Our Local Area Coordinators and early childhood team have strong community connections. We help to link people with services and raise community awareness of disability and developmental delay.

On this page you will find current information and resources across the following categories:

• Disability Peak Bodies
• Disability Advocacy
• Health services
• Education
• Employment
• Parenting resources
• Information for carers and family members
• Information for culturally and linguistically diverse families
• Information for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander families
• Information for LGBTQIA+ communities
• Sport and recreation
• Allied Health Peak Bodies

If you need further information or support to connect with any of the below services, you can contact our team on 1300 275 634.

Search engines and directories

Find the most up-to-date services and supports in your local area (including NDIS service providers and community and mainstream services).

• NDIS Provider Finder
  Help to find information about your closest NDIS registered providers, based on your suburb and postcode.
• Disability Gateway
  Information and services to help people with disability, their family, friends and carers, to find the support they need in Australia.
• Clickability
  Disability service directory that features ratings and reviews from the people who use the services.
• Ask Izzy
  A website connecting people in need with housing, a meal, money help, family violence support, counselling and much more.
• Know Your Local Council
  Use this website to find your local council. You can search ‘Children’s Services’ in the search bar on your Council Website to find information on local events and programs.
• Infoqore
  Database of mainstream, community, and specialist disability services for people with disability.

Disability Peak Bodies

A range of peak bodies and associations exist to support disability organisations and individuals around Australia.

• Australian Federation of Disability Organisations (AFDO)
  Member organisations who contribute to the national policy agenda and address issues that impact the lives of people with disability in Australia.
• Disability Australia Hub
  Your gateway to disability knowledge, advocacy and information resources.
• National Disability Representative Organisations
  A list of organisations providing advocacy and representation for Australians with disability.

Disability Advocacy

• Disability Advocacy Resource Unit (DARU)
  A dedicated resource unit funded to work with disability advocacy organisations to promote and protect the rights of people with disability.
• Self-Advocacy Resource Unit (SARU)
  Support for Victorian self-advocacy groups that are run by and for people with an intellectual disability, people with an acquired brain injury and people with complex communication support needs.
• Association for Children with a Disability (ACD)
  Provides information, support, and advocacy to families of children with disability in Victoria.
• Children and Young People with Disability Australia 
  National peak body that represents children and young people (aged 0-25) with disability. 

Health services

• Maternal and Child Health Line
  The confidential, 24-hour Maternal and Child Health Line can give you information and advice about the care and health of your child from birth to school age.
• Better Health Channel – MCH services
  The Maternal and Child Health (MCH) Service works in partnership with families to care for babies and young children until they start school.
• Community Health Services for children
  Community health services (CHSs) in Victoria offer allied health and support services to children and their families.
• Health Direct
  A government-funded service, providing quality, approved health information and advice.
• Medicare Information
  Help with the costs of seeing a doctor, getting medicines, and accessing mental health care.
• Lifeline
  A directory of free or low-cost health and community services available in Australia. It includes services such as domestic violence, family and children’s services, financial assistance and mental health.

​Education

• Student2Student reading buddies
  Works by matching students who need to improve their reading with peer Buddies who help and encourage them with their reading.
• Local Learn
  Learn Local providers can help you return to study, improve your reading, writing and maths skills, gain a qualification, get a job or learn something new.
• Education – Information for Parents
  Information for Victorian parents and carers to support their child’s learning needs.
• Starting Blocks
  A website for parents with information about early childhood education and care.
• Childcare Subsidy
  Assistance to help with the cost of childcare.
• Early Childhood Australia
  A non-profit organisation that promotes and works towards what is best for children and the Early Childhood Education and Care (ECEC) sector.
• Early Learning Association Australia
  The national peak body in early learning for children and supporting parents and service providers.
• Kindergarten for Aboriginal children: Koorie Kids Shine
  Learn about the benefits of kindergarten, including how services create culturally safe places for Aboriginal children and families.
• Early Start Kindergarten
  Early Start Kindergarten gives eligible children 15 hours of free or low-cost kindergarten a week for 2 years before starting school.
• Find a kinder – interactive map
  Use this application to find a kindergarten program in Victoria. You can search by street, suburb, or post code.
• ACD – Getting started at Childcare and Kinder
  Information from the Association of Children with a Disability about starting childcare or kinder.
• Eligible education and care services
  Free support to eligible education and care services. Find resources, forms, organisation links.
• Inclusion Support Program
  Supports children with additional needs to participate in early childhood education and care.
• Kindergarten Inclusion Support
  Help for funded kindergartens to make their classroom inclusive of children with a disability, developmental delay or complex medical needs.
• Playgroups Victoria
  Helps families in Victoria find playgroups, resources, and support.

Employment

• Australian Network on Disability
  National not-for-profit that helps organisations engage with people with disability.
  
