Our Story

One Community has one focus – to connect. Through our range of specialised Ready-Set-Connect events, we provide a platform to bring together participants, people with disability, support coordinators, parents/carers and teachers to connect with service providers in their local area.

In 2018, our founders Kellie Puxty and Shelley Youman were working together in the NDIS space and quickly realised there was a gap in the system: Participants and NDIS service providers needed a more effective and efficient way to connect with each other. They created the flagship Ready-Set-Connect networking events and One Community was up and running.

These events have now grown with the addition of specialised focus events for Kids; Mental Health; Innovation and Transition from school to life post school. We are so proud to have now have over 600 events under our belt and have facilitated thousands of provider/Participant connections right across local communities in metropolitan and regional Australia.

The idea for the Australian Disability Service Awards came from our One Community members, calling for a chance to celebrate the great work that was happening in this industry. In 2021, we acted and created the Australian Disability Service Awards, eager to bring people from across Australia together at the one event to celebrate.

These Awards are a project of love, not profit, as they share their values with One Community – connection and collaboration. Together we can achieve so much more and maximise the outcomes of the NDIS for people with disability.

Responding to calls from One Community members, we created Success Circle, a series of events to connect CEOs and Senior Managers with an expert panel discussing a range of current issues and burning topics. Our guests love the connection with their industry colleagues and value the insightful conversations that take place.

Helping people live their best lives is what drives us. At One Community, we have a team of passionate people who work alongside focus groups of people with disability and service providers, to ensure that our services meet the needs of the industry. We believe this is best achieved through creating connections and shared learning.

We are very privileged to work in an industry where we can make a difference and contribute to building a diverse and inclusive community.

We hope you can join us in Melbourne for the 2025 Australian Disability Service Awards.