Renee Coffey (Griffith, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Today is World Hearing Day, and this year's theme is 'From Communities to Classrooms: Hearing Care for all Children'. This theme highlights the unique hearing and language journeys of all children and families, and it is a timely reminder of the importance of inclusion and learning, and of making sure every child has the chance to participate fully in their life at school and in their community.

This year's campaign focuses on preventing avoidable childhood hearing loss and on ensuring children with ear or hearing issues are identified and supported early. In Griffith we know just how much this shapes a child's life. It shapes how they learn in the classroom, how they build friendships and how confident they feel in the world around them. When children can hear, communicate and connect, they are better able to thrive. And when they need support, that support should be there early, clearly and without barriers.

Around 30,000 people use Auslan, with over 16,000 reporting in the 2021 census that they use it at home. For the first time, the 2021 census included Auslan as a prompt when asking what language was used at home, ensuring that the language was recognised and shown through the datasets.

Last week I had the opportunity to sit down with Brett Casey, the CEO of Deaf Connect, and it was a valuable conversation. I want to sincerely thank Brett and the entire team at Deaf Connect for the work they do to support the deaf and hard-of-hearing Australians, their families and communities. Brett has served as Deaf Connect's CEO since 2010, and that continuity of leadership has helped shape practical, community focused support over many years.

I also want to acknowledge the many other organisations, advocates, educators, interpreters and community groups who work alongside them to support our deaf community. Their work helps to build a more inclusive Australia where more people can participate fully, communicate confidently and feel genuinely connected.

One of the programs we discussed was Auslan90, delivered by Deaf Connect with support from SBS. It's a simple and powerful initiative that provides the day's top stories, in a format designed specifically for Auslan users, alongside weekly deep-dive videos that give more context on key issues. It's practical, accessible and empowering. It recognises a simple truth: access to information is part of participation, and participation must be universal. That's what World Hearing Day is calling on us to remember. From our communities to our classrooms, we all have a role to play in making sure children are supported early, that Auslan is recognised and valued, and that no child is left behind because the support they need is too hard to access or comes too late.

When we improve hearing care, we do more than support learning. We support connection, we support dignity and we give every child the chance to flourish. So I would just like to say thank you to Brett and to Deaf Connect.