Hireup awarded for approach to connecting people with disability

The awards, sponsored by the Federal Department of Social Services, celebrate the work of Australian not-for-profit and profit-for-purpose organisations.

Hireup was the joint winner of the Excellence award alongside Uniting NSW/ACT, and a finalist in the Innovation category.

The organisation’s purpose is to connect people with disability to support workers based on their interests and experiences, fostering a deeper connection between them.

Since starting up in 2015, Hireup has facilitated 60,000 connections and has 86 percent of its clients noting improvement in their lives.

According to Hireup, the judges acknowledged the organisation’s use of contemporary technology and approaches to achieve social impact through improvement in the lives of people with disability.

Hireup’s Social Impact Controller Joe Dreyfus says the award is well received.

“We are thrilled to have won the award, and in such extraordinary company. At Hireup our ultimate goal is to achieve social change, because we believe everyone should live the life they choose, without the isolation of prejudice and systematic exclusion,” he says.

“Prior to the introduction of the NDIS, people with disability had little control over their support needs. Given the individual nature of care, the worker who provides support is key to effective and safe outcomes. Hireup’s platform enables people with disability to find, hire and manage their own support workers, and has seen it become the largest online network of support workers in Australia.”