A ground-breaking national framework for protecting young people with disabilities from abuse is the aim of new research that has been awarded funding, led by disability researcher and SWIRLS Member Professor Sally Robinson

The three-year grant ($466,852) brings together Flinders investigators with government, disability industry and community advocacy partners to develop a framework for preventing everyday harm and abuse while also promoting safety and wellbeing for young people with disability through using support services.

With its national scope, the project will support recommendations from the Disability Royal Commission and the incoming Australian Disability Strategy 2022-2032.

Professor Robinson says that the ARC Linkage project’s transformative approach aims to generate social, policy and economic benefits, and promote the involvement of young people with disability as co-researchers in addition to being project participants.

“The disability sector urgently requires restructuring to address the damning problems highlighted at the Disability Royal Commission and our research will address these through the development of new responses to be used by policy makers and practitioners,” says Professor Robinson.

“The research is fundamentally about focusing on those moments where poor practice occurs but typically goes unnoticed or unaddressed – to facilitate better outcomes for everyone involved in the management, delivery and receipt of disability support.”