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National Disability Research Agenda

Our inclusive and inter-disciplinary consortium will create a National Disability Research Agenda which provides a clear vision for disability research.

UTS Project Leads: Prof Simon Darcy, UTS Business School; Prof Bronwyn Hemsley, Faculty of Health, Speech Pathology

Year: 2020 -2022

The National Disability Research Agenda development is being led by an inclusive consortium of disability and research organisations, with co-production and collaboration embedded in the culture, practices and structure of the project. We bring together the knowledge of lived experience along with rigorous academic methodologies to ensure an evidence-based research agenda. The research agenda development involves four project phases of 1) pre-planning, 2) research mapping, 3) consultation, and 4) prioritisation for the final research agenda, to inform the next decade of Australian disability research. 

What impact will we create? 

The consortium partnership for this project is designed to be large and accommodate a broad diversity of voices, views and approaches. The key values of inclusion and dialogue have informed the structure and processes of this project and this will flow through all phases of the research as the research agenda is developed. The project allows the forging of new partnerships as well as building upon existing partnerships and networks with strong records of research outcomes. The research uses a ‘reach out’ model, in that the consortium has sought to bring in organisations and individuals with both local and national interests and from each state and territory. This process will ensure that broad knowledge informs the research agenda setting process from the very start, and the research will be open to the full spectrum of interests and lived experiences of disability across gender, language, age and culture. 

Who will we work with?

The consortium comprises academic researchers who work in universities and collaborative research networks working with a dynamic group of advocacy partners and disabled people’s organisations. The consortium work together and bring to the project their understanding of disability, existing working relationships and expertise; particularly in consolidating knowledge from research and the collective knowledge of people with disability. While fully involved in each project stage, the advocacy and disabled people’s organisations will be integral to the success and operation of the consultation phase. This will ensure that members of these organisations influence and expand the reach of the project. Importantly, it will enable greater involvement by people who are often excluded from consultation processes owing to their disability or their difficulties communicating.

  • Project Lead: Associate Professor Jennifer Smith-Merry, University of Sydney
  • UTS Academic Team: Prof Simon Darcy, UTS Business School; Prof Bronwyn Hemsley, UTS Faculty of Health, Speech Pathology; Ms Danielle Manton, UTS Faculty of Health, School of Public Health
  • Broader Academic Team: Associate Professor Mary-Ann O’Donovan, University of Sydney; Associate Professor John Gilroy, University of Sydney; Dr. Elizabeth McEntyre, Independent Aboriginal researcher; Associate Professor Angela Dew, Deakin University; Professor Keith McVilly, University of Melbourne; Professor Gemma Carey, UNSW; Dr Ariella Meltzer, UNSW
  • Consortium Partners: The University of Sydney, Centre for Disability Research and Policy and Centre for Disability Studies; Ability First Australia; Ablefinder Australian Association of Special Education (AASE); Australian Federation of Disability Organisations (AFDO);  Autism Awareness Australia;  Centre for Social Impact (CSI) National, UNSW, Swinburne University of Technology, University of Western Australia;  Children and young people research group, Murdoch Children’s Research Institute, Monash University, ACU; Community Resource Unit (CRU);  Council of Regional Disability Organisations (CORDS);  Deaf Victoria Inc. (and Expression Australia);  Disability Advocacy Network Australia;  Disability and Inclusion team, Deakin;  Disability Inclusion for Health and Development Unit, Nossal Institute for Global Health, The University of Melbourne;  Family Advocacy;  Inclusion Australia ; Inclusion Melbourne Disability Research;   Lived Experience Research Unit, ANU; Mobility and Accessibility for Children in Australia Inc. (MACA);  Motor Neurone Disease Australia;  National Disability Services;  Neurodevelopment Australia, Neurodevelopment research group, USyd, Monash, Deakin, Melbourne, UQ, UWA, Macquarie; NSW Council for Intellectual Disability (CID);  Onemda;  Queensland Disability Network (QDN);  Settlement Services International (SSI);  The University of Queensland; University of Alberta;  University of Melbourne;  Vision Australia;  Women With Disability Australia (WWDA) 

Research Design

The development of the research agenda occurs iteratively throughout the project and there will be multiple points of translation of the research agenda as it develops.

  • Phase One - Review - Updating the domain, identifying sources, gaps, and evidence summaries. Systematic Review of current research using Covidence software. 
  • Phase Two - Consultation - Includes dialogue, survey, focus group, interviews, expert reference group. Analysis across sources, with triangulation and verification with consortium members and the public.
  • Phase Three - Report and translation, impact and engagement - Reporting includes summaries, journal articles, blogs, social media, and podcasts.

Collaboration and co-design will take place in Phase One, is carried through across all project phases, to ensure a diversity of voices inform the resulting agenda. This will be via the project co-design panel, and through ‘making public’ the review and consultation as it progresses. Summary reports will be posted on the project team’s blog pages at regular intervals. Twitter will be used to both disseminate project outcomes and to gather feedback progressively using the project hashtag #AusDisAbilityResearch.  

Funding Support

  • Department of Social Services
  • National Disability Research Partnership, University of Melbourne

Network Research Themes

  • Inclusion and Social Participation
  • Social Justice, Diversity and Equity
  • Health and Wellbeing
  • Enabling Technologies