Things boiled over in late 2019 for KidzWish when high-profile founder Chris Beaven was replaced as head of the charity by Liberal Party politician Cameron Walters. Walters was asked to take over on a short-term basis.

But on Friday KidzWish and The Disability Trust were talking up their planned merger, saying it "heralded an exciting new era of care".

"Mutual respect and the shared purpose of enabling better lives for children and adults with disability so they thrive" were the key drivers of their ensuing collaborative relationship, a statement said.

It was hoped the merger would provide both organisations the opportunity to deliver continuity of care across a lifetime, so children had clinical consistency and felt supported as they entered into adulthood.

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Founded in 2004, KidzWish Foundation in recent years had recognised a need to join forces with a larger organisation to continue providing high-quality services to children and families in the complex, fast-growing and competitive market created by the National Disability Insurance Scheme (NDIS), KidzWish Foundation chair Mitch Henry said.

"KidzWish Foundation and The Disability Trust have always been focused in delivering a diverse range of services to benefit the community," he said.

"The synergies gained through the merger will allow both entities to broaden and innovate their services for children with a disability and their families.

"Our organisations are very much aligned in our purpose and values. We believe this is an exciting combination to expand KidzWish's reach, grow our service capabilities and, through shared resources, continue to provide best in class clinical services to more local families in need."

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The Disability Trust CEO Margaret Bowen welcomed the intention to merge with KidzWish.

"We are delighted to be working towards the KidzWish team joining The Disability Trust Group," she said.

"This merger will bring our services together to provide a continuum of support for people living with a disability at all stages of life. The Disability Trust recognises the positive reputation of KidzWish and values the services that have been provided to children with a disability in our local community.

"As leading providers of disability services and supports, we recognise the importance of continuing to evolve to meet the changing needs of both people living with a disability and the landscape presented by the NDIS."

The proposed merger will see the charity arm of the KidzWish Foundation continue operations under its own entity as a charitable fundraising organisation.

KidzWish Place in Flinders is still going ahead with the building timeline to be announced soon. The plan is to merge KidzWish Foundation into a member of The Disability Trust Group by July 1.

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