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Kelly White

24 April 2025: Last week the (CPA) ACT, in collaboration with the University of Canberra and the Robberds family, held the annual Gabby Robberds Memorial Scholarship presentation.

Gabby Robberds passed away 15 years ago as the result of complications from complex cerebral palsy. Her father, Craig Robberds, channelled his grief into raising funds to help the Cerebral Palsy Alliance, which had been a major support to his daughter and their family during her life.

The Gabby Robberds Scholarship was born of his efforts – a fund which empowers the disability support workforce in the ACT, and which carries on Gabby’s legacy and impact. The Scholarship combines a financial award with a five-week clinical placement with the CPA ACT.

The Scholarship was established in 2010 for Physiotherapy students and thanks to the generosity of the Robberds family and the ACT community, it’s only grown from there. In 2017, occupational therapy (OT) was added, and this year is the first time that a Speech Pathology award was also presented.

This year saw the celebration of recipients from 2024 and 2025, with the Robberds family and the Honourable Margaret Reid, CPA ACT’s patron, presenting the awards.

It was a full circle moment for Angus Hoadley, a Bachelor of Occupational Therapy graduate, as he accepted an award from an organisation that he says, changed his life.

“I have cerebral palsy myself, and the reason I chose to study occupational therapy was the therapists at CPA ACT and the way they improved my life – I just wanted to be that person for somebody else,” Mr Hoadley said.

Mr Hoadley is currently working within the paediatric occupational therapy space – an experience that has reaffirmed his decision to pursue an OT career.

“I think the value of occupational therapy is that we're holistic practice. We don't just look at the person – we look at what they enjoy doing, we look at their environment, and get a full picture of who they are, so we can address the barriers to their participation,” Mr Hoadley said.

“Recently, the mum of one of my clients told me that her daughter is now able to tie her shoelaces – a goal we had been working on together – it’s an amazing feeling.”

Madeleine Bolton is the 2025 recipient for Occupational Therapy, and a strong advocate for the career which has the power to change lives for the better.

“The thing I love most about occupational therapy, is it provides client facing opportunities, where you’re supporting people to build their independence, and helping them to do the activities that really matter to them,” Miss Bolton said.

“I chose º£½ÇÉçÇø because I knew so many people who had gone through the course who came out as amazing occupational therapists. I wanted to follow that path.”

Charlotte Cannon is studying the University’s Bachelor of Physiotherapy and is the Gabby Robberds Scholarship physiotherapy recipient for 2025. Now in her final year, she’s proud to be embarking on career of purpose.

“I chose physiotherapy because it makes a meaningful impact on the lives of so many people,” Miss Cannon said.

“I was drawn to º£½ÇÉçÇø because it has a really good physiotherapy program, one of the best in Australia, and I wanted to get the most out of my studies.”

Executive Dean of the Faculty of Health, Professor Rachel Gibson, thanked both the Robberds family and the Cerebral Palsy Alliance ACT for their enduring support of University of Canberra students.

“Through the ongoing support of the Robberds family these scholarships have, for over a decade, helped shape the future of paediatric and disability care and have supported students to pursue clinical placements in this field,” Professor Gibson said.

“Our recipients today have each demonstrated exceptional dedication and will go on to make a real difference.”

Gabby Robberds Scholarship recipients 2024 and 2025:

Interested in creating a lasting legacy through philanthropy? Visit the º£½ÇÉçÇø Foundation website to learn about scholarships and giving. 

Donations to the Cerebral Palsy Alliance can be made on the website. .