eNews Monday 2 March
QDN Engagement
QDN at Australia’s Disability Strategy National Forum
QDN CEO Michelle Moss and General Manager Steve Coulter recently attended Australia’s Disability Strategy National Forum, a national event bringing together people with disability, community leaders, allies, families, carers, supporters, and governments.
The forum focused on two key areas of health and safeguarding. It provided an important opportunity to share ideas, learn from what’s working across the country, and contribute to future action. Discussions centred on Australia’s Disability Strategy and how it can better remove barriers, create opportunities, and advance the rights of people with disability.
QDN took the opportunity to contribute to these national conversations and bring learnings back to our work at Queenslanders with Disability Network.
2026 Disability Leadership Forum
Earlier this month, QDN presented at the 2026 Disability Leadership Forum, hosted by the Centre of Disability Research and Policy at the University of Sydney.
QDN Peer Leader and Group Convener Donna Best and CEO Michelle Moss spoke on ‘Shifting Power: Learning from the past and leading for the future’. Donna shared reflections from her 40-year journey as a self-advocate for people with intellectual disability, highlighting the power of collective action and the changes still needed. Together, Donna and Michelle spoke about the work of QDN and our commitment to building disability leadership across Queensland.
The forum brought together leaders, allies, and community members to share knowledge, build connections, and strengthen disability leadership across policy, practice, education, and community settings.
QDN at Preventative Peaks Alliance Forum
Preventative Peaks Alliance QDN’s Michelle Moss attended The Preventative Peaks Alliance Forum that was held in Mackay earlier this month. This forum was the fourth in a series of community forums delivered in partnership with our other peak partners QShelter, QATSICPP, Peak Care and Neighbourhood Centres Queensland.
These forums form part of the Alliance’s united platform across housing, disability, children and families, community development, and Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander services. The aim of the forum series is to listen to lived and living experience and working collaboratively to provide Government with coordinated advice on a strengthened approach to prevention and early intervention across multiple sectors into the future.
For more information, please access the Preventative Peaks Alliance Interim Report (Screen Reader Friendly): https://qdn.org.au/wp-content/uploads/2026/03/Preventative-Peaks-Alliance-Interim-Report-Screen-Reader-Friendly.docx
Have Your Say
The Voice of Queenslanders with Disability Survey 2026
Now in its 4th year, this landmark survey gathers lived experience insights to strengthen disability advocacy, supports and policy across Queensland.
The 2026 Voice of Queenslanders with Disability Survey opened on Wednesday 18 February, and will close on Friday 17 April 5:00pm, so please do not miss out on the opportunity for your voice to be heard.
The information collected will help the government and community understand how to better support accessibility and inclusion in the years to come.
Take the survey today and help build a more inclusive Queensland tomorrow: https://inclusivefutures.griffith.edu.au/vqd26
The project is a partnership between Griffith University, Queenslanders with Disability Network (QDN) and the Queensland Government. We are working together to listen to people with disability across the state.
Brisbane’s 2032 Legacy Project – Vote for QDN’s Brisbane Peer Support Group
As the Brisbane 2032 games approaches, opportunities for Brisbane become endless. The Brisbane City Council has introduced their Making our Mark project and are inviting members from the community to turn great ideas into a reality.
QDN’s Peer Support Group has entered the project, submitting their idea of an All-Abilities sensory trail. The trail will incorporate Australian Auslan to take users through an interactive trail around Brisbane. It would be designed to create an immersive experience for all, especially those with visible and invisible disability, ensuring everyone can experience Brisbane to its full potential.
To ensure accessibility is at the centre of the Making our Mark project, vote for the Brisbane Peer Support groups All-Abilities Sensory Trail idea here: https://www.brisbane.qld.gov.au/about-council/council-projects/brisbane-2032/making-our-mark
Voting closes 11:59pm on Sunday 15 March
Have your say about the new NDIS Framework Planning Rules
The Australian Government is seeking feedback from NDIS participants and the disability community about the new NDIS framework planning process.
Starting in mid-2026, this process will include the following four steps:
- Step 1: Preparing for the support needs assessment
- Step 2: The support needs assessment
- Step 3: Building a plan and plan discussion
- Step 4: Starting to use a plan
You can have your say about the NDIS framework planning process by filling out a survey or completing a submission: https://consultations.health.gov.au/ndis/nfp-public-consultation/
Consultation closes on 6 March 2026.
