Quality Support Worker Project

Building better support through lived experience and collaboration

Support workers play a vital role in the disability sector. The introduction of the NDIS brought new challenges and opportunities, while also highlighting long-standing issues with the quality of support.

Members of Disability Elders of All Ages (DEAA) shared their experiences with support workers and asked us to find ways to improve the quality of support across South Australia.

In response, we worked with key groups to co-design a series of workshops, resources, and stories for support recipients, support workers, and service providers.

From May 2022 to November 2023, we delivered 20 free online workshops covering topics such as values, disability history, citizenhood, and communication.

Another major outcome of the project was the creation of a Support Worker Community of Practice. This group brought together support workers, people with disability, and service providers to share experiences, strengthen skills, and build better practice across the sector. The topics for each session were guided by the lived experiences of people receiving support and the interests of Community of Practice members.

As part of the project, we also held a focus group with seven people who receive support, who shared their insights on what makes a support worker effective — and the challenges when support falls short.