The National Community Transport Conference will take place this 20-21 August and bring experts from across the country to Sea World on Queensland’s Gold Coast.
Speakers, such as Council on the Ageing Australia’s Chief Executive Officer Patricia Sparrow, will be joined by Rachael Leahcar, a finalist from The Voice Australia who turned four chairs from an esteemed panel of high-profile celebrity judges — shocked to learn that she’s legally blind.
Ms Leahcar was featured in the first season of the hit television series and finished in third place, signing a deal with Universal Music thereafter. Her debut album, ‘Shooting Star,’ was released in July 2012 and rose to fifth place in the ARIA Charts.
The Australian Community Transport Association (ACTA) event focuses on issues that deeply resonate with the aged care sector and disability support field, such as the introduction of the Aged Care Act 2024 in July 2025 and the new Australian Disability Strategy.
ACTA CEO Murray Coates said the recent policy changes now govern the way forward for community transport providers and commuters nationwide.
“As the national peak body for community transport, we are holding this year’s conference to help navigate the sector [through] these changes, as well as offer [an] opportunity for attendees to collaborate and generate new ideas, with the goal of building a better future for community transport,” he said.
This event offers attendees the chance to learn about the latest trends, technologies and best practices transforming the sector.
Australia’s community transport is widely considered an essential source of support, servicing approximately 237,500 seniors and people with health conditions or impairments.
Discussion around community transport concerns providers as much as consumers. An estimated 8,000 volunteers and 2,200 paid staff contribute to delivering users across 95,700,000 kilometres each year in Australia.
Volunteers dedicate over 2 million hours of their time each year to help supply this crucial service.
This year’s theme, ‘Innovating Together — Building Community Transport,’ was intended to inspire and empower attendees, with an outstanding line-up of speakers at the forefront of community transport innovation.
Associate Professor Akshay Vij will unveil results from the National Variable Pricing Study, giving experts and attendees context for the future of aged care in Australia. Similarly, Jane Anderson will deliver a presentation on how providers can take charge in a fee-for-service care landscape.
Professor Michael Pervan, the CEO of the Independent Health and Aged Care Pricing Authority, is set to offer valuable insights about how IHACP will influence transport pricing among many other aspects of aged care policy.
The intersection between aged care, transport and disability has brought together Australia’s trusted authorities on all three matters to share their knowledge about the nation’s most vulnerable participants in dynamic programs going through historic change.
ACTA is the national peak body representing the community transport sector as a not-for-profit organisation. ACTA works to support community transport services and consumers across Australia. Its mission is to provide a unified, national voice for the community transport sector.
Tickets are available through Humanitix and they include admission to the ACTA 2025 Inaugural Community Transport Awards, along with the Gala Dinner event.
If you’re interested in the latest updates from the Department of Health & Aged Care, National Disability Insurance Agency, the University of South Australia and advocacy groups from across the country, visit the ACTA website to learn more.
