- Published
Annabelle Shaw is hockey-obsessed and on a winning streak, scoring eight goals this season for her team, the Panthers.
asserted
Shaw → publish → team
"I don't give up," she says proudly, adding that whenever she scores, she celebrates with a cartwheel.
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she → give → cartwheel
She likes nothing more than working out with her friends.
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She → like → friends
But Annabelle may soon have to stop playing her favourite sport.
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Annabelle → have → sport
The Year 8 student from Western Australia has Down Syndrome – a genetic condition caused by an extra copy of chromosome 21 which leads to physical and intellectual disabilities.
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which → have → disabilities
This enables her to access funding through one of the world's most progressive disability support programmes, the NDIS (National Disability Insurance Scheme).
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This → enable → programmes
Aimed at people with lifelong and severe disabilities, NDIS was created to ensure disabled Australians had greater independence and an improved quality of life.
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Australians → aim → life
Its design ushered in a very different approach to disability support – by providing people with funding based on their individual needs, and a certain amount of freedom to choose how to spend it.
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design → usher → it
The scheme put disabled Australians and their families at the heart of the decision-making.
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scheme → put → making
But the success of the scheme has also been its undoing – it's growing rapidly and costing the government too much.
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it → grow → much
Now, under proposals introduced by the federal government earlier this year, tighter controls will be introduced to shrink its size and budget.
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controls → introduce → size
The money Annabelle receives is intended to help pay for therapies such as speech, as well as a support worker to help her on the hockey field.
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Annabelle → receive → field
"Annabelle needs somebody to break it down and say, okay, did you hear that, Annabelle?
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you → need → that
We've got to stand over here," says mum Gillian Croft, explaining the importance of a support worker for Annabelle at practice sessions, where there could be as many as 50 girls training at a time.
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Croft → get → time
"Sometimes, especially if it's fast-paced, she disengages and she doesn't want to play because she doesn't understand what she needs to do."
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she → disengage → what
The NDIS Amendment bill passed the House of Representatives at the beginning of July but was then delayed, extending a Senate inquiry into the changes at the same time.
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bill → pass → time
Shortly after, the legislation is expected to pass in the Senate.
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legislation → expect → Senate
The implications of the changes, say participants, could be huge.
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participants → say → changes
The growth of NDIS
Annabelle is one of more than 700,000 Australians who access NDIS funds.
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who → access → funds
The scheme was introduced under former Prime Minister Julia Gillard in 2012, although it took until 2020 for Australians across the country to be able to fully access its funds.
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Australians → introduce → funds
"Disability can affect any of us, from when you're born to a child's development, through the blink of an eye on a country road, through your genetic lottery as you age," Bill Shorten, Vice-Chancellor and President of the University of Canberra told the BBC.
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Shorten → affect → BBC
Shorten was instrumental in setting up the NDIS as then Parliamentary Secretary for Disabilities.
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Shorten → set → Disabilities
"What really makes disability hard is a lack of money and a lack of power," he explained, adding that the NDIS has enjoyed support from across the political spectrum.
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NDIS → make → spectrum
When the NDIS started, it was estimated it would cost about $22bn a year, with about 475,000 participants.
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it → start → participants
But this financial year it has ballooned to $54bn and the scheme now supports more than 700,000 people.
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scheme → balloon → people
Those figures are expected to keep growing, which is why the government is proposing a massive reset.
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government → expect → reset
"It has grown too big too fast," says Hannah Orban, Senior Associate at the Grattan Institute and co-author of a report Saving the NDIS.
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Orban → grow → NDIS
According to her research, each of the participants receives an average of approximately A$65,000 ($44,800) of funding per year.
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each → accord → year
Some, such as those with complex needs, receive considerably more; others receive far less.
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others → receive → less
"It costs a lot of money to run it and the government really does need to introduce good reforms to make it more sustainable so that it is here for generations to come," Orban says.
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Orban → cost → generations
Before the NDIS, disability services differed across states.
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services → differ → states
There was criticism that they were underfunded and inefficient.
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they → be → ?
The NDIS brought in a game-changing new system but in doing so, all the other services that previously provided support fell away.
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that → bring → support
"Once we created the NDIS, there was a retreat from other disability services, so hospitals, schools - you name it - everything became an NDIS matter," says Shorten.
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Shorten → create → it
In 2024, changes were made to rein in ballooning costs – overseen by Shorten who had coincidentally returned as the Minister for NDIS.
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who → make → NDIS
Numbers kept growing.
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Numbers → keep → ?
There's also been criticism that people are using the NDIS to access support not originally intended for the scheme, which was designed to address the needs of those with permanent or significant disabilities.
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which → be → disabilities
According to a study by the Australian National University, external, there's been a 32% increase in the prevalence of autism since the NDIS was introduced.
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NDIS → accord → autism
Experts, however, say the explanation for this is simple.
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explanation → say → this
"People went into the NDIS because other systems were failing," says Jenny Karavolos of Australian Autism Alliance, who in June gave evidence at a parliamentary inquiry into the cuts.
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who → go → cuts
…and 31 more, not listed.
