CITY of Whittlesea disability champion Trevor Carroll will take his advocacy to the next level as co-chair of a state-wide committee.

For the next three years, Mr Carroll will serve on the 16-member Victorian Equal Opportunity and Human Rights Commission Disability Reference Group (DRG) where he will help set the agenda for disability issues across the state.

Mr Carroll has served as a member of the DRG since 2007 and was one of only five members to be reappointed.

“For my second term in the group, I was elected to be co-chair with commissioner Helen Szoke and I am very honoured,” Mr Caroll said.

“It was a vote of confidence from my peers.”

His new role will involve chairing four or five meetings a year that discuss issues affecting people living with disabilities.

“I will be working with the commissioner to decide which issues will be brought onto the agenda,” Mr Carroll said.

“I see my role as a decision maker at the agenda level, but also as a facilitator, making sure the issues are addressed. Once something is declared as a hot issue, I want to make sure it stays a hot issue.”

Mr Carroll understands first-hand the challenges people with a disability can face. Since being diagnosed with a spinal cord disorder, syringomyelia, in 1995 he gave up his career as a Tasmanian secondary college principal to move closer to the Austin hospital.

“I know how a disability can affect all aspects of your life, your family and your career,” he said.

“I personally believe there are a lot of barriers for people with disabilities that prevent access in the community. It can be harder to access the community and services and people can also treat you differently once they find out you have a disability.”

The first Disability Reference Group was convened by the commission in 2005 to identify discrimination issues, provide advice and help develop policies and to ensure appropriate service delivery to people with disabilities.

In 2007, the group was responsible for raising the issue of accessibility and availability of maxi-taxi’s that resulted in additional vehicles being made available in the state budget.

In addition to his voluntary role on the DRG, Mr Carroll runs an advocacy agency, Disability Justice Advocacy, and is an active member of the Whittlesea Disability Network (WDN).

“It is a passion of mine to help people with disability and I am a great believer in equal opportunities,” he said.