Updated news read blog here: https://ddwa.org.au/specialist-education-advocacy-service-for-families-in-wa/ – specialist education advocacy service now funded temporarily through to 30th December 2025.
Dear Members and Supporters,
It is with much frustration and disappointment that we advise you that our Specialist Individual Education Advocacy Service had to close as of 30th June.
Our requests to the Minister for Education to fund WA’s only specialist independent individual and systemic education advocacy service have not been supported to date. However, we are now in negotiations with the Department of Education about possible funding arrangements. We will advise members when we know more.
Even though we can no longer provide individual advocacy assistance at meetings or assist in writing letters etc. We can still:
- provide information
- help you problem solve
- talk through what course of action you want to take
- support you to self-advocate.
Please feel welcome to contact our office and we will do our best to assist you.
Phone: 9420 7203.
Further information is available in our Self Advocacy Guide for Parents in the WA Education System: https://ddwa.org.au/wp-content/uploads/2024/06/Self-Advocacy-Guide-for-Parents-in-the-WA-Education-System.pdf
In summary, this guide provides options to obtain support if you think your child’s school is not meeting their needs including:
Government schools
- Speaking to the Principal
- Contacting the Regional Office including Coordinators Regional Operations, Lead School Psychologists, Complex Needs Teams.
- Contact School of Special Education Needs can advise if your child’s school has asked for their advice in supporting your child.
- Contacting a generalist Disability Advocacy Service to determine if they have individual staff with experience in assisting with education matters, particularly if behaviour is related to their needs.
- If the matter is a complaint you can contact the Parent Liaison Office
- If the matter is discrimination based you can contact the Sussex Street Community Law Service
- Contacting the Director General of Education
- If you try all of the above and feel the problem is not resolved, you can write to the Minister for Education: Hon Dr Tony Buti, Minister.buti@dpc.wa.gov.au
Non-Government schools
- Speaking to the Principal
- Contacting Catholic Education or the Association of Independent Schools
- Contacting a generalist Disability Advocacy Service to determine if they have individual staff with experience in assisting with education matters, particularly if behaviour is related to their needs.
- If the matter is discrimination based you can contact the Sussex Street Community Law Service
- Contacting the Non-Government School Regulation Team at the Department of Education
- If you try all of the above and feel the problem is not resolved, you can write to the Minister for Education: Hon Dr Tony Buti, Minister.buti@dpc.wa.gov.au
Should you be in the financial position to self-fund individual advocacy, then you can contract us on a fee for service basis.
In the meantime, we will continue to advocate systemically at both a state and national level to have independent specialist individual and systemic education advocacy made available to families in Western Australia.
If you have any questions or concerns, please do not hesitate to contact me: mary.butterworth@ddwa.org.au
Mary Butterworth
DDWA CEO