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Plans to cut Disability Advisors at Auckland Council

Plans to cut Disability Advisors at Auckland Council Anger Disability Community

Disability Rights campaigners are angry about plans to disestablish the only Disability Advisors at Auckland Council.

“The disability community has told the Council and the Mayor that we need the Disability Advisors. We have explained the pivotal role they play in allowing disabled people to participate in decisions that affect them and we can’t believe that despite this feedback from us they are still threatening to take these vital roles away.

The disability community think Empowered Communities is a good initiative. It’s just that when 21 local boards are working through their own area issues, disability could fall off the radar. The progress we have made since having specific Disability Advisors to Council could be lost and there is fear there will be no more progress.”, said Disability Rights Campaigner Debbie Hager.

Campaigners say the Disability Advisors have played a crucial role in assisting disabled Aucklanders to engage with Auckland Council, and to assist the Council to understand how to involve disabled people in so many aspects of the Council’s work.
The work they do includes :
• making Council events accessible
• Accessible consultation with disability community on Council and CCO projects including the Long Term Plan (LTP), Unitary Plan, RTP, Solid Waste changes, Thriving Communities
• Ensuring that violence prevention work includes the voices of disabled people
• Ensuring that Council information is provided in accessible formats including NZSL and easy read
• Working with Auckland Transport to encourage accessibility of public transport systems
• Supporting the Disability Advisory Panel
However, under the proposed ‘Empowered Communities approach’ model there would be no disability specialists at Auckland Council.

ENDS

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