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Introduction
Older Victorians with disability are being systematically under served by existing policy and service frameworks. The NDIS has transformed the lives of many Australians and set a strong standard for what good support can look like. Yet older people who acquire or live with disability beyond the NDIS age threshold often face barriers to accessing comparable support.
As a result, too many older Victorians are left navigating under-resourced systems, particularly aged care, which may not be designed to meet their specific needs and often comes with greater financial burdens. This in turn results in reduced quality of life, increased hospital presentations and premature transition to permanent residential aged care – at considerable cost to government.
COTA Victoria and its partners urge the Victorian and Australian Governments, along with key decision-makers across the ageing and disability sectors, to implement a coordinated Agenda for Action over the next five years.
At the heart of this Agenda is a clear principle:
All people deserve equitable access to disability support, based on need, not age.
Currently, people aged 65 and over with disability, who are not already enrolled in the NDIS, face a patchwork of supports that are often limited, financially burdensome, and unfit for purpose, particularly within the aged care system. This is an inadequate and inequitable response to some of our most vulnerable members of the community.
A growing population of older Australians with disability, including those ageing with lifelong conditions or acquiring disability later in life, calls for immediate and coordinated policy attention. Without targeted reforms, this group will continue to fall between the cracks of disconnected systems, while carers remain under-supported, and mainstream services remain ill-equipped to meet their needs.
This Agenda for Action outlines a strategic response, underpinned by practical actions, to address these issues. It supports system integration, offers opportunities to strengthen safeguarding, improves access to both specialist and mainstream supports, and centres the voices of older people with disability in reform processes.
Importantly, this is a shared responsibility. Leadership is needed across all levels of government, supported by collaboration with service providers, community organisations, and people with lived experience.
COTA Victoria and Seniors Rights Victoria have developed this Agenda for Action in close consultation with key peak bodies in the community sector including the Victorian Council of Social Service, Carers Victoria, National Disability Services, Municipal Association of Victoria, Brotherhood of St Laurence, the Ethnic Communities’ Council of Victoria, and Housing for the Aged Action Group.
Proposed actions
To drive meaningful and measurable change, the proposed actions (located at page 15) are organised under six key themes:
- Voice, advocacy, and representation – enabling genuine participation by older people with disability in policy development and service design.
- Specialist disability services – ensuring access to high-quality, fit-for-purpose disability supports beyond the NDIS.
- NDIS and My Aged Care system interface – addressing gaps across systems to provide a more equitable, connected support pathway.
- Mainstream community services – promoting universal design and inclusive access across all service areas.
- Carer supports – recognising the essential role of unpaid carers and strengthening formal supports.
- Safeguarding and preventing abuse – embedding protections to uphold the rights, dignity, and safety of older people with disability.
This Agenda builds on existing reform momentum in the aged care and disability sectors, relevant details of which are provided in Attachment 1. It does so by responding to community concerns and the rights of older people with disability to live with choice, safety, and inclusion.
Our related work
Disability equity is a longstanding policy research and advocacy area for COTA Victoria. Our Agenda for Action has been developed on the foundation of community and sector engagement and research, references to which can be found below.
Submission to the review of the Disability Discrimination Act 1992
Briefing: Findings of Survey of Older People with Disabilities
Submission to Department of Social Services consultation on General Foundational Supports
Have your say: New discussion paper on disability support
Disability Support and Inclusion for Older Victorians: Towards an Agenda for Action
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