At Feros Care, we’re big on collaboration.
Our lived experience allows our team members to work in co-design with people in disability alongside peak bodies and organisations, influencing social policy and building capacity in communities, and working for further accessibility and inclusivity.
This approach works towards ensuring people with disability have full rights to access the services and supports available to other Australians.
Want to be a voice for your community?
Co-design timeline
What we’ve done
Our Local Working and National Advisory Groups had 2 main objectives.
- Shape Feros Care’s practices and initiatives
- Co-design a resource based on the challenge: How can employers foster more inclusive workplaces?
Learn more about the insights each working group generated below.
ACT Local Working Group – Report   |  SA Local Working Group – Report
Mackay Local Working Group – Report   |  Townsville Local Working Group – Report
Co-designed Inclusive Employment Resources
What’s next
This project has supported us to create our own Feros Care Co-design Framework which has and will continue to support us to embed co-design into our activities, particularly when designing projects for our communities.
Co-design guiding principles
Guiding Principle One
Accountability and transparency
Feros Care will seek feedback and work together with participants and communities on creative and outcome-focused solutions.
Guiding Principle Two
Inclusive and accessible design
Feros Care will be a leader in building all-inclusive practices
alongside people of all abilities.
Guiding Principle Three
Collaboration
Feros Care will embed in community to establish ongoing
partnerships and develop strong opportunities to work together.
Guiding Principle Four
Safe spaces and safe people
Feros Care will learn from our communities and eduate staff to
nurture safe spaces.
Guiding Principle Five
Circle of Support
Feros Care will work with people with disability, families, friends and supporters
to empower each to live their best life..
Guiding Principle Six
Changing the Narrative
Feros Care will work on true visibility of disability to break down
stigma and stereotypes.
Guiding Principle Seven
Investing time
Feros Care will provide diverse models of engagement to ensure you
have a platform to feel heard.
How we came to the Co-Design model
In 2021, we began reviewing and refining our existing consultation process to formalise our Co-design Guiding Principles.
This process included forming national advisory groups and intensive focus groups with a wide range of people with disability from diverse groups.
We collated all the feedback and themes and convened a national workshop that united people with disability, professionals from the community and Feros Care staff to understand the top themes that came out of the national focus groups.
This has since formed our seven Co-design Guiding Principles, which ensure we continue to hear everyone’s voice to create projects with the people they are meant for.
It’s all part of our ‘Nothing About Me, Without Me’ approach, which ensures that a person with disability takes part in every conversation about their life, their services and support.
Photos from co-design focus groups
Co-design stories
Raffy Sgroi’s life has been one driven by an unwavering passion for community engagement and the pursuit of meaningful change in our world.
The Accessible Sports and Recreation Expo held in the ACT provided a much-needed opportunity for people living with disability to engage with a large variety of sporting and recreation organisations.
Collaboration, cooperative approaches, community, a coming together of people from all diverse backgrounds… it’s called co-design.
Activist Dylan McBurney has brought their wisdom and passion to the Feros Care Co-Design focus groups to contribute to the vision of a more inclusive society for people living with disability. Find out more!
Feros Care subscribes to the social model of disability, and Carly Hennessy believes that people are disabled by barriers in society that need to be removed to create equality and offer people more independence, choice and control.
You can now download Feros Care’s disability guide that aims to empower people with disability and employers to establish sustainable employment options.