Health Legislation Amendment Bill 2026 (QLD) Consultation
The Queensland Government is currently undertaking a consultation on the Health Legislation Amendment Bill 2026. The consultation will include a number of current pieces of legislation including the following:
- Mental Health Act 2016
- Pharmacy Business Ownership Act 2024
- Hospital and Health Boards Act 2011
- Tobacco and Other Smoking Products Act 1998
- Public Health Act 2005
- Public Health Regulation 2018
If you would like to be involved, please follow the link https://www.health.qld.gov.au/system-governance/legislation/stakeholder-consultation
Consultation is open until 17 March 2026.
NDIS Evidence Advisory Committee Supports Review – Round Three
The NDIS Evidence Advisory Committee has announced the latest round of reviews of supports for people on the NDIS. The Committee will be reviewing the following supports:
- Early intensive behavioural interventions
- Positive behaviour support for older children and adults
- Robot-assisted gait training
- Social skills training as a disability support for children and young people
The consultation is open until 29 March 2026. If you are interested in providing a submission, please follow the link https://consultations.health.gov.au/evidence-advisory-committee-eac/february-2026/
NDIS Improving Service Agreements – Have Your Say
The NDIS is exploring what guidance materials could be integrated to make service agreements easier to understand.
A consultation is now open for you to have your say on service agreements and how the guidance materials can be used to support clearer and easier agreements.
The following are encouraged to provide a submission:
- Participants
- Families and carers
- Providers
If you are interested please follow the link https://engage.ndis.gov.au/projects/improving-service-agreements
The consultation is open until 31 March 2026.
QDN News/ Events
My Housing Options Information Sessions – Coming to You
Free My Housing Options information sessions across Queensland, delivered both in person and online.
These interactive and accessible sessions are designed for people with disability, families, supporters, providers, workers, and sector leaders. They focus on practical, real-world steps to support people at different stages of their housing journey and to help workers walk alongside people with disability with confidence.
Participants will be introduced to the My Housing Options toolkit and learn how to use a range of helpful resources, including easy-to-understand guides, videos (digital stories), images, and planning activities. Sessions will also explore the different housing options available.
Sessions will be held across metropolitan, regional, and rural Queensland.
For more information please follow this link: https://myhousingoptions.org.au/information-sessions/
Disability Accommodation Providers – We Need Your Expertise!
QDN, NDS and The University of Sydney are calling for Disability Accommodation Providers to share their expertise in shaping a new industry tool. Join this free in-person workshop to help co-design a self-paced eLearning program that strengthens organisational emergency preparedness.
Your lived experience, operational knowledge and on-the-ground decision-making are central to this work. By sharing what’s already working in your services, and where the gaps are, you will directly shape a practical training program designed to strengthen emergency preparedness across Queensland’s disability accommodation sector.
- Southport Monday 23 March, 9:30am – 12pm: https://events.humanitix.com/disability-accommodation-provider-southport
- Townsville Wednesday 25 March, 9:30am – 12pm: https://events.humanitix.com/disability-accommodation-provider-workshop-townsville
- Brisbane Wednesday 1 April, 9:30am – 12pm: https://events.humanitix.com/disability-accommodation-provider-workshop-brisbane
Co-Design Training Workshop – Take Your Skills to the Next Level
If you are a person with disability, a family member or carer, or work in government or a community organisation, this workshop is for you.
Join QDN’s free online workshop designed to deepen your understanding of effective stakeholder engagement and co-design, from choosing the right tools to asking the right questions.
Interested in attending? Visit: https://qldcodesignstrategy.qdn.org.au/event/stakeholder-engagement-co-design-training-2026/ to find a time that works for you.
AbilityConnect: Strengthening Responses at the Intersection of Disability and DFSV
Hosted by DVConnect and supported by Queenslanders with Disability Network, AbilityConnect is a full-day forum on Thu, 26 Mar, 10am – 4pm AEST, focused on improving responses for people with disability impacted by domestic, family, and sexual violence. Bringing together lived experience leaders, practitioners, policymakers, and advocates, the event will explore how disability and DFSV systems intersect — and where change is needed.
Attendees can expect practical strategies, policy insights, expert and lived experience panel discussions, and cross-sector roundtables designed to strengthen collaboration and improve outcomes. Speakers to be announced soon.
