About Us
Our Team
We are a team of qualified, experienced and dedicated professionals who have decades of experience in the support of people with disabilities and their communities. We formed Trellis around our shared values and wanting to see good outcomes for people and those around them. The team brings together the expertise and skills of different professionals to assess, plan and manage care jointly. We believe a multidisciplinary approach is a good way for organising and coordinating PBS services to meet the needs of people with complex needs.
Aoife
McCann
- Psychologist
- Behaviour Support Practitioner
- Executive Director
Aoife has over 15 years’ experience in the support of people with disabilities and their families. She is passionate about the human rights aspect of supporting those without a voice to have it heard. Aoife moved to Australia in 2010 having worked as a teacher and then an educational psychologist. She worked with Scope Australia and the University of Melbourne to deliver training in PBS to over 300 behaviour support practitioners. She was also part of a team who worked with Swinburne University to develop virtual reality training in PBS for support workers. Born in Ireland, she is passionate in her support of the Irish rugby union team. She is a mother to three young children and enjoys exploring Victoria and beyond in her family’s camper trailer. She is an avid reader and lover of music.
Dr Nick
Hagiliassis
- Consultant Psychologist
- Behaviour Support Practitioner
- Executive Director
Nick is a psychologist with more than 25 years’ experience supporting people with disabilities, their families, and their communities in which they live. Respecting the person and their lived experience is what he sees as important. Nick is a practitioner and researcher with a special interest in intellectual disability mental health. He is a writer of several research papers, chapters, and books, contributes to professional networks, and presents at national and international conferences. He is passionate about supporting the practice of other practitioners through mentoring and supervision and the organisational and workforce development of PBS. Nick loves cooking, all things music, and a stroll through his hometown city of Melbourne.
Mark
Di Marco
- Psychologist
- Behaviour Support Practitioner
- Executive Director
Mark works closely with individuals to bring the PBS ingredients of evidence, values, and teamwork to support someone with behaviours of concern. He believes the voice of every individual needs to be heard and listened to and that voice should guide all supports. Mark has over twenty years’ experience working with people with intellectual disabilities. Mark is a registered psychologist who has co-authored peer reviewed journal papers, practice guidelines and resources, and presented at conferences nationally and internationally in the areas of mental health and disability. On some weekends Mark is also known to play guitar in some of Melbourne’s local bands.
Andrea
Jackson
- Occupational Therapist
- Behaviour Support Practitioner
- Executive Director
Andrea has over 20 years’ experience working with people with disabilities and their teams. She moved to Australia in 2003 having previously practiced in the UK providing support to people with multiple disabilities and complex needs. Andrea is committed to bringing people together to effect real change and improvement in the quality of life for people with disabilities. Her background in Occupational Therapy brings to the team specialist skills in sensory processing, engagement in meaningful activities and environmental change. Recently, Andrea worked with Scope Australia and the University of Melbourne to deliver positive behaviour support training to over 300 practitioners. Home life is busy with two young adults to keep up with. She enjoys exploring nature, walking her dog and gardening.
Susan
Fowler
- Occupational Therapist
- Behaviour Support Practitioner
- Executive Director
Susan is an Occupational Therapist and Behaviour Support Practitioner. She has an interest in sensory processing and how people can be involved in their own sensory assessments. Susan works with the individual and their wider teams to help them understand the importance of connection and the sense of safety. She applies the principles of Polyvagal Theory and interpersonal neurobiology within the Positive Behaviour Support framework. Susan trained in Oxford. She is a consultant with BILD UK and accredited to run the BILD Coaches program to develop practice leaders for organisational PBS. Susan lives in the Grampians and enjoys reading, being in nature and yoga. These sustain her and give her the energy to continue exploring new ideas and perspectives to help everyone live the life they choose.
Alex
Kalff
- Speech Pathologist
- Behaviour Support Practitioner
- Executive Director
Alex has over 20 years’ experience supporting organisations, disability professionals and people with disability to grow and thrive. With a background in Speech Pathology, she is passionate about all people being heard, understood, and respected. Her approach embodies her deep commitment to empathy, acknowledging people’s inherent dignity and strengths and collaboratively finding creative ways to improve people’s lives. Alex has experience in research, teaching, quality and risk management and governance. She is a consultant for the British Institute of Learning Disabilities (BILD) PBS Coaches Program and was instrumental in designing and delivering one of the first courses for Behaviour Support Practitioners with the University of Melbourne. Her life is enriched by being in nature, teaching mindfulness and meditation, spending time with dogs and making people birthday cakes.
