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Disability | February 22, 2017

Building Inclusive Communities program

Victorian Parliament - 22 February 2017 - Ms Kealy - (12 273) My question is to the Minister for Housing, Disability and Ageing. The information I seek is: what inclusion support will be provided to people living with disability in the Wimmera over the coming two years?

A rural access worker is currently employed by Horsham Rural City Council under the Building Inclusive Communities program. The minister has notified council that this funding forms part of the Victorian government’s contribution to the national disability insurance scheme (NDIS) and will cease in July 2017. This program will be replaced by Information, Linkages and Capacity Building due to its similar remit to build community inclusion and support people with disability to actively participate in local community life. However, this replacement program will not be rolled out to the Wimmera until 2019, leaving a two‑year gap of disability inclusion support, including when the NDIS is rolled out. Families caring for loved ones with disability are seeking an assurance that the state will fund disability inclusion support up to 2019 so they are not abandoned during the critical NDIS rollout period.