The Social Deck team cooking up a storm at Spirit House Cooking School in Yandina earlier in the year

Latest news from TSD

What a year it has been for the team at The Social Deck. We’ve welcomed new faces and spoken to hundreds of people on topics affecting Australians all across the country.

This year we’ve had a focus on growing our research capability as well as continuing our reach into communities with projects and programs that create positive outcomes. 

As we move into the festive season, we’re celebrating important milestones and issues, while also taking the time to reflect on the impact of our work over the past year. 

What we've been working on

First Nations Aged Care Communications and Engagement Strategy

1 November 2025 marked the commencement of the new Aged Care Act—an important national milestone.

Over the past two years, we’ve proudly supported the Aged Care Quality and Safety Commission to deliver a communication, engagement and education strategy to help First Nations aged care providers, workers and communities prepare for upcoming changes in aged care.

At the community level, this has included yarning with older people and families about what good aged care looks like for them. From Cherbourg in Queensland to Nhulunbuy in NT, we saw what communities are creating with their aged care providers to support First Nations people.

It has been a privilege to work alongside the Commission and First Nations stakeholders to co-design the strategy and the resources at every stage of the project.

You can check out the resources including new videos at the Commission’s First Nations Resource Hub.

ALGA Guide

Over the past few months we’ve been working with the Australian Local Government Association (ALGA) to update their Disability Inclusion Planning - A Guide for Local Governments.  

Since the last Guide was released in 2016, there have been key changes in the disability landscape, making this update timely and important. This guide will provide councils with clear information and practical tools to help them update, develop and implement inclusive policies and practices within their communities. 

Our work has included a comprehensive desktop review, stakeholder engagement and collaboration with ALGA’s Community of Practice. Stay tuned for updates as the guide Is developed over the coming months. You can find out more on the ALGA website. 

Outdoor workers toolkit - Cancer Council NSW 

An illustration designed for an animation, by our Creative Manager Kirstin

We're pleased to be working with Cancer Council NSW to develop a new toolkit to support outdoor workers to stay sun safe. Through a desktop review and testing, we’re creating a toolkit using behaviour change levers to motivate organisational leaders and managers, toolkit users, and outdoor workers to take sun-safety action at work. This includes demonstrating clear organisational benefits, outlining the risks, making protective actions easy and routine, and using trusted messengers and tailored prompts that resonate with each audience's daily realities.  

Designing a new hub for Metastatic Breast Cancer  

We’re in the process of working with Metastatic Breast Cancer Action Australia (MBCAA) to create a new Information and Resource Hub.  

This is something very close to our hearts and we’re very proud to be able to work in partnership with the lived-experience led MBCAA team to bring together an evidence-based hub of resources for Australians living with metastatic breast cancer. 

After completing a co-design process with people with lived experience, we’re now in the development stage, and aiming to launch the Hub with MBCAA in the first half of 2026. 

What we've learnt

B Corp Assembly 2025

Two of our team members — Senior Research and Behaviour Change Consultant Alice Browne, and Practice Manager Patrick Wuertz and  — recently spent three days at the B Corp Assembly 2025 in the Hunter Valley, NSW. As a long-standing B Corp (certified since 2015), it felt like a chance to reconnect with a community that has shaped our thinking for a decade. 

A panel of speakers at this year's B Corp Assembly

The Assembly brought together B Corps from across Australia and Aotearoa to talk about what it really means to use business as a force for good. But it wasn’t your usual conference. Sharing glamping tents with strangers-turned-friends meant the best conversations happened around campfires, over morning walks, and attempts to unzip tents in the dark. Being outdoors made everything feel more relaxed, honest and human. 

Across the sessions and conversations, a few things stood out for Patrick and Alice: 

• Progress over perfection really matters. Instead of picking apart the “imperfect” parts of running a business, there was a genuine appreciation for the steps people are taking in the right direction. No one gets it perfect, and that’s not the point. 

• Community is what keeps people moving. Being surrounded by like-minded people — and building that same culture within your own team — makes it easier to stay motivated, reflective and open to change. 

• Purpose doesn’t replace quality. A good mission is important, but it can’t make up for a product or service that doesn’t stack up. Impact only works when the basics are strong and value for money is real. 

A standout session came from Ruby Rogers from the Future Council, whose energy and optimism cut through the heaviness that often hangs over sustainability and impact discussions.  

Our People

Jane is The Social Deck’s Senior Consultant and Advisor on disability and accessibility. Jane has direct lived experience of deafblindness and in her role at TSD specialises in facilitation and reporting.  

Our Senior Consultant and Advisor on disability and accessibility,  Jane Britt

Jane has nearly a decade of experience across the disability sector in NDIS, disability policy, governance and advisory roles, and is passionate about disability rights and inclusive systems, translating complex policy into clear, accessible and practical communication.  

Just this year at TSD, Jane has worked across major national projects including the Disability Discrimination Act Review, Disability Standards for Education Review, Disability Aviation Standards, and the ALGA Disability Inclusion Planning Guide — all areas she is deeply connected to through both her policy expertise and direct lived experience.  

She joined The Social Deck in mid-2024 after holding senior roles with People with Disability Australia and Blind Citizens Australia, and works remotely from Yuggera Country, travelling nationally for face-to-face facilitation and engagements.  

Outside her professional role, Jane is a Graduate of the Australian Institute of Company Directors (GAICD) and serves on the boards of Social Futures and Holy Cross Services. Her expertise in disability policy and advocacy is frequently sought across national and state broadcast media. Jane also serves on the Queensland Government’s Expert Disability Housing Advisory Panel. 

When not at work, Jane is a classically trained concert pianist and choir singer, loves horse riding, and enjoys time with her golden retriever, Pippa.

Jane and her golden retriever - Pippa, going for a walk

What's on the horizon

As we look ahead to 2026, we’re excited by the new opportunities emerging for our team and our work. Recent federal and state procurement changes are creating stronger pathways for SMEs like ours to work with government, and we’re keen to see how this shapes what comes next for us. This year, we’ve also expanded our social research capability, opening up new ways to strengthen our communication and change work. 

Our team includes many sport-passionate people, so it’s no surprise that we — like many other Queensland-based organisations — are looking towards Brisbane 2032 and the opportunities it may bring in the years ahead. 

We want to thank you for your continuing support and being part of our journey to drive meaningful change in communities across Australia. With Christmas fast approaching, we hope this time brings opportunities to slow down, reconnect, and reflect on what a year it’s been. We wish you all a safe and wonderful festive season, and every success as we head into 2026.  

 (Left to right) Kirstin, Casey and Lilly enjoying the TSD Christmas party

The Social Deck is a B-Corp certified agency specialising in research, communication, social marketing and engagement.

This artwork was designed and produced by Gubbi Gubbi and Githabul artist, Shauna Hill for The Social Deck.  

The Social Deck acknowledges the traditional custodians of Country throughout Australia and recognises their continuing connection to land, waters and community. Our staff live and work on the lands of many First Nations peoples, including the Gubbi Gubbi or Kabi Kabi people, the Turrbal and Yuggera people, the Bundjalung people, the Ngarigo and Ngunnawal people and the Wadawurrung people. These peoples have lived on and cared for these lands for thousands of generations, and their sovereignty has never been ceded. We pay our respects to them and their cultures, and to elders past and present.

Think green and read from the screen.