Local people have been urged to “speak out and ask questions” to ensure that the National Disability Insurance Scheme (NDIS) delivers the right support for people living with disability.

Speaking at the official opening of the Gawler Disability Expo hosted by Disability SA last week on behalf of the Disability Services Minister Leesa Vlahos, local Member of Parliament, Mr Tony Piccolo said the Expo was being held to ensure that families have the information they need to make informed decisions about the supports available for people living with disability.

“While transitioning to the NDIS has its own challenges the new scheme will have a great deal more resources and flexibility to provide more appropriate supports for people living with disability,” Mr Piccolo said. The NDIS was initiated by the Federal Labor Government, based on funding principles developed by South Australia, as it recognised that the State based scheme was outdated and wasn’t not providing people the quality of life they deserved.

The NDIS will not only provide new opportunities for people living with disability but with the increase in funding from both the State and Commonwealth Governments, many new job opportunities across the sector will be created.

A huge number of not for profit, small business and government agencies were represented at the Expo which was held at the Gawler Sports and Community Centre.

Mr Piccolo said many families in the local area took the opportunity to speak with service providers and the NDIA (scheme managers) to gain a better understanding of what would be available under the NDIS when it is rolled out in the local area from 1 July this year.

“These reforms have been a long time in the making, so we all need to speak out, or ask questions to ensure the scheme works as it was designed to,” Mr Piccolo said.

“We all should be treated with dignity and be able to live in dignity,” he said. 32,000 South Australians are expected to be eligible for the scheme when it is fully rolled out during 2019, and funding will grow from $723 million to $1.5 billion per annum.

More information can be found online at https://www.ndis.gov.au/