Disability entrepreneurship in Australia

People with disability face considerable economic and social exclusion in Australia. One innovative response to this is private and social entrepreneurship, and people with disability have a relatively high rate of entrepreneurship in Australia.

Project leads: Professor Jock Collins and Professor Simon Darcy, UTS Business School
Duration: 2016-2019

The aim of this Australian Research Council-funded project was to better understand the pathways of people with disability to entrepreneurship, in order to increase Australia’s capacity for developing evidence-based policy initiatives to increase the number of, and success of, entrepreneurs.

The research has generated the first detailed insights into disability entrepreneurs in Australia – their experiences, including their motivations, the barriers and “enablers” to being an entrepreneur, the benefits they receive and the wider contributions they make to society.

Find out more - access, videos, media and research reports.

What impact did we create?  

The research project led to a pilot program called IgniteAbility Small Business Start-ups, run by research partner Settlement Services International. The program connects participants with an ecosystem of support, advice and resources to build capacity, facilitate networking and address obstacles.

Insights from the pilot will help develop a robust model that supports entrepreneurship, increasing social inclusion and creating successful businesses that provide job opportunities for others. The research informed the 2020 NDIS Participant Employment Strategy, which for the first time recognised self-employment and entrepreneurship. 

Who did we work with?

  • Breakthru People Solutions 
  • National Disability Services 
  • Settlement Services International 

Funding Support

  • Australian Research Council (Linkage Project)
  • Breakthru People Solutions 
  • National Disability Services 
  • Settlement Services International 

Network Research Themes

  • Social Justice, Diversity and Equity
  • Inclusion and Participation
Acknowledgement of Country

UTS acknowledges the Gadigal people of the Eora Nation, the Boorooberongal people of the Dharug Nation, the Bidiagal people and the Gamaygal people, upon whose ancestral lands our university stands. We would also like to pay respect to the Elders both past and present, acknowledging them as the traditional custodians of knowledge for these lands.