• Job Access
  Help for people with disability find and keep jobs, get promoted to better jobs, upgrade or expand their workplace skills, and more.
• National Disability Coordination Officer Program
  Information about tertiary education pathways and subsequent employment in Victoria.
• Go Volunteer
  Volunteering Victoria’s site for finding volunteer opportunities.
• Careers Education Australia
  Parent and Carer Resources to support young people with disability.
• Youth Disability Advocacy Service (YDAS)
  Free online leadership program for young Victorians who identify as having a disability, being Deaf, neuro-diverse and/or having lived experience of mental health issues.
  
• Victorian Skills Gateway
  Find skills training opportunities that leads to employment.
• Specialisterne
  Alternative recruitment pathways through a workshop and assessment approach in conjunction with our client partners so that they can work with and understand autistic and neurodiverse talent prior to hiring.
• My WAY Employability
  Discover strengths for the workplace or further education.
• Dream Employment Network
  For all young people with disability, whether or not you already have a job. It can support you to develop leadership skills, or to take the next leap in your leadership/employment goals.

Parenting Resources

• Raising Children Network
  Website with free information about raising children and caring for yourself as a parent or carer.  
• Raising Healthy Minds
  A free app you can tailor to your child, family and interests. The app answers your questions about child wellbeing and shares practical tips for day-to-day family life.
• Reimagine (previously Early Childhood Intervention Australia)
  The lead body in Australia for early childhood outcomes for young children with a developmental delay or a disability.
• Thrivary App
  Thrivary connects parents, carers and early childhood practitioners to real time guidance, information and learning on all things early childhood development and early intervention (0-8yrs).
• Tweddle
  Provides a combination of residential, day stay, in-home, tele-health, fee for service and community based Early Parenting programs.
• Supports for Dads:
  SMS for Dads: Receive free text messages, support, info & tips – especially for dads & dads-to-be.
  Dads Online: Information and ideas about topics that are most important to Dads.
  The Fathering Project: program to help dads.
  Dads Group: Promoting positive parenting for men.
• ​​​​PANDA Australia
  Supports the mental health of parents and families during pregnancy and in their first year of parenthood.
• Learning and Play
  Play-based learning for preschoolers
• Play Learn Grow
  A free text message program for parents and carers of two-year-old and three-year-old children in Victoria.
• The Orange Door
  A free service for adults, children and young people who are experiencing or have experienced family violence.
• Kids Helpline
  Australia’s only free (even from a mobile), confidential 24/7 online and phone counselling service for young people aged 5 to 25.
• Parent Line
  Parentline is a phone service for parents and carers of children from birth to 18 years old, offering confidential and anonymous counselling and support on parenting issues.
• E-Safety Commissioner
  Advice and strategies for parents and carers about keeping children 0-5 years old safe online.
• Circle of Security
  Designed for parents/carers of children aged 0-12 years who want to strengthen the bonds with their children and help them build secure relationships.
• Tuning into Kids
  Nurtures a positive parent-child relationship, helping parents/carers respond to their own emotions and helping child/ren to manage their emotions.
• Parents Under Pressure (PUP)
  Supports parents/carers of at-risk families to build skills and confidence to strengthen the parent-child relationship. It is run in a play-group style setting.
  
• Safe Care
  Designed for parents of young children aged 0-5 years at risk of neglect and abuse. The program focusses on building strong and positive interactions between parents and their children, child health and home safety.
  
• For When
  Mental health support for expecting and new parents. Connects parents that are struggling to navigate the complex waters of pregnancy and new parenthood to the critical mental health services needed most. 
  
• Bringing Up Great Kids
  Focuses on building positive, nurturing, caring and respectful relationships between parents/carers and their children.
• MyTime
  A supportive space for parents to feel understood and share ideas about managing a range of situations.
• smalltalk
  A set of evidence-based parenting strategies that parents can use to enhance the home learning environment for their children from birth to school age.
• Parent Child Mother Goose
  A program that focuses on the relationship between children and parents and gives tools that make daily life with a young child more fulfilling.
• Triple P Parenting
  A parenting program providing a toolbox of ideas and strategies you need. You choose the way you want to use them.

Support for carers and family members

• Carer Gateway 
  Carer Gateway provides free carer supports including Tailored Support Packages.  For urgent respite support phone 1800 422 737.
• Carers Victoria 
  The free and confidential Carer Advisory Service provides information, advice, and help in accessing a range of carer-specific services.
• Services Australia – Carer Allowance 
  Financial support for carers.
• Siblings Australia
  Provides support for siblings of children and adults with disability.
• Little Dreamers
  Supporting young people aged 4 to 25 who provide care for a family member affected by disability, chronic or mental illness, addiction, or frail age.
• The National Companion Card Scheme
  Provides discounted entry to select venues when accompanying a person who requires care.
• Victorian Carer Card Program
  Provides discounts to various stores and public transport concessions Victoria wide.
• Young Carers Network
  A nationally coordinated resource to raise young carer awareness, provide information and direct young carers up to 25 years of age, to access pathways for support.

