Australia launches National Arts and Disability Strategy
27 October 2009 The Australian Government has released its National Arts and Disability Strategy, the result of several years’ work by Arts Access Australia, with significant input from individuals and organisations working across the arts, disability and mental health.
Arts Access Australia is the national advocacy organisation for arts and disability with members in every Australian state and territory. Executive Director Gareth Wreford says the National Arts and Disability Strategy, led by the Cultural Ministers Council, is a major step forward in recognising the cultural rights of Australians with experience of disability.
“This strategy will see greater collaboration among government departments responsible for arts and disability,” he says. “All nine state, territory and federal arts ministers agree to make access and participation in artistic and cultural activities a priority for people with disabilities. This is part of the broader social inclusion agenda, which includes disability, mental health, employment and education.”
The National Arts and Disability Strategy complements the National Disability Strategy, due for release in mid 2010 and being developed by the Australian Government, in partnership with state and territory governments, the National Mental Health and Disability Employment Strategy and the Fourth National Mental Health Plan.
Four priority areas
The National Arts and Disability Strategy sets out eight underlying principles that will guide its implementation. The four priority areas for action are:
• addressing barriers to access and participation
• supporting artistic and cultural practice among people with a disability
• developing audiences for disability arts companies and individual artists
• improving policy development and planning within governments.
Federal Arts Minister Peter Garrett commended the Cultural Ministers Council.
“Arts and culture enrich us all,” he said. “With one in five Australians experiencing some form of disability, it has been an imperative to include and enable everyone who wishes to engage with such a vital part of Australian life.
Future planning
“We now strongly recommend that state and local governments, venue owners and others review this important document and incorporate it into their future planning and approach.”
The Cultural Ministers Council will monitor progress annually and issue a communiqué providing information about the progress of the strategy. In addition, the Cultural Ministers Council will review the strategy every three years, in consultation with the arts and disability sector, to ensure that it is meeting its objectives.
In 2001, the New Zealand Government developed the New Zealand Disability Strategy in consultation with disabled people and the wider disability sector. One of the action points of Objective 9 is to “provide opportunities for disabled people to create, perform and develop their own arts and to access arts activities”.