Page 3499 - Week 08 - Thursday, 18 August 2011
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valued as full and equal members of the ACT community—is promising with six strategic priorities: one, I want the right support, right time, right place—continuous support when I use an agency or funding to secure my own support; two, I want to contribute to the community—I want to choose the adult form my life takes and where possible to contribute to the workforce I want to and am able; three, I want to socialise and engage in the community—I am able to access and be involved in the community through recreational, sporting and social clubs; four, I want to know what I need to know—I am provided with clear information on available services and support; five, I want to tell my story once—there is a common point that collects information about my needs and all relevant agencies will know them; six, I want a quality service system—I want a service system that responds to my needs and those of my family and one that continually improves by asking me what programs I need.
That was two years ago and, yes, there has been some progress, but it has been very, very slow. Only last week I received an email from a special school P&C group that listed a great number of their concerns. I met with them on a week night and for a number of hours. It was quite an emotional meeting between the parents who are nearing the end of the patience and capacity to deliver on behalf of their families. The issues they mentioned were—not in this particular order—one, lack of therapy services at special schools; two, lack of after-school care services at all special schools; three, lack of decent post-school options for students with special needs; four, lack of supported accommodation options; five, poor respite services—obtaining access to respite difficult and finding quality respite workers; and, finally, anger and fear about the lowering of the school leaving age which was done without any consultation and which is still causing a lot of pain and anger in the community as they cannot understand why decisions are made which they are not consulted about.
They suggested that politicians need to understand what caring is like and the impact that a disabled child has on a family, especially a disabled child with high care needs. They invited politicians from all parties—and I send that invitation to all my colleagues here today—to come to their school and experience what life is like for the children, their teachers, their families and their carers.
The recent Productivity Commission report on disability care and support had some harsh and blunt comments about disability services in Australia. It suggests:
… the current disability support system is underfunded, unfair, fragmented, and inefficient. It gives people with a disability little choice, no certainty of access to appropriate supports and little scope to participate in the community. People with disabilities, their carers, service providers, workers in the industry and governments all want change.
As harsh and as blunt as the comments from the Productivity Commission were and as idealistic and optimistic as the future directions might be, we have to recognise that it does not all go away or get better with commission findings or aspirational strategies.
The strategy is one thing; improving conditions at the coal face is quite another. We need to be better focused on outcomes than we currently are. The Productivity Commission recognised all those concerns and has proposed a national disability insurance scheme. The scheme would involve a serious commitment by all
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