Our people

Bachelor of Commerce, Bachelor of Law and Not-for-profit Governance Fundamentals

Julian is the Deputy General Manager of the Housing Matching Team and is responsible for the operational management and growth of the team’s products and services. Julian is passionate about social enterprises and the role they can play as agents for change. Julian joined the team in 2020 and has more than 12 years’ experience as a commercial lawyer working with corporate, not-for-profit and social enterprises.

Emma Newby is the Project Coordinator – Queensland for the Housing Hub team. Her role ensures that all projects are delivered in line with project plans.

Based in Brisbane South, Emma connects organisations, hospitals, individuals and networks in the region to generate interest and applications for individual properties.

Emma has 25 years’ experience in the health and disability sectors, both here and in the UK with a focus on disability accommodation, support services, case management and training.

Emma was part of the team who first worked with the NDIS rollout in the Barwon region and is a strong advocate for the rights of people with disability.

Carmen Dzurban works alongside people in need of disability housing in NSW and Queensland to ensure their goals of living independently are met and to support them in the process of finding appropriate housing options.

During the closure of 3 institutions in Newcastle in 2020-21, Carmen worked closely with residents and their families and investors to ensure alternative suitable purpose-built housing was available.

Carmen has experience working in the social and disability housing sectors and as a support coordinator.

Bachelor of Journalism, Diploma in Digital Marketing

Natalie Koufos supports the Housing Hub to deliver projects by facilitating team meetings, events and administration. She also helps the team with database management.

Natalie began her career in journalism, before switching to marketing where she coordinated events, marketing activity and projects for an aged care provider in South Australia. She has also worked on fundraising campaigns and strategies.

Master of Communications, Bachelor of Arts (Psychology and Philosophy)

Vince Patton is responsible for communicating, engaging and effectively connecting with a diverse range of audiences, ensuring those audiences’ needs are met.

He has been involved in building and launching the Housing Hub’s social media channels, supporting the rollout of the latest version of the Housing Hub website, and identifying key audience subsets and developing tailored engagement plans.

Before starting at the Summer Foundation in 2017, Vince worked in a communications consulting practice where he managed the strategic and creative aspects of the business. He has also worked in local and state governments, at an international publishing house and in the corporate sector.

Bachelor of Journalism (First Class Hons)

Jamie-Lee Dwyer contributes blog posts to the Housing Hub and provides her lived experience of disability to a range of projects.

Jamie-Lee is working on a blog post that explains her individual process to writing, which has evolved as her abilities have degenerated. Her idea is to share her experience in the hope that it will create and foster a community of people with disability who over time will learn more about SDA.

Jamie-Lee has worked as a copywriter for the Brisbane Airport Corporation and for BioNews, writing weekly blog posts for their Friedreich’s Ataxia website.

Cert III Community Services
Cert III Tourism & Retail Travel Sales
Cert III Event Management

In her work in the Housing Hub Lived Experience Team Shanais Nielsen co-facilitates workshops to help people understand specialist disability accommodation (SDA). She is also involved with outbound engagement and is working on a presentation for a Housing Hub “Demystifying shared support” webinar.

Shanais works 3 days a week as a project administrator in the Curriculum Unit at a TAFE.

Diploma in Welfare

In her role as a lived experience associate Melanie Schlaeger provides her perspective on disability related issues through blog writing and involvement in other Summer Foundation projects.

Melanie has worked in many disability related roles. She has run workshops around life goal setting for people with disability, particularly in the context of NDIS planning goals. She also worked in a program that encourages people with disability to think about work goals and passions in regard to setting up their own business and learning to have a good work ethic and sense of purpose.

Melanie enjoys working in jobs that foster positive change in the people/projects she is working with.

Certificate III in Office Administration

As part of the Housing Hub Lived Experience Team Tom Butler co-facilitates housing workshops for people interested in specialist disability accommodation (SDA).

Tom was attending the Australian Defence Force Academy in the Air Force before becoming a quadriplegic in a diving accident. As well as his volunteer work for local sporting organisations, Tom designed and built his own SDA home. It was this lived experience and expertise that led to his role with the Summer Foundation.

Bachelor of Psychology (Hons) – graduating end of 2021

As a Lived Experience Associate Rebecca Evans uses her lived experience of disability and of being on an SDA housing journey to contribute to various projects, workshops, and events across both the Housing Hub and the Summer Foundation.

