My needs are not wrong, your service is wrong

I was doing some prep reading for an interview at my job this week (you can listen to it here or the version with transcript here) on foundational supports and it had me reflecting on my attempts (in 2024, in 2025, and the complaint and the response to the complaint) about trying to get some kind of freaking supports for my life as a disabled person.

 

A concept clicked in my head and came out as the phrase “my needs are not wrong, your service is wrong”.

 

And that’s exactly what happens when services for people with a disability are created without people with a disability being involved. This is what happens when people in power don’t listen to needs and think they can take a top-down approach and tell us what our needs are. 

 

When foundational supports are being discussed I am seeing red flags. One: they are assuming that people not currently in ndis have lower needs (eg not much or no 1:1 care needed). Two: that people who really do need specific care can get it via ndis (given very few Australians with disability get ndis, this is an awful assumption). These red flags are only that – warning signs. This is because not enough is known about what will actually be included in foundational supports.