Julia Banks (Chisholm, Liberal Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Last Friday I had the pleasure of hosting the Assistant Minister for Social Services and Disability Services, Jane Prentice, in the heart of Chisholm at Deakin University in Burwood. Together we announced that Deakin University was one of the successful recipients of the recent information linkages and capacity building national readiness grant round, a vital component of the National Disability Insurance Scheme. A wonderful Chisholm institution, Deakin University has been awarded a $627,000 grant for their ALLPlay Dance initiative that aims to build awareness and skills in the dance community to increase access for people with disability to mainstream dance programs across Australia.

The ILC building program is centred on the concept of community inclusion. As the program's director at the National Disability Insurance Agency, Mandy Baxter, said, 'You don't change the person to fit the environment; you change the environment to fit the person.' Indeed, ALLPlay Dance is a fantastic initiative that addresses some of the current barriers to social participation and community connectedness for people with disability, particularly children, by fostering high-quality inclusive dance experiences and opportunities.

The establishment and success of AllPlay Dance lies with the passion of Chisholm resident Tabitha and Deakin University Professor in Clinical Psychology, Nicole Rinehart. Together, Tabitha and Professor Rinehart identified a significant gap in the opportunities available for people with a disability, such as Tabitha's wonderful daughter Bianca. Tabitha shared her struggle to find a dance school for 10-year-old Bianca, who has Mowat-Wilson syndrome, a rare genetic disorder. Like every parent, Tabitha wanted to find a dance school where Bianca would be treated and catered for the same as everyone else.

As I witnessed on Friday morning, Bianca has a fabulous passion for dance, and like every child in Australia she deserves the opportunity to be supported to thrive in an inclusive environment, as she is able to now. Sadly, however, Tabitha's and Bianca's experience is not an isolated one, which is why it is so important for us to invest in both community and personal capacity building to ensure communities, people with disability and their families have the skills, resources and confidence they need to participate in the community and access the same kind of services as other people.

The ALLPlay Dance initiative is one of the 39 Turnbull government grants totalling just over $14 million that have been provided to organisations across the country to make the community more accessible and inclusive of people with disability. There is a wonderful spread of projects targeting key cohorts across the community, with initiatives spanning across education, employment, social participation, cultural awareness, sport and health. Many of the projects involve engaging with community and mainstream services to design and develop strategies to improve awareness and competency to meet the needs of people with disability and to be inclusive in all mainstream settings, just as Bianca is able to enjoy the benefits of dance classes at ALLPlay Dance.

I congratulate Deakin University and encourage other organisations to consider applying for future grants to ensure all people with disability can lead an ordinary life, including participation in education, getting a job, accessing their community and enjoying the company of friends and family. In particular, I extend my sincere congratulations to Deakin University vice-chancellor Jane den Hollander, clinical psychologist Professor Nicole Rinehart and Mandy Baxter, Director of Information, Linkages and Capacity Building at the NDIA for their important work in building an inclusive community in Chisholm. A big thankyou also to the student dancers from Presbyterian Ladies' College, or PLC, as it is known, in Burwood, who supported Bianca's dance showcase on Friday morning. It is examples such as the struggle of Tabitha and Bianca that demonstrate why the Turnbull government's actions to close the NDIS funding gap are so integral. I am proud to be part of a government that is helping all Australians who are impacted by disability, whether directly or indirectly.

Another example of the Turnbull government's fair and inclusive support for Australians is our fantastic Quality Schools funding reforms. Yesterday in question time the member for Wills erroneously used the example of the wonderful Aurora School in Blackburn South in my electorate. Those on the other side are playing politics, to the detriment of students nationwide. Aurora School is a marvellous school providing learning opportunities for deaf and deafblind children in Victoria. As part of our funding reforms, the school's excellent work will continue to thrive, with an increase in funding of $1.5 million over the next 10 years. Like all Chisholm's 23,000 students, the students at Aurora will benefit. I am proud to be part of a government that supports all Australians to have equal opportunities to succeed, whether that is by closing the NDIS funding gap or building inclusive communities. (Time expired)