Community Based Research Program

Research projects funded in 2022

• Best Practice Model for Accessing Allied Health Services

  This project looks at developing an evidence base for the delivery of best practice early childhood, early intervention models that meet the cultural needs of First Nations children with a disability, their families and communities.

• Analysis of individual advocacy data to identify the prevalence and type of advocacy issues experienced by disabled young people

  This project will analyse individual advocacy data to identify common issues experienced by young people with a disability.

• Addressing the divide - Authentic inclusion in Education for people with Down syndrome

  This project will look at the experience of young people with Down syndrome transitioning from primary school to high school and will help develop resources to help young people and their families successfully transition to mainstream secondary education.

• The Impact of Peer Support Groups on People with Acquired Brain Injury (ABI)

  This project will look at best practice tools and methods for peer support groups supporting people with an Acquired Brain Injury.

• Communication Facilitators Pilot Program - Civil Matters

  This project will evaluate Scope Australia's pilot program to provide targeted support to people who use alternative communication systems during civil court matters.

Research projects funded in 2021

• Teens Work Know How Program - Aspergers Victoria

  This project will evaluate the impact of work experience for autistic teenagers.

• One-to-One Peer Support Program

  This project will help determine the best models and frameworks for a new 1-to-1 peer support program targeted to the primary carers of autistic children with complex support needs.

• Community Diversion Pilot Program for Young People with a Disability

  This project will evaluate the effectiveness of the pilot to both improve practice and to share key learnings with the broader community.

• Meeting the Missing Middle with Relational Support

  This project will evaluate the model of relational support with a view to further developing peer support for people with BPD.

• Disability Resources Centre - The Buddy Network

  The Disability Resource Centre Buddy Network matches trained supporters who have lived experience of disability with others in the community waiting for individualised advocacy support. This project will evaluate the strengths of this innovative approach and the ways it could fill an important gap for many advocacy services.

• Supporting the Fragile X Community Virtually: What works?

  This project will evaluate the effectiveness of virtual support programs and will help to inform the design, delivery and evaluation of future supports and activities for the Fragile X community.

• Genetic Support Group Database

  This project will evaluate the usefulness of a database of support groups for those with rare and genetic conditions and explore ways to expand and improve support.

• Keys of Life - Enabling all students with disabilities and their families to access and benefit from instrumental music lessons

  This project will examine the benefits of learning an instrument for children with disability and explore the key features of a successful learning program.

• Syndromes Without A Name (SWAN) Australia - Finding the Gaps

  This project seeks to collect data to help to identify gaps and barriers in accessing services and supports.

• Advocacy for Absolutely Everyone

  This project will look at key features and costs of successful advocacy programs that support people with complex needs and their families.

• Exploring the support needs of parents and carers of young children with Usher syndrome

  The project seeks to better understand the support needs of families of children with Usher syndrome and build some evidence to inform better services for families.

Research projects funded 2019-2020

• Disability Justice Lens: Disability Equity and Inclusion in the Australian Screen Industry

  This project highlights the benefits, obligations, challenges and barriers surrounding disabled workers in the screen industry.

• Evaluation of Bandmates Victoria Program

  This project evaluates the Bandmates Victoria Program, which matches people with disability with volunteers to experience live music together.

• Assistive technology for all

  This project investigates the impacts of challenges to timely access to AT for individuals who are ineligible for NDIS support.

• The experiences of young people with limb difference in participating in sports and recreation in an Australian context: a qualitative study.

  The project will inform policy and the scope to which the NDIS supports the funding of sports prosthesis for amputees.

• Evaluation of a pilot project assessing whether HoloLens Mixed Reality headsets, improve the workplace skills and independence of people with cognitive disabilities

  Ability Works is seeking to empower employees with cognitive disabilities in the workplace by improving their skills, independence and sense of achievement.

• Pathway for Carers: No-one can do it alone

  This project is an evaluation of the Pathways for Carers program which began in 2015 in response to a need for carers to learn more about news, services and supports available in their community.

• The benefits of therapeutic horticulture for people with autism

  The aim of this project is to evaluate Kevin Heinze Grow's 'Grow Model' and its impact on participants with autism.

• Evaluation of the Community Abundance Workshops

  This project evaluates the impact and effectiveness of the Community Abundance Workshops - which strive to help the Sudanese Australian community understand the NDIS.

• The Lawyers Empowering People Project

  This project evaluates a pilot program which provides a framework to better assist those with disability and to increase the agency of these clients.

• Electoral Inclusion and People with Cognitive Impairment

  An important part of being a citizen is the exercise of the right to vote in elections for local councils, state governments, or the commonwealth government. This projects looks at what stops people with intellectual disability from voting and offers ideas about what might help people to get ready to vote.

• Raise Our Voices – Disability self-advocacy for CALD communities

  The aim of the project is to help people with disability develop the skills to advocate for their rights, access information about disability services, and improve their ability to make their own choices.

• Building Knowledge Project

  This project evaluates a new program and approach for achieving positive health outcomes for children with Down syndrome and their families across Victoria.

• Horses for Hope - equine assisted narrative therapy

  This project compares program data with the participants goals to deliver the evidence base that can be used to both inform expected outcomes and to benchmark the effectiveness of the therapy.

• Accessible Beaches - Experience of people with a disability using beaches in Victoria

  In accordance with universal design principles, This research shows clear evidence of benefits of accessible beaches to the wider community – with beach matting, for example, being used by many members of the public for diverse purposes.

• Evaluating behaviour support services

  This project developed a monitoring and evaluation framework for the Mansfield Autism Practitioner (MAP) service.

• Better Autism Services for Rural and Regional Victoria

  The aim of this literature review is to identify Australian and international evidence-based practices to support the improvement of Vivid’s services for adults with autism in regional and rural Victoria.