A new State disability plan from the Department of Families, Fairness and Housing (DFFH) is set to drive change towards a fairer community and support every Victorian to fully participate in all areas of life.
Welcoming the Inclusive Victoria: State Disability Plan 2022-2026, Minister for Disability, Ageing and Carers, Anthony Carbines said it set the agenda for Government’s approach to building a more inclusive and accessible community for the more than 1.1 million Victorians with disability.
“Victorians with disability will be consulted on creating a new Disability Inclusion Act, which will provide a modern and stronger framework to drive change across Government,” Mr Carbines said.
“The Government will also consult on establishing an Australian-first Commissioner for Disability Inclusion to drive improvements in practice in the Public Sector and promote inclusion across Victoria,” he said.
“Amendments to the Disability Act 2006 will be made to increase residential protections for Victorians in disability accommodation and to strengthen quality and safeguards in services for people with disability.”
Mr Carbines said an exposure draft of the Disability Inclusion Bill would be released later this year to give people the opportunity to shape the important reforms.
The Minister said co-design with people living with disability would be at the heart of this work.
He said the Plan would drive systemic reform in key areas to ensure people with disability were at the table in designing policies, services and programs; Government worked with Aboriginal Victorians with disability and listened to what worked best for them; the forms of structural discrimination that people with disability faced were recognised and addressed; and that accessibility was built into everything Government did.
DFFH’s 82-page Plan can be accessed at this PS News link and accessible versions of the plan can be downloaded at this link.