She has recently been involved with Housing Hub events in Perth and the successful Building Better Homes campaign for mandatory design standards.

Rebecca is passionate about advocating for individuals with disabilities and on systemic issues. She currently volunteers as the Managing Director and Executive Chair of the Youth Disability Advocacy Network – a leading advocacy organisation and the peak representative body in Western Australia for young people with disabilities.

Cert IV Music, Cert 3 Business, Cert 3 Work Education

As a lived experience facilitator Ryan will be involved at workshops with NDIS providers and professionals as well as people with disabilities and their families to explain the benefits of independent living with the correct supports.

Ryan previously worked as a manager at Headspace for over a year and for almost a year with Anywhere on Wheels as a presenter, social media/website/app development expert and tour reviewer.

Bram has lived experience as a disabled individual going through the Specialist Disability Accommodation property application process.

In their work with the Summer Foundation they will facilitate and co-facilitate both face-to-face workshops and webinars for participants, families and supporters to learn about different housing options under the NDIS.

This is Bram’s first job, but they intend to also take on other projects within the disability education and advocacy sector.

Bachelor of Occupational Science and Therapy

Megan Miles works with teams in Victoria, South Australia and the ACT to assist people to connect with housing in line with their goals and needs.

She assists people with disability with their support needs, as well as helping to navigate the SDA application process. Megan also works with SDA providers to identify suitable tenants for their housing opportunities.

Megan is an occupational therapist and has worked in community settings with a focus on assisting people to remain in their own community in a safe and sustainable way. She has worked in the disability sector for over 14 years, including working as a support worker and a program manager of a large community access program for children and adults.

Bachelor of Applied Science (Occupational Therapy), Masters of Health Management

Kelly Chait is a Reporting Manager in the Housing Hub team at the Summer Foundation.

She provides advice and support regarding young people in or at risk of admission to residential aged care. This involves clinical consultation in relation to housing solutions, supporting projects in the interface between health and the NDIS and providing clinical advice about the NDIS.

Before joining the Summer Foundation, Kelly was employed as an occupational therapist for 7 years, specialising in spinal cord injury rehabilitation, in both New South Wales and Victoria

Bachelor of Business, Graduate Diploma Secondary Education, Cert IV HRM, OHS & Training and Development

Wishna Gunaratnam is an HR Lead, responsible for designing and delivering an employment framework for the Housing Hub team, and the wider Summer Foundation organisation. This will be used to engage and recruit people with lived experiences to work across a variety of projects.

She is also involved in the recruitment of Lived Experience Facilitators.

Wishna has worked in the for-purpose sector for the past 8 years and brings valuable knowledge to the team. She has worked in both accounting and human resources, as well as being a casual relief teacher and working in customer service.

Post Grad. Health and Social Care-Research Methods, Bachelor of Science Midwifery, RN Diploma Health Education (Registered Nurse)

Claire Lovegrove is Project Manager in the Housing Hub team in Western Australia. She is responsible for coordinating, implementing and leading the set-up and operationalisation of housing matching projects in WA.

Claire ensures specialist disability accommodation (SDA) providers’ project timelines are met through the processes of community and stakeholder engagement and applicant journey. Ultimately, she ensures that a project is delivered in line with engagement and project plans.

Claire is an experienced clinical leader with a healthcare career spanning 28 years and has worked nationally and internationally, working in an array of healthcare and disability settings. Claire joined the Summer Foundation in 2020, bringing a creative and solutions-based approach to her work.

Diploma of Community Welfare Work, Bachelor of Business and Arts (in progress), Cert IV in Disability Community Services

Melody Carbarns is the National Housing Matching Lead at the Summer Foundation. Her focus is on supporting project coordinators to connect with people with disability who are seeking specialist disability accommodation (SDA).

Melody works on the establishment and implementation of projects that see people with disability connecting with SDA providers, ultimately finding sustainable housing solutions.

Melody started with the Summer Foundation in 2016 and has more than 19 years’ experience in the disability support sector. Throughout her career she has worked as a support worker, residential aged care worker, service manager, care coordinator and team leader.

