Page 1040 - Week 03 - Wednesday, 21 March 2012
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On the substance of Ms Hunter’s motion, a number of key facts are listed and indeed are well known to all who have an interest in this sector. Opportunity for young people with a disability after they leave school is well known to be extremely limited. The motion refers to the fact that more than 40 young people with a disability will be leaving school this year. In fact, we have around that number leaving school each year, and we know that each year only a small percentage of that year’s graduating class will find employment or will find enough suitable activities to add quality to their lives through their adulthood.
In the last estimates hearings, there was discussion around the issue of what the government was doing or failing to do in respect of post-school options. Recommendation 172 of the Select Committee on Estimates states:
The Committee recommends that the ACT Government review the post school options services available for students with a disability and their families and report to the Legislative Assembly by the first sitting day in December 2011.
The government, in its response, noted the recommendation but any reporting it has done has not been to advance greatly the cause of school leavers. It is a complex matter and there is no one-size-fits-all for any child leaving school and searching for a new pathway for life. It is even more complex, confusing and insufficient for those with a disability.
For many, learning additional skills will provide greater opportunities and an enhanced quality of life. For others, there is limited or no opportunity for learning additional skills. But for either group, whether there is a hope for employment or no hope of enhancing living skills, the needs are the same, as is the moral obligation of governments and society. Everyone has the right to seek a better life and a fulfilled life.
I speak to many parents of disabled children and their fears are the same: “Who will be there for my child when I am not?” It is a regular theme and there are so few answers. For any parents with a school-leaving age child, there are challenges: “What career path? Where should they live? How should they live? Do they have enough life skills to survive on their own? How can we help them?”
The challenges are obviously similar for parents of disabled children, however with far greater requirements and needs to be addressed. What makes it more frustrating and what leads to even more anxiety is when there is willingness to learn new skills and become more independent but there are limited or no opportunities.
There are a range of federal government programs in the ACT that provide post-school employment. Koomarri, under the Australian Disability Enterprises banner, provide supported employment for disabled people and the operation of commercially viable businesses. Their businesses include the Office Support Agency, which is the collective name for six working groups located within various public and private departments around Canberra. It works with small groups of people with a disability, undertaking various office tasks while being supported by a support worker within the
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