Local solutions improve access to community

He placed ads in the Daylesford, Ballan, Creswick and Clunes press calling for participants and arranged to be interviewed in the Hepburn Shire Advocate.

As a result he has the nucleus of his Community Access Group and from contacts with business organisations and service clubs expects to include people with a disability, their families and carers and members of the wider community.

The group, which has already met, will work to raise the profile of people with a disability and improve their access to community and support services in Hepburn and Moorabool Shires.

Brian Dunn is part of the innovative Department of Human Services’ RuralAccess program in Grampians Region developing new and better services for people with a disability.

He is one of four workers in the Region employed by funded agencies to link people with a disability to mainstream services and the community.

The other three work in Ballarat, Stawell/Ararat and Horsham.

Deb Tassi is employed by Ballarat City Council, Gilda McKechnie by the Grampians Community Health Centre in Ararat and Dorothy McLaren by Horsham Rural City Council.

The RuralAccess workers have initiated a range of projects since Minister for Community Services Christine Campbell announced the program in October 2000.

They have included improved access to buildings, transport, information, education and training as well as working with Access For All Abilities providers and local community organisations to plan opportunities for people with disabilities to take part in sports, recreation, arts and cultural activities.

The RuralAccess workers have also developed connections with a range of networks and planned forums so communities can create participation opportunities for people with disabilities.

As well as these broader long-term strategies the workers have hit the ground running on changes to improve access to community services and facilities.

Gilda McKechnie’s initiatives include lobbying Stawell supermarket owners to consider people with disabilities when planning and stocking shelves and working towards a Disability Access Section in local business awards.

Deb Tassi is facilitating TTY information and training for customer services staff of Ballarat City Council.

The council has also recently developed a Fenceline Calendar to promote awareness of the dangers of overhanging branches to people with disabilities and other footpath users and promotes tree pruning to improve street access and safety.

Dorothy McLaren has initiated a program with a range of local services to help people with disabilities volunteer in their local communities.

Following the early success of the RuralAccess pilot in the Grampians Region, Ms Campbell has approved funding to the Department’s other rural Regions—Barwon-SouthWest, Gippsland, Hume and Loddon-Mallee.

By the end on June, 25 RuralAccess workers will be employed in key mainstream community organisations across rural and regional Victoria.