Risks to wellbeing, participation, and livelihoods of people with disability (DRO advocacy)

Submission 365

Submission to the National Disability Insurance Scheme Amendment (Securing the

NDIS for Future Generations) Bill 2026

Linda Williams, Executive Director Tutti Arts

Date: 29 May 2026

Tutti Arts

Tutti Arts is South Australia’s leading multi-arts organisation for learning-disabled and neurodivergent artists. We use the term learning disability as an inclusive descriptor, encompassing people with cognitive and intellectual disability.

We are committed to ensuring disabled artists are recognised as vital contributors to Australia’s cultural life—not as participants on the margins, but as leaders, creators, and professionals.

This submission addresses the proposed legislative changes and their impact on more than 240 Tutti participants. These individuals are actively building careers, developing artistic and life skills, strengthening independence, and sustaining meaningful social connections through ongoing engagement in the arts.

Tutti Arts brings both lived experience and deep sector expertise. Our work demonstrates— consistently and measurably—that disability-led arts practice delivers profound outcomes at individual, community, and societal levels. Participants develop self-determination, professional identity, agency, and social inclusion.

We welcome the opportunity to contribute to this consultation. However, we state clearly: in its current form, this Bill poses serious and unacceptable risks to the wellbeing, participation, and livelihoods of people with disability.

Position Statement

Tutti Arts strongly opposes elements of the proposed amendments that will:

 Restrict access to the NDIS for people with disability

 Reduce community participation and inclusion

 Devalue creative and cultural practice as legitimate supports

 Destabilise both participants and the providers who support them

This Bill goes beyond reform—it represents a structural shift away from the intent of the NDIS.

Without significant amendment, it will undermine the Scheme’s foundational purpose: enabling people with disability to live full, self-directed, and socially connected lives.

Tutti Arts Submission Regarding NDIS Amendment Bill 29-5-26 pg. 1

Submission 365

1. Parliamentary Scrutiny and Transparency The issue

A two-week consultation period is insufficient—particularly for a reform of this scale and significance. It fails to meet basic standards of accessible, inclusive consultation.

Impact

This truncated process:

 Excludes people with disability from meaningful engagement

 Limits input from providers and sector experts

 Increases the risk of poorly designed and harmful policy outcomes

Recommendation

Mandate a minimum 30-day consultation period, consistent with best-practice policy development, ensuring genuine participation.

2. Ministerial Powers to Cut Funding Without Review The issue

The Bill grants the Minister unprecedented powers to:

 Reduce funding across support categories

 Make these changes without parliamentary oversight

 Remove participants’ rights to challenge reductions

It also eliminates the ability to carry forward unspent funds.

Impact on Tutti participants

These changes create immediate and severe instability.

Tutti participants rely on social and community participation supports to:

 Build employment pathways

 Access structured programs

 Maintain independence and connection

Without these supports:

 Programs become inaccessible overnight

 Long-term goals—performances, exhibitions, employment—collapse

Tutti Arts Submission Regarding NDIS Amendment Bill 29-5-26 pg. 2

Submission 365

 Participants risk isolation, regression, and disengagement

For many, Tutti Arts is not supplementary—it is the primary access point to community life.

Recommendation

 Require full parliamentary scrutiny of all funding changes

 Guarantee independent review rights

 Reinstate the ability to carry over unspent funds, particularly for long-term goals

3. Reduced Rights for Existing Participants The issue

The Bill weakens participant protections through:

 Stricter reassessment access

 Automatic plan renewals without review

 Reduced appeal rights

Impact

Existing participants may:

 Lose supports without meaningful recourse

 Be unable to respond to changes in their circumstances

 Experience reduced autonomy over their plans

Tutti context

Tutti participants are not static—they are progressing. They:

 Build skills over time

 Transition into employment pathways

 Engage in increasingly complex creative projects

Restricting reassessment flexibility directly undermines these developmental pathways and actively disrupts growth and progression.