Katie
Newman
- Psychologist
- Behaviour Support Practitioner
Katie is a Psychologist and Behaviour Support Practitioner. She is passionate about using collaborative approaches to support people with a disability, their families and the people who support them. She has a special interest in early childhood development, neurodiversity affirming approaches and mental health. Katie is currently undertaking her PhD, with her research examining parental discipline and the impact of self-control and habits in effective behaviour change in families. Katie is a lover of all things food and cooking, and enjoys spending her weekends with her young family and her dog.
Oriele (Orie)
Diaz
- Psychologist
- Behaviour Support Practitioner
Oriele is a bilingual psychologist (English/Spanish) with a combined ten years of experience in the disability, family services and quality services improvement in Australia. She has worked with people from all ages and various CALD backgrounds in regional and metropolitan Victoria. She has extensive experience conducting comprehensive assessment, developing, and implementing person-centred behaviour support to children and adults with physical and psychosocial disabilities, and behaviours of concern. Oriele has a special interest in trauma-informed practice and is an avid advocate for those who are most vulnerable. She encourages for their voices to be heard through working collaboratively with the person and others, to identify what’s most important to the person and their subjective quality of life. Oriele works in a holistic and systemic manner. Personally, Oriele loves exploring new restaurants and towns. She loves dancing and outdoor activities, from hiking to water sports. For Orie, the newer and more daring the activity or experience, the better!
Isabel
Lothian
- Provisional Psychologist
- Behaviour Support Practitioner
Isabel is a Provisional Psychologist and Behaviour Support Practitioner. She is passionate about advocating for vulnerable and disadvantaged individuals and has a special interest in working with those who are neurodiverse, identify with a disability, and with older adults. Isabel has a warm, genuine, and non-judgemental approach, and believes in working collaboratively with individuals, their families, and wider support networks to effect meaningful change. She appreciates a practical and creative evidence-based approach, understanding the importance of useful and hands-on strategies in helping clients in everyday life. Outside of work, Isabel loves all things food, talking history, and travelling the world at every opportunity.
Fatima
Salman
- Psychologist
- Behaviour Support Practitioner
Fatima is a multilingual Psychologist and Behaviour Support Practitioner with over eight years of experience in therapeutic support. She is eager to make a difference in the lives of others and has a special interest in working with culturally and linguistically diverse people. Fatima provides positive behaviour supports focussed on improving the quality life of participants. She also provides focussed psychological supports for which she uses various therapeutic interventions (e.g., Cognitive Behavioural Therapy, Dialectical Behaviour Therapy, Solution-Focused therapy) to address issues surrounding trauma, anxiety, depression, grief, and other complex presentations. She extends caring, genuine support to the people she supports through strong therapeutic alliances. She brings positive energy to the workplace, enjoys being social, and loves tending to her indoor plants, which she carefully prunes and nurtures to bring joy to her and others.
Chloe
Shale
- Psychologist
- Behaviour Support Practitioner
Chloe is a Psychologist and Behaviour Support Practitioner. Chloe completed her post-graduate studies in England before moving to Australia in 2015. She is passionate about advocating for the rights and needs of individuals facing vulnerability and has a special interest in supporting those in the neurodiverse community. Chloe has a warm, non-judgemental nature and takes pleasure in getting to know her clients, their families and those who support them. Outside of work, Chloe enjoys yoga, reading and exploring Victoria’s beaches.
Natasha
Drozdoff
- Psychologist
- Behaviour Support Practitioner
Natasha is a Psychologist and Behaviour Support Practitioner, who has supported people with disabilities and their families for over 14 years. She has worked in both NSW and Victoria in providing specialised services to children and adults with psychosocial disabilities and behaviours that challenge. She is a passionate about supporting others to identify ways in which the quality of a person’s life can be strengthened and working together to achieve this. She is also passionate about looking at creative ways to support people to engage in the learning process - such as through working on a project with Scope Australia in partnership with Swinbourne University, which involved the development of virtual reality training in PBS for support workers. When she is not working, Natasha enjoys discovering new cuisines and recipes, and travelling to various destinations to explore all the world has to offer. Natasha is also an avid dog enthusiast and Melbourne advocate.
Giovanni
Giordano
- Behaviour Support Practitioner
Giovanni is a Behaviour Support Practitioner. He has thirty years’ experience working with people with disability in Australia, Italy, Central and South America. Giovanni speaks English, Italian and Spanish, he is also a Key Word Sign presenter, and he is genuinely interested in all forms of communication. Giovanni is passionate and experienced in giving a voice to and listening to everyone. He believes that everyone has something valuable to offer, and that everyone deserves to live the life they want. He has a strong ethical, cooperative approach to his work, and he likes to establish trustworthy, meaningful relationships with individuals, families, and their wider support networks. Giovanni lives in the Macedon Ranges, he likes growing food, cooking, baking sourdough bread and pizza, reading, listening to music (Blues!) and being an active and positive contributor to his community.
