Ralf, Zak and Danni
Content Warning: These stories are about violence, abuse, neglect and exploitation and may include references to suicide or self-harming behaviours. They may contain graphic descriptions and strong language and may be distressing. Some narratives may be about First Nations people who have passed away. If you need support, please see Contact & support.
Ralf is autistic and has intellectual disability. He is in his 30s and needs help showering, getting dressed and crossing the road. Danni and Zak are his parents.
‘He can't prepare a meal for himself other than every morning he has [cereal] for breakfast,’ Zak told the Royal Commission. ‘He can put milk on [cereal] and put them in the microwave. He does that every day.’
‘We considered bringing him along today, but he’s actually working,’ said Danni. ‘So we’re speaking on his behalf as his adoring parents.’
Ralf works for an organisation that pays him an award wage for sorting [documents] several days a week.
‘He taught himself to read,’ said Danni. ‘But his comprehension level is pretty low. He only needed to be able to read [a title] … he didn’t need to be able to analyse anything.’
Zak said Ralf’s employer also pays someone to work with him and support him.
‘With all the complications going on in [Ralf’s] life, his employment has been, after all those years, a really stable and positive thing.’
After several years, Ralf saved enough to get a loan that helped him buy a share in a flat, where he lives independently. Ralf pays for most of his own housing needs, which Danni said costs the NDIS ‘a whole lot less’ than supported independent living [SIL] accommodation.
Zak and Danni say the arrangement gives Ralf more control over his life.
‘We’re both now in our mid to late 60s. We’re looking to the future for [Ralf] about trying to get him set up so that he can be somewhat independent from us.’
The NDIS funds Ralf’s support workers, who teach him how to care for himself.
One day, Ralf’s NDIS plan manager called to say his funding had run out.
‘Like, nobody can come and see [Ralf] at breakfast time tomorrow … because there’s no funding,’ said Zak. ‘All of a sudden the supports that [Ralf] needed just to be able to live and function and work [were] being stripped out from us.’
When they asked why, the NDIS told Zak and Danni they cut Ralf’s funding because they ‘hadn’t provided any evidence about [his] needs’.
Although Zak and Danni are Ralf’s NDIS registered nominees, someone had reviewed his support plan and the NDIS cut his budget without telling them.
Zak and Danni paid Ralf’s support services until the NDIS restored ‘a little bit of his funding’.
‘But there was nothing there for [Ralf] to really develop his own living skills or to enrich his life in any way. It was just all survival sort of level stuff.’
Zak said they’re still trying to reinstate Ralf’s full funding.
‘We are trying to establish some sort of secure future and pathway for [Ralf] which at the moment, you know, it’s a bit opaque as to what that is.’
Disclaimer: This is the story of a person who shared their personal experience with the Royal Commission into Violence, Abuse, Neglect and Exploitation of People with Disability through a submission or private session. The names in this story are pseudonyms. The person who shared this experience was not a witness and their account is not evidence. They did not take an oath or affirmation before providing the story. Nothing in this story constitutes a finding of the Royal Commission. Any views expressed are those of the person who shared their experience, not of the Royal Commission.