Neve was a two-year national initiative led by Women With Disabilities Australia (WWDA) and funded by the Australian Government’s Department of Social Services. This report documents how the Neve website was co-designed with and for women, girls and gender-diverse people with disabilities to improve access to information about safety, relationships, and rights.
What is Neve?
Neve is an accessible website created by and for women and gender-diverse people with disabilities. It’s designed to help users learn about healthy relationships, safety, abuse, and self-advocacy. The site is the first in Australia to launch in Easy Read by default, with an option to switch to plain English. Neve makes it easier for people to access the support and information they need when they need it.
For two years, WWDA worked closely with more than 200 people across Australia, including those with lived experience, their families, carers, and professionals, to ensure the Neve website truly reflects the community’s needs. The WWDA team ran 20 co-design workshops and a national survey, using the feedback to develop over 70 topics in Easy Read, plain English, and six additional languages, including Chinese, Arabic, Vietnamese, and NT Kriol. A “Calm Space” was also built into the website to support users when engaging with sensitive content. During this time, the WWDA Neve Team also updated and expanded its existing Our Site platform to ensure the two websites are connected, accessible, and up to date.
What’s different about Neve:
- The first screen you see is in Easy Read, making it accessible to everyone from the moment you visit the site.
- Built with and by people with disabilities.
- It covers not just violence but topics like confidence, pleasure, money, and online safety.
- Includes resources for professionals and families who support people with disabilities.
Neve is more than a website. It’s a safe, empowering space built on lived experience, community, and care. It reflects what’s possible when people with disabilities lead the design of the tools meant for them.
Read the full report for more.