Recommendation

Introduce a “no harm” safeguard ensuring:

 No participant loses supports without equivalent alternatives

Tutti Arts Submission Regarding NDIS Amendment Bill 29-5-26 pg. 3

Submission 365

 Reassessment pathways remain accessible

 Independent review rights are preserved

4. Removal of Whole-of-Person Assessment The issue

The Bill shifts assessment of support needs from a whole-of-person approach to a focus on a primary impairment.

Impact

This approach:

 Ignores the cumulative and intersectional nature of disability

 Fails to reflect real-world support needs

 Reduces accuracy in planning

Tutti experience

Participants often live with multiple, intersecting impairments (e.g. intellectual disability combined with psychosocial or sensory impairments). Their ability to participate depends on holistic, responsive supports, not isolated criteria.

Reducing support needs assessment to one primary impairment will:

 Misrepresent need

 Remove essential supports

 Undermine participation

Recommendation

Retain a whole-of-person assessment model that captures:

 Combined impacts of multiple impairments

 Environmental context

 Real-life functioning

5. Unvalidated Functional Capacity Assessment Tool The issue

The proposed use of the I-CAN assessment tool has not been sufficiently validated across:

Tutti Arts Submission Regarding NDIS Amendment Bill 29-5-26 pg. 4

Submission 365

 Diverse disability experiences

 Fluctuating or episodic conditions

 Cultural contexts

Impact

An inadequate assessment tool may:

 Misrepresent participant needs

 Reduce funding incorrectly

 Exclude participants from the scheme

Tutti context

Creative practice is highly sensitive to:

 Confidence

 Routine

 Environment

 Consistency of support

A point-in-time assessment cannot capture these dynamics.

Recommendation

Do not implement I-CAN unless it is:

 Fully validated across disability types

 Proven to capture fluctuating needs

 Demonstrated to be culturally appropriate

6. Premature Reduction of Supports The issue

The Government has indicated upcoming reductions to:

 Social and community participation supports

 Capacity building supports

These cuts may occur before replacement “Foundational Supports” systems are established.

Tutti Arts Submission Regarding NDIS Amendment Bill 29-5-26 pg. 5

Submission 365

Impact

Participants may lose access to:

 Community participation

 Skill development

 Support networks

Tutti example

For Tutti participants:

 Arts programs provide structured, safe, and meaningful engagement

 They are central to participants’ mental health, identity, and independence

If funding is reduced:

 Participants may withdraw from community life

 Isolation, regression, and disengagement may increase

 Families and carers will face increased pressure

Recommendation

 Delay any funding reductions until replacement systems are fully operational

 Ensure new systems are adequately funded and accessible

 Guarantee continuity of support during transition

Conclusion

Tutti Arts supports the long-term sustainability of the NDIS—but sustainability cannot come at the expense of participant wellbeing, inclusion, and dignity.

In its current form, this Bill risks shifting the NDIS away from its core purpose: enabling people with disability to participate fully in community life.

For Tutti participants, the arts are not optional. They are:

 A pathway to employment

 A source of identity and confidence

 A critical mechanism for social participation

 Reasonable and necessary supports

Tutti Arts Submission Regarding NDIS Amendment Bill 29-5-26 pg. 6

Submission 365

International human rights frameworks are clear. The International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights and the United Nations Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities affirm that governments must ensure people with disability have the opportunity to:

 Be creative

 Make art

 Learn and develop artistic skills

These are not recreational extras—they are recognised rights that contribute to stronger, more inclusive communities. Section 30 of the UN Convention explicitly protects the right of people with disability to participate in cultural life.

The proposed amendments place these rights at risk.

Without amendment, the Bill will:

 Reduce access to meaningful participation

 Undermine creative and community-based supports

 Diminish the capacity of people with disability to contribute to Australia’s cultural and social life

This is not a sustainable outcome.

We urge the Government to amend the Bill to ensure that:

 Participant rights are protected

 Flexibility and choice are preserved

 Community-based and creative supports remain viable

The NDIS must continue to recognise that a meaningful life includes creative expression, connection, and contribution.

Anything less represents a step backwards.

Linda Williams

Executive Director

Tutti Arts

Tutti Arts Submission Regarding NDIS Amendment Bill 29-5-26 pg. 7