The Disability Information and Resource Centre

Due to the large amount of interest in the Tellus Survey at the DIRC Disability and Ageing Expo last week, Purple Orange have extended the closing date for responses to Sunday August 21 at 5pm.

Participating in the survey could win you an iPad 2!

The Tellus Survey is developed by Purple Orange to gather information from people living with disability about their lives.

Findings from the previous survey has informed a number of policy submissions including; National Human Rights Consultation, National Disability Strategy, and Disability Care and Support, as well as three Tellus reports; Having Choice and Control, Accessibility, and Disability Funding – Where should it go?

Any person living with disability or any member of the disability community is invited to participate.

How to complete the survey

• Complete the survey online at www.surveymonkey.com/s/JFA_Living_with_Disability_Survey
• Obtain a hard copy version by calling Purple Orange on freecall 1300 857 327 or (08) 8373 8333 or emailing admin@purpleorange.org.au
• Completing an electronic version of the survey and saving the completed version on a CD which can be sent back. To obtain the electronic version please contact us as above
• Calling Purple Orange on 1300 857 327 or (08) 8373 8333 and giving your responses verbally over the phone

For more information contact Robbi Williams at Purple Orange by emailing robbiw@purpleorange.org.au or calling (08) 8373 8333 or freecall 1300 857 327.

Purple Orange have released an article on What the Strathmont Evaluation Could Mean for Disability Policy.

Last Saturday, February 19th the S.A. Government advertised for applications for the Minister’s Disability Advisory Council on page 48 of the Adelaide Advertiser.

MDAC Information for Applicants has much of the key information potential applicants may require.

Full Information Package for Applicants, which includes:

1. MDAC Information Package January 2011 (5 pages)
2. Information for Applicants (2 pages)
3. MDAC Terms of Reference January 2011 (3 pages)
4. 5 Year Plan for the Department for Families and Communities (1 page).
5. MDAC Member Profiles

Can be obtained from:

Mr Noel Williams

Business Support Officer
Disability, Ageing and Carers |Community and Home Support SA

Department for Families and Communities
Government of South Australia

Plaza Level SE GPO Box 292
Riverside Centre, North Terrace Adelaide SA 5001 Adelaide SA 5000

Ph: 8415 4355 Fax: 8415 4399
noel.williams@dfc.sa.gov.au

Applications close 5.00pm Friday 11th of March 2011 attention Mr Neil Lillecrapp at disabilityservices@dfc.sa.gov.au.

The Australian Federation of Disability Organisations have released the following open letter to the Greens and several Independent Members:

An open letter to Independent Members and the Greens,
Adam Bandt
Bob Katter
Rob Oakeshott
Andrew Wilkie
Tony Windsor

I am writing on behalf of the Australian Federation of Disability Organisations which is the peak organization representing People with Disabilities in Australia, to request your support for a better commitment for Australian with Disabilities.

We are working to ensure that people with disabilities have full access to independent living, education in local schools and tertiary facilities, meaningful work and award wages, respect and equality in Australian Society.

We are working to fully implement the UN Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities.

Over the last three years the Australian Government started a process of reform to implement the Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities which included the National Disability Strategy and the National Disability Insurance Scheme. Prior to the election all major parties committed to continuing these reforms.

• People with disabilities form 20% of the population.
• The present system of disability supports is in crisis
• Most people don’t get the supports they need
• Services and support for people with disabilities in regional and remote Australia is drastically under funded resulting in relocation to major cities in the hope of at least basic support.

We urge that during your negotiations you to obtain a commitment from the future Government to fully fund the needs of people with disabilities across Australia.

For further information please ring me on 03 9662 3324.

Thank you for your time and I look forward to hearing from you.

Yours Sincerely.

Lesley Hall
CEO

Graham Douglas- Meyer
Chair

On Thursday July 29th 2010, Disability Speaks released the following:

FIREWORKS NOT JAZZ?

Australians living with disability will focus on Sydney on Sunday!

This is an event not to be missed.

The exquisitely timed Disability Rocks; Mad as Hell public meeting in Sydney on Sunday August 1st at 3.00pm at The Everest Theatre, Seymour Centre, Chippendale Sydney could deliver real fireworks. With ALP Parliamentary Secretary for Disability Bill Shorten no doubt looking to go head to head with Liberal Senator and Disability Shadow Mitch Fiefield the sparks seem certain to fly particularly given Labors disability announcements today in Melb. While less than the initial financial boost many would have hoped for, some details of today’s ALP announcement including the exciting new concept of community and NGO groups being encouraged to develop innovative and flexible new supported accommodation models will be widely applauded as will the early intervention boost. Full details can be found at www.alp.org.au.

An unbiased summary of the ALP announcements is attached from National Disability Services who like many see the ALP plan as well targeted.

Our very own Kelly Vincent MLC S.A. (d4d) will add reality to Sundays debate where the other participants including Ian Cohen (NSW Greens) will be looking to convince that they are fully committed not just participants or timely vote seekers. Kelly has life experience the others will never truly understand.

