22-23 May, hybrid event
Frequently asked questions:
What is the National Youth Disability Summit?
The National Youth Disability Summit (the Summit) is a two-day gathering for young people with disability. It is run by Children and Young People with Disability Australia (CYDA).
The Summit is designed for and by young people with disability. It’s an opportunity to connect with each other and talk about identity, community, empowerment and creating change.
There will be guest speakers, social activities, space for creativity, and opportunities to learn about, and develop, your advocacy skills.
What will we talk about at the Summit?
CYDA’s Youth Council, made up of young people with disability, have chosen three themes for the Summit:
Community
How to find and build a community, get support, and make sure no one is left behind.
Identity and empowerment
Self-advocacy, setting boundaries, telling your story, overcoming internalised ableism and different relationships with disability pride.
Creating change
Grassroots and systemic advocacy, challenging ableism, and how to make change in a way that works for you.
When is the Summit?
13 May, 2024 – Online pre-Summit Event!
Everyone taking part in the Summit will be invited to an online pre-Summit event. The event will run from 6pm to 7:30pm Melbourne time.
At this event, we will talk about what we will do at the Summit, discuss the themes, and get to know the team organising the Summit! You do not have to come to the pre-Summit event to take part in the Summit, but we would love for you to be there. 😊
22-23 May, 2024 – The main event!
Summit activities for all participants will take place from 10am to 6pm Melbourne time, both online and in person.
Where is the Summit?
The Summit is a hybrid event, which means you can take part in person, or you can take part online via Zoom.
The in-person event will be held in Melbourne at the Batman’s Hill Hotel on Collins Street.
Who can go to the Summit?
If you are a young person with disability between the ages of 12 and 30, you can apply to come to the Summit online.
If you are a young person with disability between the ages of 16 and 25, you can apply to come to the Summit online or in person.
Who is considered a "person with disability"?
You do not need a diagnosis to attend the Summit, and people with all kinds of disability are welcome. This includes:
- neurodivergence
- mental illness
- intellectual disability
- chronic illness
- sensory disability
- physical disability
- any other kind of disability
How much does it cost to go to the Summit?
Nothing at all! The Summit is a free event.
I want to come to the Summit. How do I sign up?
Expressions of interest for the 2024 Summit have now closed.
I have to travel a long way to get to Melbourne. Is transport covered?
We want young people with disability from all over Australia to be able to come to the Summit, so we are offering a flight subsidy to support people who need to travel interstate to get to Melbourne.
The subsidy amount will depend on your needs and how far you need to travel.
Note: If you travel to Melbourne for the Summit, you will need to arrange your own accommodation.
I’ve submitted my EOI, but I don’t know what to do next …
We will contact you by Monday 29 April to let you know if your EOI was successful or not. Make sure you check the email you provided in your EOI.
If you have told us you would like to come to the Summit in person, but all the in-person places are taken, we might offer you an online place at the Summit instead.
If your EOI is successful, we will send you a participant information pack with more details in the lead up to the Summit, and call you if we need to confirm details about flights, access, or anything else you need.
I am a parent / caregiver / support worker. Can I come to the Summit?
Yes. Support people, including parents, caregivers, support workers, or a friend, can play a very important role in supporting young people to come to the Summit.
We ask support people to be mindful that, as a support person, your role is to enable a young person with disability to attend and participate in the Summit, not to participate on your own behalf.
Support people do not need to fill out their own EOI to attend the Summit in person. The young person you are attending the Summit with does need to let us know in their EOI that you are coming with them though, so we can make sure we have space for everyone.
If you support a young person online, they will still need to tell us your name when they fill in the EOI.
Please note: Support people can attend the Summit for free, but the flight subsidy is only available for participants. Support people are not eligible to apply for the flight subsidy.
Do I have to attend all the sessions?
No.
We’d love for you to attend as many sessions as you can, of course. We want everyone to get the most from their time at the Summit!
However, we know that being involved and active all day can be tiring, and the Summit is a fatigue-friendly event. We will have lots of official breaks and no sessions longer than 1 hour.
Each session will also be identified as “low”, “moderate” or “high” interaction in the program, to help you plan your time at the Summit based on your own energy envelope and sensory needs.
We know that sometimes you will need to take your own breaks though, and we totally encourage you to look after yourself however you need!
For those who need to be reclined while taking a break, we will have beanbags available in the sensory room.
Will the sessions be recorded, and can I watch them later?
All online sessions of the Summit will be recorded for child safety and wellbeing reasons and stored by CYDA. There will also be videographer and a photographer present at the in-person event.
Video and audio recordings, photographs and transcripts may be published in CYDA’s promotional material, or quoted in our advocacy work, if participants have given us permission to do so. You can let us know if you are comfortable with your image or words being shared when you fill out your EOI.
Video recordings of our Summit speakers may be published later with their permission.
How will we make the Summit accessible?
Accessibility is important to us at CYDA! We mean it! We want young people with all kinds of disability and access needs to be able to come to the Summit.
Information about accessibility at the Summit can be found here.
If you would like to talk to us about your access needs, or you have an access need that isn’t addressed here, you can email us at [email protected] or call us on (03) 9417 1025.
Is there a COVID-safe plan for the Summit?
Yes. COVID-19 is still present in the community, so we will have some basic measures in place to help everyone stay safe.
We ask that everyone attending the Summit in person please do a Rapid Antigen Tests (RAT) for COVID-19 the day before you are set to travel to the Summit.
If the test is positive, we ask that you stay home. If you would still like to attend the Summit online, we will send you a Zoom link so you can take part.
We will also have Rapid Antigen Tests (RATs) on-site for anyone who develops symptoms after arriving at the Summit.
We encourage people to wear masks, and we will have N95 masks available if you want to use them. You do not have to wear a mask if you do not want to. We know that masks are not accessible for everyone.
We will also have unscented hand sanitiser available at the door and at each table.
We will be using air purifiers in the main area and in the sensory room.
We will have COVID safety officers at the summit in person. The COVID safety officers will make sure there are unscented sanitiser masks and RATs at each table and that the air purifiers are switched on each day.
Lunch will be served on individual plates to reduce potential for COVID transmission. You will get one item for lunch and one as a snack. You are welcome to bring your own food and eat outside if you like.
There are no windows in the main area or sensory room.
If anyone finds out they have COVID at the Summit, or within a week of attending the Summit in person, we ask that you let us know as soon as possible. You can email us at [email protected] or call us on (03) 9417 1025.
We will keep your details private, but we do want to alert people if they might have been exposed so they can manage their own risks during and after the Summit.
How is the Summit funded?
The Summit is funded through the Australian Government Department of Social Services’ (DSS) Information Linkages and Capacity Building (ILC) program.
Who do I contact if I have questions or problems?
Please email us at [email protected] or call us on (03) 9417 1025.
Closer to the Summit, we will have a dedicated phone line you can use for support. More information about this will be available in the participant pack for successful participants.
The number will also be shared during the Summit sessions.