If you are interested in attending or seeking more information, visit: https://events.humanitix.com/abilityconnect
Policy Updates
Education
NDIS
Community Forum: Mandatory SIL Registration and Self-Directed Supports
The Self Manager Hub is hosting a community forum to discuss changes to SIL registration. The forum will cover a number of different topics including:
- What mandatory SIL registration means and who is in scope.
- How the changes may affect self-managed and self-directed arrangements
- Options for participants and families who self-direct and manage their own teams
- Plus, other key issues impacting SIL registration and Self-Directed Supports
The forum is online and free and will be held on 7 March 2026. For more information please see the link https://www.selfmanagerhub.org.au/2026/02/20/community-forum-mandatory-sil-registration/
Transport
VR Research Project to Help Wheelchair Users Practice Safe Fall Recovery
The University of Queensland and the National Injury Insurance Scheme, Queensland have announced that they are designing a co-design project with people who use wheelchairs and frontline clinicians. This research is being funded by the Queensland Government.
Currently in development, clinical trials will be conducted by Metro South Health. This will be followed by a pilot program at the in-patient spinal rehabilitation service at Princess Alexandra Hospital from mid-2027.
For more information on this work please visit the link below https://statements.qld.gov.au/statements/104556
From our Friends
Down Syndrome Across the Lifespan: DSMIG-Aus Conference 2026
Down Syndrome Australia and Queensland Centre of Excellence for Intellectual Disability and Autism Health are hosting a conference: Down Syndrome Across the Lifespan.
This conference is designed to discuss the healthcare needs of individuals with Down Syndrome from infancy to older age.
The conference will be held on 12 March at the Translational Research Institute, 37 Kent Street, Woolloongabba, 4102.
If you are interested in attending please follow the link https://www.eventbrite.com/e/down-syndrome-across-the-lifespan-dsmig-aus-conferece-2026-tickets-1982315934322?msockid=223178ed7f4066253ef76c4e7ead67af
NDS State and Territory Conferences: Insights to Action
National Disability Services (NDS) have announced a series of conferences across all states and territories.
The conferences will be in person and are designed for leaders in disability services who want to understand the challenges facing the disability sector today and the answers to those challenges.
The Queensland conference will be held on 9 June 2026, at Rydges Brisbane. Please see the following prices to attend:
- NDS Members (30 per cent discount): $274
- Non-member: $356
- Group bookings (three plus) – Members: $252
If you would like to register please follow the link https://nds.org.au/events-and-training/all-events-and-training/nds-state-and-territory-conferences-insights-to-action-5896
National Disability Research Partnership Research Fund Now Open
The National Disability Research Partnership is an initiative designed to fund research led by and with people with disability and is now accepting applications for its disability-led research funding.
$5 million of research funding will be made available with up to $300,000 being offered per research project.
If you are interested, information sessions are being held, please follow the link https://content.ndrp.org.au/research-funding-info-sessions-2026
Applications close at 5pm on Monday 20 April 2026. To apply, please follow this link: https://bit.ly/40haVdr
The Office of the Public Guardian Webinar Series
The Office of the Public Guardian has just launched its 2026 webinar series: Let’s Talk Supported Decision-Making: Empowering Personal Choice. This webinar is designed for family, friends, carers, and supporters of people with disability.
Participants will learn the core principles of supported decision-making, practical ways to apply them in everyday situations without taking over, how to break down decisions and present clear options, and see real-life examples of supported decision-making in action.
This webinar will be held on Thursday 12 March. To find out more and to register, please follow this link: https://bit.ly/3ZUOwlX
Leading Reform Summit – Bursary Program applications open
The Queensland Mental Health Commission will host its 2026 Leading Reform Summit in Brisbane on May 25–26, and each year a limited number of bursaries are available to support eligible Individuals to attend the Summit.
The bursary program is available for people with lived-living experience, are unpaid representatives of a community or particular population group, who work in non-government organisations, and who reside in regional, rural and remote areas of Queensland.
Applications are now open and will close on Sunday 22 March 2026.
Find out more and check eligibility on the Queensland Mental Health Commission website: https://info.qmhc.qld.gov.au/leading-reform-summit-2026-bursaries
Stories
QDN’s policy team wants to hear about the issues impacting your lives. If you have a story to share, fill out a story form on our website.