Cerebral Palsy Alliance and CPActive respond to findings of NSW disability in education inquiry

The report, released today, makes 20 findings and 28 recommendations, focusing on improving the educational experience for children and young people with disability in NSW.

Three of these recommendations directly respond to CPA’s submission and evidence given to the inquiry by CPActive Steering Committee member Sophie Geeves and Professor Iona Novak, CPA’s Chair of Allied Health, both of whom spoke at a hearing in April 2024.

Focusing on fair and equitable exam supports and pathways for more people with disability to enter the education workforce, the three recommendations also responded to CPActive’s ‘Blaze the Trail’ campaign, which was the centrepiece of our submission:

• Recommendation #13: That the NSW Government continue to improve the proportion of teachers and support staff with disability in the school sector and consider how more students with disability can be supported and encouraged to gain a teaching degree.
• Recommendation #20: That the NSW Government create clear and direct guidelines for schools to enable compliance with statutory obligations to provide reasonable adjustments for students with disability.
• Recommendation #21: That the NSW Government consider a streamlined process, including a line of communication between the relevant agencies, for granting disability provisions for the Higher School Certificate. The process should incorporate recognition of pre-existing conditions and adjustments already provided in the classroom.

The 222-page report also includes multiple references to CPA’s submission and validates the lived experience of our disability community in its findings that “a lack of inclusion in NSW educational settings reinforces prejudice, discrimination and ableism in society, which in turn perpetuates non-inclusive educational practices” (finding #4).

Multiple references to the lived experience of CPActive champions such as Nicole and Nicholas (p.122) were also included in the final report. We are cautiously optimistic that the centring of lived experience seen throughout the report will lead to better outcomes for people with disability in the future.

Recommendation #27, that the NSW Government increase support for young people with disability transitioning from school into higher education through pilot programs and in-school supports, is also an area CPA has campaigned for further investment.

While these findings and recommendations are promising, this is just another step forward in the campaign towards truly inclusive education and employment pathways that began when the NSW Government committed to adopting our ‘Blaze the Trail’ asks in February 2023.

The campaign doesn’t stop here – sign our petition to ensure that young people with disabilities get the urgent support and provisions they are entitled to for this year’s high school exams!

We look forward to continuing to work closely with the NSW Government and NSW Education Standards Authority (NESA) to ensure these recommendations are implemented and the momentum towards a more inclusive society for people with disabilities continues.

We also commend the inquiry on ensuring an accessible process that met the needs of people with disability, such as Easy Read documentation and Auslan interpretation throughout the course of hearings.

The state government’s response to the report is due in November 2024.

You can access the full report, media release and other inquiry documents on the NSW Parliament website here.