Resources for culturally and linguistically diverse families

• Translating and Interpreting Service (TIS)
  An interpreting service for people who do not speak English and for businesses that need to talk with their non-English speaking clients.
• Kindergarten information
  Information on kindergarten for culturally diverse families.
• Settlement Engagement and Transition Program (SETS)
  Provides support for people who have recently arrived in Australia.
• ADEC
  Helps culturally diverse communities through advocacy and language specific Social Support Groups.
• Asylum Seeker Resource Centre (ASRC)
  Australia’s largest human rights organisation providing support to people seeking asylum.
• Victorian Multicultural Commission
  Works with multicultural and multifaith groups to understand the issues they face.
• AMES Australia
  Offers education and training in English to help migrants prepare for education or work.
• National Ethnic Disability Alliance
  Advocates for the rights and interests of culturally diverse people with disability and their families throughout Australia.
• Refugee Council of Australia
  Search your state or territory in this directory to find services for refugees and people seeking asylum.
• Services Australia
  Information about payments and services in a range of languages. The Centrelink Multilingual Call telephone number is 131 202.
• Infoxchange Service Seeker
  Information about health and welfare services. You can filter by language to find a health professional that speaks your preferred language.
• Foundation House
  Seeks to explore the barriers and enablers to inclusion, and to develop strategies to promote full inclusion of families from refugee backgrounds.
• Health Translations
  Children and Family Services
  Children’s Health
  Early Learning

Resources for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander families

• Nugal Murrup Buladu video series
  BSL NDIS is proud to be part of the Darebin Best Start Aboriginal Reference Group, who have worked together to develop a video series for mob, known as Nugal Murrup Buladu – belong, spirit, grow.
• Baby Coming You Ready?
  A culturally safe, perinatal mental health assessment which supports trust and engagement between professionals and Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander mothers and fathers.
• Victorian Aboriginal Child Care Agency (VACCA)
  Educational resources for Aboriginal kids.
• Monash Health – Aboriginal Health – community-based services
  Works closely with Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander communities to improve health outcomes and the wellbeing.
• Rock Solid Education Support for school aged or younger children
  For Aboriginal families with school-aged or younger children with special needs in Victoria.
• Victorian Aboriginal Health Service (VAHS) Yarning Safe and Strong 24hr call line
  Confidential counselling for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples. Yarning SafeNStrong (YSNS) is available to people and families who need to have a yarn with someone about their wellbeing.
• Deadly Story Event Calendar
  An online portal and resource that aims to support Aboriginal children and young people to grow in their knowledge of who they are, where they belong, and where they come from.
• Victorian Aboriginal Education Association
  Aims to increase the presence and voice of Aboriginal people in education decision making.
• Victorian Aboriginal Business Directory
• Koorie Kids Shine
  Free or low-cost kinder for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander children aged three and four years old.
  

Resources for LGBTQIA+ families

• Raising Children Network
  List of services for LGBTQIA+ families from the Raising Children Network.
• Rainbow Families
  Works to reduce discrimination and disadvantage faced by children of LGBTQIA+ parents so they can thrive and shine.
• Parents of Gender Diverse Children
  Provides peer support to parents and those parenting trans and gender diverse children.
• Pride VIC
  For members of the LGBTQIA+ and gender diverse communities and their allies. Tailored and specialised disability support services Australia wide.
• QLife
  Free anonymous, LGBTI peer support and referral for people wanting to talk about a range of issues including sexuality, identity, gender, bodies, feelings or relationships.
  
• Rainbow Door
  Free specialist LGBTIQA+ helpline providing information, support, and referral to all LGBTIQA+ Victorians, their friends and family.
  
• Transcend Australia
  This community can provide support, information, comfort and great tips for better supporting your trans, gender diverse or non-binary child.
  
• Queerspace
  Provides counselling, case management, individual advocacy and other support services to help you with a range of issues.
  
• Gay Dads Australia
  This website has information and resources for gay men who are fathers or who want to have children.
  
• LGBTIQ+ Health
  Supporting healthy lesbian, gay, bisexual, trans/transgender, intersex, queer and other sexuality, gender, and bodily diverse people and communities throughout Australia and the world, free from stigma and discrimination.

Sports and Recreation

• AAA Play 
  Provides information on accessible sports and recreational activities near where you live.
• Access for all Abilities Program 
  Program that supports inclusive sport and recreation opportunities for people with a disability for over 15 years.
• Kids Voucher Program
  Helps eligible families get their kids involved in organised sport. Eligible children may receive up to $200 to cover the costs for membership and registration fees.
• Accessible playgrounds 
  Information on accessible playground and how to develop an accessible playground from A to Z.

Allied Health Peak Bodies

• Australian Psychological Society
• Speech Pathology Australia
• Occupational Therapy Australia
• Australian Physiotherapist Association