system — like police, courts, and corrections — remain inaccessible or unsafe for people with disability.

We call for inclusive laws, policies, and practices across all areas of justice and emergency services.

Useful links

External resources you may find interesting

 

Projects

Projects

Human Rights & Justice
Leadership & Self-Advocacy
LGBTQIASB+
Multicultural Communities
NDIS & Foundational Supports
Regional Communities

SKILL SA

SKILL SA is a capacity building project all about peer networks, learning self-advocacy skills and leadership development for people with disability and their supporters. Peer network meetings are for people...

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Stories

Stories

A man wearing large over-ear headphones stands outside near a brick wall, smiling at the camera. He is holding audio recording equipment, including a small recorder and a boom microphone. He wears a blue checkered shirt.
Education & Employment
Human Rights & Justice

Podcast: Underrepresented, undervalued, and underpaid

Breaking through employment barriers Published: 3 November 2023. Join Gavin as he takes listeners through his employment journey and what that has looked like at various stages of his career....

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A man wearing glasses and a grey beanie looks toward the camera while holding a piece of paper. He is dressed warmly in a khaki jacket and a green and yellow scarf. Trees and a corrugated metal roof are visible in the background.
Human Rights & Justice
Leadership & Self-Advocacy

Video: Human Rights – What it means to me

Published: June 2020 This video about self-advocacy was created by JFA Purple Orange in collaboration with Our Voice SA. In this video, Our Voice members Gavin Burner and Libby Crawford...

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News

News

Access & Inclusion
Education & Employment
Housing & Transport
Human Rights & Justice
NDIS & Foundational Supports
Violence, Abuse, Neglect & Exploitation

2022 Federal Election

In the lead up to the 2022 Federal Election, JFA Purple Orange is calling on all political parties and candidates to commit to reforms regarding some of the major issues...

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Education & Employment
Human Rights & Justice
Violence, Abuse, Neglect & Exploitation

Royal Commission Education and Learning FAQs

Education and learning is a key area of inquiry for the Royal Commission into Violence, Abuse, Neglect and Exploitation of People with Disability (the Disability Royal Commission). The right to...

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Education & Employment
Human Rights & Justice
Policy & Advocacy

Community Attitudes Survey

We are running online focus groups with the Australian National University. We want to hear from people who live with intellectual disability about how the attitudes of others impact them....

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Access & Inclusion
Education & Employment
Housing & Transport
Human Rights & Justice
NDIS & Foundational Supports
Violence, Abuse, Neglect & Exploitation

2025 Federal Election

In the lead up to the 2025 Federal Election, JFA Purple Orange is calling on all political parties to make a commitment to improving the lives of people with disability,...

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Media releases

Media releases

Young female wheelchair user seated at kitchen table. Two out of focus people are visible from behind. There are biscuits and a glass of juice on the table.
Access & Inclusion
Human Rights & Justice
Policy & Advocacy
Violence, Abuse, Neglect & Exploitation

Governments’ DRC responses don’t carry the decisiveness and urgency the disability community deserves

Disability advocacy agency JFA Purple Orange has today heard the disappointment of many people in the disability community after the Federal and State governments published their responses to the recommendations...

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Close up photo of two hands cradling a white candle. The background is black.
Human Rights & Justice
Violence, Abuse, Neglect & Exploitation

Death of Port Augusta woman highlights gaps in disability safeguards

We are deeply saddened by the death of Port Augusta resident Tegan Fredericks on Monday. We offer our condolences to those who knew and loved Tegan, as well as the...

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A man and a woman sitting at a table in an interview situation. The man on the left is bald and has a red t-shirt and the woman on his right, who has long dark hair, is looking in his direction.
Access & Inclusion
Education & Employment
Housing & Transport
Human Rights & Justice
NDIS & Foundational Supports
Violence, Abuse, Neglect & Exploitation

We’re asking six key questions for politicians ahead of the Federal Election: Will they listen?

With the federal election set for 3 May 2025, South Australian-based disability advocacy organisation JFA Purple Orange has written to all major political parties and federal members of parliament, calling...

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Woman sitting at a table holding a tablet in her right hand and a stylus in her left hand. She has shoulder length dark hair and is wearing a white blazer.
Education & Employment
Human Rights & Justice
Policy & Advocacy

Are workers living with disability part of Australia’s employment success story?

On Thursday, the Australian Bureau of Statistics (ABS) will release the latest national Labour Force statistics. It is expected that the April unemployment rate will continue the recent downward trend,...

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Photo of man wearing shirt and tie holding a sign in front of him with the text "Equal Employment Opportunity".
Education & Employment
Human Rights & Justice

The Great Australian Rip-Off

The Disability Royal Commission yesterday heard that South Australian disability support agency Bedford Group, which boasts it is the second largest employer of people living with disability in Australia, pays...

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Photo of Ann Marie in a wheelchair with a king charles spaniel on her lap. She has long blonde hair and is wearing a red short sleeved top. There is a blurred man in the background.
Human Rights & Justice
Violence, Abuse, Neglect & Exploitation

Ann Marie Smith trial conclusion must herald more fundamental changes in disability support and how neglect is understood

Statement from Robbi Williams, CEO, JFA Purple Orange: Rosa Maione, a person whose actions led to the death of Ann Marie Smith, has been sentenced to 6 years imprisonment for...

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Aerial view of metropolitan Adelaide with city. There is a blue sky in the background with white clouds.
Education & Employment
Health
Housing & Transport
Human Rights & Justice
Policy & Advocacy

Parties respond to key election issues impacting South Australians living with disability

JFA Purple Orange has today launched a webpage to inform voters in the South Australian election about some of the key issues that are important to the disability community in...

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Corner of blackboard visible on a tabletop. The blackboard has a wooden frame and the words "Know your rights" on it. There are glasses resting on top and the corner of a binder is visible in the top left corner.
Human Rights & Justice
Policy & Advocacy

Urgent need to invest in disability advocacy services across South Australia

In the lead up to the state election, JFA Purple Orange is calling on the next South Australian government to urgently invest in vital independent advocacy services to protect the...

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Meet the team

A woman with straight, shoulder-length brown hair smiles at the camera. She is wearing drop earrings, a black top with white polka dots, and a light pink cardigan. The background is blurred greenery with trees and sunlight.

Rebecca Dowd

Policy Specialist & Business Development Lead
A man with a bald head and short beard smiles slightly while looking off to the side. He is wearing a bluish grey blazer over an olive green top. The background is outdoors with blurred greenery and a cloudy sky.

James Murphy

Policy and Research Leader
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Andrew Gibson

Project Leader, SKILL SA

Library

Library

  • Policy submission: Domestic, family and sexual violence Learn more
  • Policy submission: Royal Commission into Violence, Abuse, Neglect, and Exploitation of People with Disability (DRC) Learn more
  • Policy Submission: Department of Human Services – Draft State Disability Inclusion Plan 2025-29 Learn more
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