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Multicultural Disability Advocacy
Association of NSW Inc.
Vision“...a community where everyone,
regardless of background or disability,
feels welcome, included and supported."
MDAA Inc. is the peak body for ALL people from NESB in NSW with disability
and their families and carers
It is a non-government organisation funded mainly by the Commonwealth
Department of Social Services, and the NSW government of Ageing,
Disability and Home Care, Department of Family and Community Services.
It is a community based and managed by a committee whose members are
from different cultural backgrounds with different or without disability
Staff and volunteers are from different cultural backgrounds and may have
disability.
Staff are from different cultural backgrounds and may have disability.
Our Top Five Advocacy
Issues
• In 2014-2015 MDAA individual advocates
responded to more than1300 enquiries and
assisted more than 450 people with all types of
disability (sensory, physical, intellectual,
psychiatric, brain injury, etc) & dealt with about
1200 issues
Top Five Advocacy Issues
2011-2015
Key Statistics 18 to 64 y.o.
• Language Spoken
– LOTE 26.16% ESB 73.84%
• Unemployment
– General Community
• LOTE 7.85% ESB 5.04%
– Need for Assistance (Profound/Severe)
• LOTE 19.70% ESB 13.37%
Barriers to Services • Personal barriers of consumers
– stigma
– lack of confidence
– limited language skills
• Financial Vulnerability
• Lack of Information and difficulty in navigating the
service system
• Lack of technical skills- Inability to access in-
formation re: services (if the information is provided
online, people from CaLD backgrounds may not
have access to computers/internet)
• Lack of awareness about services and eligibility to
access services
Access Issues
External and Systemic Barriers
• Discriminatory and negative attitudes
• Culturally insensitive service
• Inaccessible information
• Conflicting information and
interpretations in service
• Qualification recognition related barriers
when entering Australian workforce
Access Issues
• Language barriers – Not having access to translated materials eg –
the NDIS website does not provide information
on how to access language services or direct
people to find translated materials.
– The translated materials are not clear enough
– translations use technical jargon
– Illiterate in their own languages
– Limited budget cost associated with using
interpreters
Access Issues
• Visa type determines service access
– Temporary visa holders very limited in
service access and programmes
– NZ citizens are excluded from most
benefits unless they have permanent
residency or Australian Citzenship
– Permanent visa holders will have
waiting periods to benefits 2 year and
10 year rules for DSP.
Robina’s Personal Challenges:
• language and communication difficulties,
• lack of knowledge where to find community
and disability support services as well as the
lack of understanding of the systems,
• a considerable level of stigma around
disability and mental illness,
• fears around lack of confidentiality particularly
in smaller communities like mine
• Isolation due to lack of transport and family
support/networks
• financial difficulties
Robina’s Personal
Challenges:
Barriers to Access Services
• Culturally not responsive and often times
not meeting our needs. There seems to
be a fear of my culture and religion and
sometimes I get the feeling that people
become extraordinarily nice when dealing
with me
• Information provided is very confusing
• Sometimes I feel like a ping pong being
passed on from one service to another
Multicultural Disability Advocacy
Association of NSW
www.mdaa.org.au
02 9891 6400
1800 629 072
National Relay Service:133 677
Email [email protected]