Doors open for specialist disability accommodation 2021

The National Disability Insurance Scheme has allocated $700m per annum for Specialist Disability Accommodation (SDA) to provide 28,000 Australians with complex support needs with access to appropriate housing.

SDA funding has the potential to stimulate around $5 billion in private sector investment and transform the old model of segregation to provide people with disabilities more choice and control. Achieving these major changes will require many parties to consider the role they can play. 

Join our panel, who will unpack the potential of the government's SDA funding looking at the market and investment opportunities, as well as, how to foster innovation to maximise independence for people with disability, now and in the future.

Panelists

• Rebecca Thomas, Executive Director - Impact Investing, Social Ventures Australia

• Perry Cross AM, CEO & Founder, Accessible Homes Australia 

• Alecia Rathbone, General Manager - Housing Hub, Summer Foundation 

• Pete Horsley, Founder, Remarkable Technology Accelerator (Moderator)

Rebecca Thomas at Social Ventures Australia (SVA) leads the investment of the Social Impact Investment Trust (SVA's impact investing mandate with HESTA) across a range of sectors and capital instruments. Her focus is primarily on housing investments, namely social, affordable and disability housing projects. Rebecca is also part of the Synergis Fund, a new disability housing fund established by SVA and Federation Asset Management working to deploy capital into the Specialist Disability Accommodation market. Prior to joining SVA in 2016, Rebecca held senior roles at GE Capital and Lloyds Banking Group in both Australia and in the UK.

Perry Cross at the age of 19, was severely injured in a rugby tackle and told he would never walk again. Perry has dedicated his life to helping others living with a disability, raising awareness of spinal injuries and creating a movement to applaud, recognise and support the need for urgent research to cure paralysis. He's been awarded Suncorp Young Queenslander of the Year, finalist in the Young Australian of the Year Awards, was the first quadriplegic to complete a Bachelor of Communications (Business) at Bond University and in 2018 was chosen as a Gold Coast Commonwealth Games baton bearer. Perry is the President and Founder of the Perry Cross Spinal Research Foundation, a Director of The Specialist Disability Accommodation (SDA) Alliance which provides a unified voice to better support development of a diverse and sustainable SDA market. In 2020, Perry was appointed a Member of the Order of Australia for significant service to people living with a spinal cord injury and as a role model. 

Alecia Rathbone at Summer Foundation oversees a social enterprise that matches people with disability to appropriate housing. She is responsible for The Housing Hub website, where people with disability can search for suitable housing by housing type or location, and the Tenancy Matching Service, which matches people with disability to new property developments across Australia. Alecia has over 20 years' experience across a number of sectors including for-purpose, services and manufacturing for organisations from charities to small businesses to ASX listed.