A new campaign launched today by National Disability Services (NDS) highlights the diverse job opportunities available within the disability sector in Western Australia. The new #ThinkSupport campaign aims to increase the numbers of disability support workers from Aboriginal communities, as well as encouraging males to commence a career in the disability sector.

Developed collaboratively by NDS in partnership with Clarity Communications, NANI Creative, and Think Culture, the campaign was codesigned by Aboriginal consultants and people with disability. It builds on the success of the previous #ThinkSupport campaign to encourage young people to consider a career in disability support, launched in 2020.

The campaign is funded by the Western Australia Department of Communities.

Graeme West, NDS Acting State Manager WA, welcomed the launch of the campaign. “Action is needed to address the lack of community-based support workers in First Nations communities, and the number of male support workers. NDS is proud to be launching the #ThinkSupport campaign to address this need.”

“The final report of the Disability Royal Commission recently highlighted the lack of NDIS engagement with First Nations communities and encouraged further initiatives to create more culturally safe services for First Nations people with disability,” said Graeme West.

The 2023 NDS Workforce Census reflected these findings, with around two-thirds of service providers either not employing any Aboriginal or Torres Strait Islander employees or not keeping records. Around 10 per cent of NDIS service providers in Western Australia that responded to the census survey employed more than 3 Aboriginal or Torres Strait Islander staff members.

The campaign initiatives such as 'Let's Yarn about disability support work' and 'More than care' will be prominently featured across various social media platforms, including Facebook, Instagram and YouTube. Additionally, radio advertisements are set to air across the regions on channels including MMM Perth, Noongar Radio, Radio Mama, and PAKAM Radio.

The campaign also updates the www.thinksupport.org.au webpage with additional materials and a fresh new look.

To further enhance visibility, advertisements will feature on NITV and will be displayed on buses within the Transperth network codesigned by Aboriginal consultants and people with disability.

Due to the ambitious reach of the campaign across WA, NDS have market research specialists Painted Dog Research on board to support in evaluating the campaign.

To assist disability sector providers to maximise interest from potential new applicants, Clarity Communications have developed a Provider Factsheet [PDF] [DOC] which outlines the #ThinkSupport workforce attraction campaign with tips regarding campaign messaging.