AMIDA, a community based accommodation support organisation in Victoria, prepared this article as the result of its research into the effectiveness of consumer participation. In identifying the views of consumers they used methods other than written material which are a helpful guide to anyone preparing workshops for people who have disabilities. Basically consumer participation means a real exercise of power by consumers at all or some levels of an organisation. Implementing it may mean significant changes in the way an organisation operates. Research showed "that many of the problems they encountered arose more from their powerlessness and societal attitudes than from their disability.." Keyword: Accommodation