Kirsten
Everett
- Occupational Therapist
- Behaviour Support Practitioner
Kirsten has over nine years’ experience supporting people with disabilities to achieve their goals. She uses person-centred and strengths-based approaches, with the aim of enhancing quality of life. Kirsten’s background in occupational therapy brings the importance of meaningful activities, capable environments, and capacity building to her behaviour support practice. She values the relationships built with the person and their support networks to enable collaborative approaches to change. Kirsten loves entertaining friends and family at home, taking nature walks with her son, experimenting with décor and caring for her budgies.
Dr Kirsty
Fawns
- Psychologist
- Behaviour Support Practitioner
Kirsty is a Psychologist and Behaviour Support Practitioner. She loves to work systemically as part of a multi-disciplinary team to support people to live their best lives. She has worked in the UK in the National Health Service as a Clinical Psychologist and Child Psychologist. She has extensive experience conducting comprehensive assessments, formulations and delivering interventions to children, young people and their families in child and adolescent mental health services. Kirsty loves exploring new places, cake, coffee, reading and being outdoors, as well as yoga and swimming.
Caoimhe
O'Sullivan
- Behaviour Support Practitioner
Caoimhe is a Behaviour Support Practitioner with a commitment to disability advocacy and a holistic outlook to behaviour support. With a background in health psychology, she considers various factors affecting well-being, ensuring interventions not only address behaviours but also enhance overall health. Caoimhe's passion for health promotion complements her advocacy for people with disabilities, empowering people to thrive and reduce the need for intense behaviour support. She values collaboration, developing personalised approaches with individuals, families, and support networks. Outside work, she enjoys nature through hiking and water sports, reflecting her holistic approach to behaviour support, which integrates various factors to foster positive change and well-being.
Erin
Bullock
- Behaviour Support Practitioner
Erin is a Behaviour Support Practitioner dedicated to upholding professional values at the core of her work. With a background in disability support, Erin is dedicated to ensuring people lead fulfilling lives and exercise autonomy in decision-making. She prioritises respect, empowerment, and equality, ensuring every person’s voice is heard and valued. Having graduated with honours in psychology in 2023, Erin has a profound interest and commitment to mental health advocacy. Erin's passion is driven by a desire to facilitate positive change. Beyond her professional endeavours, Erin enjoys exploring new running trails while immersing herself in the latest music trends during weekends.
Why Choose Us
Trellis is an independent provider of PBS and related services. Our vision is “bringing out the best in people” – the person at the centre, and the people around them. Trellis was set up around its values – our values have a strong meaning to us and inspire the work we share.
As a Specialist Behaviour Support Providers, Trellis is registered with the NDIS Commission for specialist behaviour support. Our behaviour support practitioners need to be considered suitable by the NDIS. For information on what’s required of our practitioners, see the NDIS’s capability framework, see Behaviour Support Introduction Booklet (ndiscommission.gov.au)
The Participant Handbook provides participants and their support people with important information on their rights and responsibilities. It gives you the information you need about using our services such as choice and control, privacy and confidentiality, and making a complaint and giving feedback. The Participants Handbook can be downloaded here.
Integrity
We will always try to do the right thing.
Compassion
We will always try to show feeling and understanding and listen to what people need.
Capability
We will always try to bring out the best in the social, physical, and organisational supports people receive.
Creativity
We will always look for new, better, and preferred ways to deliver the services people want.
Leadership
We will always try to inspire others and set strategic direction for PBS learning, practices and culture.
Feedback and Complaints
Trellis welcomes feedback about our services and takes complaints seriously. You can find plain language information about providing feedback or making a complaint here.
Our Feedback and Complaints Form can be found here.
If you need support to provide feedback or make a complaint, information about how to access independent advocacy can be found at https://askizzy.org.au/disability-advocacy-finder.
You can also complain directly to the NDIS Commission. Information about how to contact the Commission can be found here.
We're Here To Help!
Office
Suite 305, 63 Stead Street, South Melbourne, VIC, 3205
Hours
By Appointment
Call Us
(03) 9059 8032
Email Us
Trellis Australia acknowledges and pays respect to the past, present and future Traditional Custodians and Elders of this nation and the continuation of cultural, spiritual and educational practices of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples.
We celebrate the diverse community different individuals cultivate, inclusive of people with disability, people from CALD backgrounds, and the LGBTQI+ community.
ABN 80 296 562 612 | ACN 645 956 752
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