Introduction
This booklet is designed to assist you to provide information to, and effectively communicate with, people with disability. It covers issues such as accessible formats for major disability groups and provides contact details for organisations that can advise you on the communication needs of particular disability groups.
According to the Australian Bureau of Statistics survey of Disability, Ageing and Carers undertaken in 2003, it is estimated that 3.95 million Australians (20%) had a disability. This number can be expected to increase with the ageing of the population projected for early this century. In order to ensure that these people have the same opportunity to participate fully in community life as other Australians, we need to think about ways of providing them with information and making verbal communication easier.
Many people with disability are disadvantaged through our traditional reliance on print media and verbal communication. This includes a number of people with vision, hearing or intellectual impairment, acquired brain injury or psychiatric disability. Some of these people also come from culturally and linguistically diverse backgrounds and may therefore have additional communication needs that should be considered.
The Commonwealth Disability Strategy
The Commonwealth Disability Strategy is a framework to assist Commonwealth organisations to improve access for people with disability to their programs, services and facilities. The Strategy provides practical guidance to assist organisations to remove the barriers that face people with disability. Further information about the Strategy can be obtained from the Disability Policy and Coordination Branch, Department of Families, Housing, community Services and Indigenous Affairs (FaHCSIA).