The South Australian Spastic Paralysis Welfare Association was first formed in 1948 to provide assistance to children suffering from Cerebral Palsy. It was formed by the parents of children with disabilities in the Western suburbs of Adelaide and was incorporated in 1950. It purchased property at 98 Woodville Rd Woodville and after successful fundraising opened the Woodville Spastic Children's Home in 1952. In 1954 the Miss Australia Quest was launched with proceeds going to South Australian Spastic Paralysis Welfare Association. The success of the Quest in the 1950s and 60s enabled expansion of the Woodville site. In 1983 the South Australian Spastic Paralysis Welfare Association was renamed Spastic Centres of South Australia or SCOSA.
1948 - 1983 South Australian Spastic Paralysis Welfare Association
1983 - 2019 Spastic Centres of South Australia, SCOSA
Sources used to compile this entry: 'DIRC - Timeline 1900-1999', in History of Disability in South Australia, Disability Information and Resource Centre Inc, 2007, http://web.archive.org/web/20140223025317/http://history.dircsa.org.au/1900-1999/timeline-1900-1999/; 'History - Community Accommodation and Respoite Agency', in CARA, CARA Inc, 2014, http://web.archive.org/web/20160405004933/http://www.cara.org.au/about_us/history; 'History of SCOSA', Novita (formerly Spastic Centres of South Australia Inc), 2014, https://www.novita.org.au/history-of-scosa/.
Prepared by: Gary George
Created: 5 May 2014
Last updated: 7 August 2023
Cite this: https://www.findandconnect.gov.au/ref/sa/biogs/SE01305b.htm
First published by the Find & Connect Web Resource Project for the Commonwealth of Australia, 2011
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