Co-design or consultation? Exploring barriers and enablers to true collaboration in the disability sector

Co-design and co-production are commonly used terms in the social sciences. The concept of involving people with lived experience as equal collaborators in identifying issues that impact on their lives and designing solutions is a powerful one. However, for some people with lived experience of disability, there is a sense that consultation is sometimes mislabelled as co-design.

This panel discussion will explore perceptions of what true co-design is, and examine the enablers and barriers to co-design in the disability sector. Our panel will include Zane McKenzie, Client Partnership Lead and Disability Workstream Lead from Scope Aust. Ltd., Dr Paul Ramcharan, senior researcher in disability inclusion from the University of Melbourne School of Social and Political Sciences and Rusty Benson, a Social Design specialist. The panel discussion will be facilitated by Professor Keith McVilly, Professor of Disability and Inclusion at the University of Melbourne.