Bachelor of Arts

Libby’s role as Housing Options Facilitator is to identify and support 40-60 people eligible for SDA to join our database. The Housing Hub team will then work with these people to identify suitable potential homes for them to choose from.

Libby has extensive experience in the disability sector and is the founder and director of InCharge, an organisation that assists people with disability to take charge of their own lives. Libby has a Bachelor of Arts from Macquarie University and is a graduate of the School for Social Entrepreneurs.

Bachelor of Education, Bachelor of Social Work, Cert IV in Assistive Technology Mentor

As a lived experience facilitator Natasha Street was involved in the Summer Foundation’s Housing Options workshops in Tasmania.

She previously worked as a Local Area Coordinator – Community for Baptcare in Tasmania, as an assistive technology mentor for Assistive Technology Australia and as a primary school teacher.

Bachelor of Social Work, Cert IV in Test & Evaluation

As a lived experience facilitator Liz Ellis has been involved in Summer Foundation Housing Options workshops, the development of the Housing Hub and stakeholder engagement.

Liz has worked for disability service providers in strategy and customer experience roles, has been involved with several disability advocacy committees and sits on a committee of management.

Bachelor of Commerce, Cert III in Performing Arts

Belinda Aitken brings her lived experience as a person with disability to Summer Foundation projects. She co-facilitated our Housing Options workshops in Tasmania which are now being rolled out nationally. She also brings the experience of navigating her own housing journey to her role as the lead of the SDA Tenants Reference Group.

Belinda is passionate about people with a disability having a voice and direct input in their housing journey, which will lead them to having the best support, choice, and flexibility in how they live.

Before joining the Summer Foundation in June 2020 Belinda worked in customer service as a volunteer at the National Sports Museum at the Melbourne Cricket Ground.

Bachelor of Arts

As a Housing Options Facilitator for the Housing Hub, Rhiannon Martin is working on an SDA phone advice line that will support people’s enquiries when finding out what SDA funding they might be eligible for and how they can explore their housing options.

Rhiannon brings extensive experience to the Summer Foundation, having previously worked on personal health budgets for continuing healthcare recipients in the UK. She also worked as a support coordinator before working on Supported Independent Living Vacancy management and overseeing SDA builds for a large service provider.

Bachelor of Physiotherapy

Lydia Dockrill is in the Housing Hub team, specifically working in housing options, where the goal is to raise awareness of specialist disability accommodation (SDA) funding to people with disability, who are eligible.

Her role involves developing a project plan for a series of resources that will assist in raising awareness, building capacity and gathering housing preferences that will support people in acquiring SDA funding.

After completing her degree as a physiotherapist at Otago University in New Zealand, Lydia moved to Christchurch to work at a public hospital where she experienced several different areas of healthcare. After moving to Melbourne in 2017, Lydia worked at the Northern Hospital, helping patients who had respiratory conditions and those who had undergone major surgery.

Bachelor of International Studies, Tech Skills Online Course, Inbound Marketing Certification

Karina Dobra is responsible for coordinating and administrating events for housing options in the Housing Hub team. Her team aims to raise awareness of specialist disability accommodation (SDA) funding to people with disability who are eligible.

She will be working on launching a roadshow of events around the country to raise awareness, and ultimately have more people with disability who are eligible for SDA in their own home.

Before joining the Summer Foundation in 2020, Karina worked in the not-for-profit sector for 4 years, as well as working in administration for 2 years where she developed the skills and experiences needed to launch her own virtual assistant business. As a virtual assistant, she specialised in developing online systems, developing and designing websites, customer service and more, for small business owners.

Bachelor of Biomedical Science, Masters of Public Health, Cert III – Auslan

As Reporting Coordinator with the Housing Hub team, Teigen Bywater writes housing applicants’ summary reports for specialist disability accommodation (SDA) providers. She also assists with the reporting aspect of an applicant’s SDA journey, including mentoring their support coordinator and allied health professionals to write reports that address the SDA legislation.

Teigen moved into the disability sector after finishing her Masters degree and worked as a support facilitator at one of Summer Housing’s pilot projects in Abbotsford.

She lived in Mongolia for a year from mid 2016 and worked as a program officer for the Mongolian National Federation of the Blind.

Before joining the Summer Foundation in 2020, Teigen was involved in the rollout of the NDIS as a Senior Local Area Coordinator in inner east Melbourne.