Many across the country who cannot make the meeting will look for the distribution of notes or bullet points to highlight the major promises of the meeting. The big questions will no doubt be:

Will major parties give unqualified support for National Disability Insurance? How serious are the leaders? Julia says “if feasible” Tony says “more seriously than the Henry review”

Will there be more major disability funding announcements to attack the crisis that exists now in disability services? With some 25,000 on national lists surely just 150 new supported accommodation positions is not the only financial commitment to reduce chronic unmet need waiting lists nationally (did someone leave a zero of the ALP media release? e.g. 1500)

Will anything really change or are we just looking at more talk?

What are the States forced to do?

Do Prime Minister Gillard or Opposition Leader Abbott personally care or is disability just another of those boxes that get ticked in any election period?

Who should we vote for and why?

Disability Speaks looks forward to distributing a précis of the meeting next week

At a local level (S.A) the next meeting of the Disability Speaks steering committee will be held on Thursday 5th August where the Federal election will no doubt be the main topic of interest at 1.00pm at DIRC, 195 Gilles St Adelaide. As always anyone is welcome to our open meetings.

David Holst

Chair – Disability Speaks Steering Committee

0418 555 683

www.disabilityspeaks.com.au

disabilityspeaks@internode.on.net

Yesterday (July 29th 2010) the Prime Minister, Julia Gillard, made several announcements regarding Labor disability policy at MS Australia’s headquarters, “The Nerve Centre”.

Below you will find links to the website of Bill Shorten MP, Parliamentary Secretary for Disabilities and Children’s Services, which provide descriptions of the announced policies.

• Children with disability given a better start
• More supported accommodation for people with disability
• National Disability Strategy

On July 22nd Disability Minister Jennifer Rankine attacked attacked opposition spokesperson Vickie Chapman for deliberately misleading the South Australian disability sector. She has put out this news release which explains further.

Over at the Purple Orange Blog is a post entitled How to Vote.

This post outlines things to consider when evaluating the disability policies of the contenders in the upcoming SA state election (and doesn’t endorse any particular party or candidate).

The Family First party have released their disability policy, which calls for an additional $110 million in funding for the disability sector.

You can view this news story from the Advertiser State Edition on the policy.

Disability Speaks have released the following statement regarding the upcoming SA state election:

At the Disability Speaks Public Meeting on February 17th, the Minister for Disability, Jennifer Rankine, did not reveal policy or funding initiatives and suggested we ” watch this space “.Well we watched and we watched and the Labor Party have released their Disability Policy for the 2010 election. The question is, was it worth waiting for? and most importantly how does the ALP stack up against the Liberal 2010 Disability policies.

The ALP Policy document confirms the allocation of additional education funding, $17.25 million to establish six new special education units and a range of early intervention services to children with Autism Spectrum Disorders including $4.0 million in support for private schools . This funding is not disability funding as it comes from the Education Dept budget and we have noted in a previous Disability Speaks communique and agreed that they are well targeted and will be very much appreciated by many with children in the disability community.

The 2010 Official ALP Disability Policy does however announce new funding of $17.5 million for equipment and home modifications for adults and children with a disability. Disability Speaks has been running media advertisements in the metropolitan press demanding that this area of the disability unmet needs waiting lists be addressed and this program will support that call! This funding is new money over 4 years.

But Disability Speaks has also previously argued that at least $120 million needs to be spent over the next four years by Government to address the current critical crisis in accommodation, respite and support services across South Australia. Sadly there is no new funding in the ALP policy for any other critical needs.

Subsequant to the ALP Official policy launch the government has also announced an additional transition program with $14.5 million dollars over four years to assist in the transfer of clients with disabilities from hospital to appropriate accommodation. This again is a new funding iniative!

The original 17 page ALP Policy Document is an impressive presentation but only offers the additional equiptment support plus plenty of sometimes questionable rhetoric . We are unable to deliver the ALP document direct online because of the file size but will supply on request the complete file to any Disability Speaks supporters who would like a full copy. Please ask by return email and we will fire it off to you! We do believe it is available online from the ALP wedsite.

The ALP policy makes much of the impending Cappo/ Social inclusion inquiry and how this will be the basis for a future plan. This is however noguarantee the plan will be supported by the ALP and many cynics in the disability community are seeing it as another Rann fairy tale like his promised 2001 Disability pre election policy guaranteeing a ten year plan that has never eventuated.

There is however no doubt at this stage the ALP has committed more funding for disability services in the next four years than the Liberal party. The ALP policies also appear to be appropriately funded.

We have attached for your interest a direct comparison based on our interpretation around the questions from our Public meeting of howDisability Speaks interpret the relative position of the two major parties in their election policies. Please circulate this file to all your supporters and print a copy for your noticboards and hand out!

We have asked and will deliver online on Thursday “The Final Word” in their own words a final one page summary from both the ALP and Liberal Party where they state their own 2010 Disability Committments and support position

Me ……………….I have not decided who to vote for yet? Both parties positions and history remain open to much conjecture and I have yet to see either Rann or Redmond talk about disability issues like they really matter. The choices on offer appear totally inadequate and a bit like being asked would you like to be tortured by testicualr electrocution or waterboarding?…………… there are no great outcomes which is very distressing.

We will keep you informed as the week progresses

Good luck in picking a winner!

David Holst

Chair

Disability Speaks Steering Committee

0418555683

www.disabilityspeaks.com.au

Disability Speaks have also released this comparison between the Labor and Liberal positions on disability.