Dariane McLean is a long-standing disability advocate and the mother of a 47-year-old autistic man with an intellectual disability and high support needs. Drawing on her lived experience, she supported her son’s transition from a Supported Independent Living environment into his own home, developing an individualised support model.

As Specialist Advisor at Inclusion Australia, Dariane focuses on family networking and policy development. She leads a national family reference group for families supporting people with intellectual disability and complex needs and contributes to systemic reform through participation in national advisory groups. Her expertise has been sought on issues such as autism, intellectual disability, positive behaviour support, disability health reforms and the NDIA Independent Expert Review model,  and she was invited as a special witness to the Disability Royal Commission.

Previously, Dariane worked with the VALID advocacy team for 16 years and continues to facilitate a peer action group for families supporting people with behaviours of concern. Her passion is championing the elimination of restrictive practices. She is also a registered Counsellor in private practice.