about us
Be empowered. We aim to support you to be connected and be guided toward achieving your full potential.
Because at estara, you matter.
because you matter
01
Our purpose
We support and empower South Australians who live with spinal cord injuries and other disabilities to choose how they live their potential.
02
Our vision
We will create equal opportunities for inclusion and participation.
03
Our values
We strive to conduct ourselves in everything we do according to our five key values.
- Excellence – We always achieve the highest quality and consistently go above and beyond
- Innovation – We are brave and creative. It’s OK to challenge the status quo. We lead by standing out
- Responsiveness – We get positive outcomes by anticipating, acknowledging, informing and acting
- Equality – We treat everyone fairly and with dignity and respect
- Ethical Behaviour – We are honest, fair, diligent and trustworthy. We live our values
How we operate
We represent our community to influence effective change, remove barriers to quality of life and uphold the rights of people living with disability.
estara is a registered NDIS provider. Our passionate and dedicated staff and volunteers work together to support and advocate for people living with spinal cord injuries and other disabilities to enable them to fully participate in the community.
estara is a Company Limited by Guarantee and a benevolent organisation.
Read our Constitution, see our recent Annual Reports and meet Our People.
Our patrons: Her Excellency the Honourable Frances Adamson AC Governor of South Australia and Mr Rod Bunten are joint patrons of estara.
Where to find estara
estara serves metropolitan Adelaide from its headquarters in Dulwich, where you find new, modern therapy rooms and multidisciplinary teams equipped to work together to support every aspect of life with spinal cord injury or disability, from maintenance of a wheelchair to advice about interstate travel.
With over 700 employees and five regional offices in South Australia, estara serves the South-East, Mid-North, Eyre Peninsula, Yorke Peninsula and Riverland.
our history
1963
The Paraplegic Association (now estara) began, run by volunteers to advocate for those using a wheelchair for mobility.
1970s
Services expanded to provide independent living support and social or recreational community support for people with spinal cord injuries.
1980s
Our service offering expanded into in-home support for people with all types of disabilities, not just spinal cord injury, delivering practical and high-quality services through our HomeCare+ team.
2014
The Paraplegic Association (now estara) became known as PQSA (Para Quad South Australia), highlighting our role as the ‘go-to’ organisation in South Australia for spinal cord injury and related conditions.
2024
The new name estara unified PQSA and HomeCare+ combining our specialised disability support and our in-home and community support under a single brand.
