Independently Owned, Locally Grown, Community Loved
Mackay families will gather at Bluewater Quay this Saturday, September 26, for a rally highlighting the experiences of families caring for children with complex disabilities and their concerns surrounding NDIS reform. Photo credit: Hannah McNamara
By Hannah McNamara
Mackay families caring for children with complex disabilities will come together at Bluewater Quay this Saturday, September 26, calling for their voices to be heard amid upcoming NDIS reforms. Local mothers Lisa and Haylee are encouraging parents, carers, families and supporters to stand alongside them as they raise awareness of the challenges faced by people with significant support needs. While supporting efforts to address fraud and misuse of the scheme, the mothers want reforms to recognise the individual circumstances and ongoing needs of families requiring genuine support. The rally is a call for understanding, fairness and disability rights across the Mackay community.
Two passionate local mothers are on a mission to help vulnerable families feel heard as they, along with others, prepare to take a stand for disability rights at Bluewater Quay in Mackay on Saturday 26th September.
Lisa and Haylee both care for children with significant and complex disabilities, with their families requiring various levels of medical, therapeutic, behavioural and daily support.
On top of this, both women work in the disability support sector, giving them personal and professional experience with complex disabilities.
Their families, along with many others in the region, rely on various forms of support, including NDIS-funded assistance, to manage daily care, work and safety.
In an exclusive interview with Mackay Life, Lisa and Haylee offered insight into what families like theirs face on a daily basis, including the physical, emotional and financial pressures that can come with caring for children with complex needs.
“We don’t have much of a life – we go to work, come home, and provide round the clock care to our kids. We love our children, but most people don’t see the real struggles we deal with daily.”
For Haylee, behavioural incidents involving her non-verbal 14-year-old son Rhyder, who has autism, intellectual impairment and outbursts of anger and aggression, have resulted in serious physical injuries and ongoing fear for her own safety.
She is concerned about how changes to the NDIS could affect the level of support available to families with high and complex needs.
The Australian Government is introducing a range of NDIS reforms, including changes to participant budgets, planning and how reasonable and necessary supports are assessed.
From the 1st October 2026, some participant budgets for social, civic and community participation and capacity-building daily activities will be reset when plans are reassessed or renewed, while critical support budgets will not change. From 1st February 2027, tighter criteria around reasonable and necessary supports will progressively apply, with new framework planning beginning from April 2027.
Larger changes to NDIS access are scheduled from the 1st January 2028, including a new standardised assessment of functional capacity and changes affecting children aged eight and under with developmental delay and/or autism who have low to moderate support needs, who will instead be supported through the new Thriving Kids program. According to the Australian Government, children with permanent and significant disability, including children with high support needs, will continue to be eligible for the NDIS.
Haylee said Rhyder requires 24/7 support and his professional team has recommended two-to-one support, while she currently receives significantly less assistance.
“First of all, I’d like to say well done for looking at the people that shouldn’t be on NDIS, because there’s a lot of them – that’s a major step forward – but how about we start looking at kids like Rhyder, who needs a good package, but isn’t getting it?” Haylee said.
Meanwhile, Lisa is a single 51-year-old mother of five, caring for a 12-year-old son with complex medical and behavioural needs, including a history of craniosynostosis that required 29 skull operations at age two and an eight-month hospital stay.
Her 19-year-old son is also on the NDIS with autism and difficulties with emotional regulation, while she says her other children are at risk of being mentally affected by their siblings.
Lisa says the needs of her children affect the whole family, all while managing her own health issues, relying on support workers in the mornings and afternoons to help care for her children so she can continue working and keep her family financially afloat.
She is concerned about future funding and support arrangements, particularly as her children’s needs change.
Both women noted that they are not opposed to reforming the NDIS and support efforts to address fraud, providers doing the wrong thing and people they believe should not be receiving funding. Their main concern is that families with genuinely complex needs could be overlooked if changes do not adequately account for individual circumstances, early intervention and the ongoing support required by parents and carers.
Lisa said the rally, due to take place this Saturday at Bluewater Quay, was about standing in support of all families who face similar circumstances.
“We’re strong advocates, but most of all, we’re really just local mothers who believe in justice – I believe in fairness, and I believe we need to be heard,” Lisa said.
“We’re doing this for our kids and for other families that go through the exact same struggles.”
“It’s not just for us. We’re doing it for them as well.”
“Walk beside us, stand with families, stand for disability rights”
Both women are encouraging families, carers, parents and supporters to attend and raise awareness of the potential impacts of NDIS reforms on people with disability and their families.
Publishers Indemnity. Any individual or entity that places advertising, supplies copy material, or submits editorial content to Core Life Publishing agrees and undertakes to ensure that all such material:- Does not infringe upon any copyright, trademark, or other intellectual property rights;- Is free from any content that could be considered defamatory, libelous, or slanderous;- Does not infringe upon any rights related to privacy or breach of confidence;- Contains no obscene, indecent, or otherwise unlawful material;- Complies fully with the Trade Practices Act and all other applicable laws, regulations, or statutes.Furthermore, by submitting or placing such material, these individuals or entities agree to indemnify and hold harmless the publisher, Core Publishing and Events Pty Ltd, and/or its agents from and against any and all investigations, claims, demands, liabilities, damages, costs, or judgments arising out of or in connection with the material provided. All material is believed to be accurate at the time of printing and remains the copyright of Core Publishing and Events Pty Ltd.
© 2026 Mackay and Whitsunday Life Pty Ltd.
