Tuesday 4 February 2025
Australia’s Disability Strategy has had a revamp – now it needs to deliver.
Australia’s Disability Strategy 2021-2031 (ADS) sets out a vision for a more inclusive society.
Yet too often, strategies and policies that are ambitious in their vision for our rights and inclusion remain words on paper, rather than actions that create real change.
That’s why the federal government’s commitment to tracking progress under the ADS matters.
For the first time, it includes a two-year measurement cycle under the ADS Outcomes Framework. Tracking progress is an important step – because what gets measured, gets changed. Or at least, that’s the theory.
The reality is more complicated.
The ADS covers seven outcome areas, from employment to community attitudes. The first-ever progress data will be published later this year, including national figures on accessible housing and transport – two areas that determine whether people with disability have somewhere to live and can participate fully in their communities.
These are pretty basic rights. The government’s measurement commitment on housing, for example, is a welcome start. However, here’s the problem: measurement alone doesn’t build houses.
Right now, people with disability wait an average of 637 days (that’s more than two years) to access public housing. The severe lack of accessible homes forces many into inaccessible, unsafe, or unaffordable options. They face being left in hospital, forced into aged care facilities or having nowhere to go.
Currently in the private market, people with disability often have no way of knowing whether a property meets their needs until they inspect it – or even if they can get through the door. It’s good to see an intention to reform real estate listing standards to let people know whether properties are accessible
NSW has set a target for accessible housing under its ADS implementation plan, and that’s promising. But unless all states and territories step up with ambitious, binding targets, we risk a postcode lottery for whether you have a roof over your head.
The fastest way to improve supply? Make accessibility standards mandatory.
The ³Ô¹ÏÍøÕ¾ Construction Code (NCC) already includes silver-level accessibility standards, but states have the choice to opt-out – and WA and NSW continue to steer clear. Why are we still debating whether new homes should be accessible when the need is so high?
The message here is simple: Australia’s Disability Strategy is only as strong as its implementation.
Then there’s transport. The ADS commits to reforming the Disability Standards for Accessible Public Transport, and the co-design process that’s underway has been promising. Reform must be more than a bureaucratic exercise though. The updated standards must be accompanied by a clear implementation plan.
Meaningful improvements like better wayfinding tools, hearing loops, accessible ticketing and disability-led design – not just guiding principles – need to be embedded and mandatory across all states and territories.
We’ve seen progress in some places. In NSW, meaningful consultation with people with disability has led to real improvements like accessible intercity train sets with better seating, bathrooms, and ticketing systems. Again however, this shouldn’t depend on which state you live in.
ADS must drive national consistency, not leave co-design or accessibility up to individual jurisdictions and cyclic political footballing.
Then there’s emergency management, where lives are quite literally at stake. ADS commits to improving disaster preparedness and emergency response for people with disability, but there’s no binding national requirement for emergency plans to be co-designed with people with disability.
The ³Ô¹ÏÍøÕ¾ Emergency Management Agency (NEMA) is working with states, local councils, and disability organisations to improve emergency plans. That’s important, but without federal coordination and direct funding for disability-led expertise, many communities remain unprepared. Too often, people with disability struggle to access evacuation routes, community transport, or emergency shelters-a failure that puts lives at risk every time a disaster strikes.
The message here is simple: Australia’s Disability Strategy is only as strong as its implementation. Tracking progress is a welcome start, but we need real action in every corner of the country. Without binding targets, legislative mandates, and consistent national leadership, the ADS won’t deliver real change.
The strategy exists. The data will soon follow. Now it’s time for action.
C’mon Australia, let’s match ambition with action.
Trinity Ford is President of People with Disability Australia.
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