Submission 1421

Submission to: The Community Affairs Legislation Committee

I am writing as both the Founder and Director of K+C Village (formerly Kids & Community), and as the parent and primary carer of my daughter who is an NDIS participant.

For more than 30 years as an occupational therapist, and more than 17 years leading community-based services across the Gold Coast and Northern New South Wales, I have worked alongside children, young people and families navigating disability, developmental differences and systems that are often already difficult to access and sustain. I have also lived this reality personally as a parent.

I am deeply concerned about the proposed National Disability Insurance Scheme Amendment (Securing the NDIS for Future Generations) Bill 2026 and the direction these reforms are taking.

While the language of “sustainability” is being used, the practical reality is that these reforms appear designed to reduce participant numbers, reduce access to supports and centralise decision-making power in ways that risk disconnecting decisions from the real lives of people with disability and their families.

I am particularly concerned about the unprecedented powers this Bill gives the Minister to reduce or restrict entire categories of supports across the scheme without transparent, individualised assessment processes. That level of power should concern every Australian, regardless of where they sit politically or professionally. Decisions about disability supports should never be driven primarily by broad funding controls, automated systems or administrative convenience.

As both a clinician and a parent, I know that children, young people and families do not fit neatly into standardised assessment tools, algorithms or “tick-box” systems. Good outcomes rely on skilled professional judgment, strong relationships and understanding people within the context of their real everyday lives and the communities in which they exist.

The proposed reductions to social and community participation and capacity building supports are also deeply troubling. These supports are not optional extras. They are often the very supports that allow children and young people to attend school, build friendships, regulate emotions, participate in community life and develop long-term independence or simply just to have an ordinary life. Removing or reducing these supports will not remove need. It will simply shift the cost and burden back onto families, schools, emergency systems and already overstretched communities.

I am especially concerned about the likely impact on children and young people with developmental delay, autism and neurodevelopmental differences whose needs are often dynamic, fluctuating or not easily captured through standardised measures. Many

Submission 1421

children already struggle to access appropriate supports. These reforms risk pushing families into crisis before support becomes available.

I am also deeply concerned that children and families may lose access to supports before Foundational Supports and programs such as Thriving Kids are fully established, funded, staffed and accessible. Across regional and community settings, we already know families experience long waitlists, workforce shortages and barriers accessing support. There is currently no evidence that alternative systems are ready to absorb the level of need these reforms may create.

A significant concern for border communities such as the Tweed and Southern Gold Coast is the lack of clarity around how Foundational Supports and Thriving Kids services will operate across state borders. Many families already rely on services across both Queensland and New South Wales based on availability and proximity. Without strong cross-border coordination, these reforms risk creating gaps, confusion and reduced access to early supports for children and families living in border regions.

In my role across community organisations, consortiums, early childhood services and allied health networks, I am hearing significant fear and uncertainty from families, clinicians and providers. Families are frightened about what this means for their children’s futures. Clinicians are concerned about the erosion of evidence-informed practice and independent professional judgment. Providers are deeply worried about the long-term sustainability of quality, relationship-based supports and the devastating life-long impact this will have on people with disabilities and their families.

I also wish to express my support for Occupational Therapy Australia’s “No OTs, No NDIS” campaign and ask that recommendations made in Occupational Therapy Australia’s submission be adopted. As an active member of OTA and a clinician who has worked within disability, early intervention and community systems for more than 30 years, I share the sector’s concerns regarding the potential impact these reforms may have on access to occupational therapy, capacity building and community participation supports. Occupational therapists play a critical role in helping children, young people and adults build functional capacity, participate meaningfully in everyday life and reduce long-term support needs over time. These supports should remain accessible, individualised and grounded in skilled professional judgment.

I ask Parliament to carefully consider the real-world consequences of these reforms and to ensure:

• decisions remain based on individual need and qualified professional assessment
• therapy, capacity building and participation supports are protected
• fully automated decision-making processes are prohibited

Submission 1421

• ministerial powers to impose broad funding reductions are substantially constrained

• children and families do not lose support before alternative systems are genuinely available and accessible.

The NDIS has created opportunities for people with disability to participate, belong, build independence and live with dignity. It has changed lives, including my daughter’s life and the life of our entire family.

As both a parent and a clinician, I know firsthand what happens when people have the right supports around them. I have seen the difference participation, therapy and community connection can make, not just for the person with disability, but for the wellbeing, stability and future of entire families and for the benefit of whole communities.

I am deeply concerned that these reforms risk shifting Australia backwards toward a system where people with disability are once again expected to accept fewer opportunities, less participation and reduced access to the supports that allow them to fully engage in everyday life and community.

People with disability deserve the same opportunities to learn, connect, contribute and belong as every other Australian. I urge Parliament not to lose sight of the real human impact behind these decisions, because the consequences of getting this wrong will be felt by children, families and communities for generations to come.

Kind regards,

Charmaine Owen