ACT Disability Justice Reference Group Communiques

22 March 2024

A Disability Justice Reference Group (DJRG) meeting was held on 22 March 2024. The meeting was co-chaired by Ms Renée Heaton, Chair of the Disability Reference Group, along with Heidi Yates, Victims of Crime Commissioner. The Chairs welcomed several new members to the Reference Group.

The Co-Chairs reported back on a briefing they facilitated with the Ministerial Offices on outcomes from the First Action Plan and the opportunities presented by the Second Action Plan.

An independent evaluation of the First Action Plan identified the Disability Liaison Officers (DLOs) and Community of Practice as key contributing factors to the success of the Disability Justice Strategy (DJS) to date. Overall, the evaluation found that positive change is occurring, with attitudes, processes, and practices towards people with disability shifting in the right direction.

Members were given an overview of themes from recent targeted consultations with key Disability Justice partner agencies, NGOs, First Nations community members, and disability-sector stakeholders that are contributing to the development of the Second Action Plan.

Members were invited to discuss the draft Second Action Plan, and a discussion occurred on how the DJS relates and intersects with responses to the Disability Royal Commission (DRC). While the DJS has positioned the justice system to be able to support formal DRC responses, the DJS and Second Action Plan are not the Government response.

Members were encouraged to contact JACS and CSD for support to progress projects that are aligned with goals of the DJS.

Next meeting date to be confirmed for late 2024.

27 October 2023

A Disability Justice Reference Group meeting was held on 27 October 2023. The meeting was co-chaired by Ms Renée Heaton, Chair of the Disability Reference Group, along with Heidi Yates, Victims of Crime Commissioner.

Members welcomed Renée as the new Co-Chair, along with several new members to the Reference Group. Members were invited to reflect on how the Disability Justice Strategy relates to their work and share these reflections with those present.

The ACT Courts and Tribunal (ACTCT) Disability Liaison Officer (DLO) provided a presentation to members on the nature of their work. Members heard about the DLO’s work, from directly supporting court users with disability and reasonable adjustment needs, to supporting the development of the second ACTCT Disability Action and Inclusion Plan (DAIP).

Members were reminded of some of the key achievements and outcomes from the First Action Plan, including the establishment of the DLO positions and Community of Practice, introduction of the Intermediary Program, improved access to information through sector training and development of accessible resources, and the introduction of DAIPs within several justice agencies.

Members heard about a proposed approach towards consultations to inform development of the Second Action Plan. Members agreed to consider and provide feedback on the proposed approach in the week following the meeting. Members were encouraged to consider how their agencies and organisations could continue to contribute to the Disability Justice Strategy, in preparation for upcoming consultations.

Members discussed themes and issues that have emerged over the last 12 months and the recent release of the Disability Royal Commission Final Report. Members noted several intersections between the Final Report and Disability Justice Strategy, which require further consideration.

Next meeting date to be confirmed for early 2024.

September 2022

The ACT Disability Justice Reference Group meeting was held on 20 September 2022. The meeting was chaired by Dougie Herd, Executive Director of Community Connections and Heidi Yates, Victims of Crime Commissioner.

Members heard about the key achievements to date from the First Action Plan, including establishment of the Community of Practice, introduction of the Intermediary Program, and progress towards supported decision-making in the ACT.

Members were updated on the feedback from the ACT Disability Strategy Consultation. Members were invited to consider solutions to the ongoing challenges faced by people with disability that could be included in the Second Action Plan, which will commence in mid-2023.

Members agreed to consider measures and strategies for further contribution to the Disability Justice Strategy and the development of the Second Action Plan.

Next meeting in February 2023.

6 April 2022

The ACT Disability Justice Reference Group meeting was held on 6 April 2022. The meeting was chaired by Heidi Yates, Victims of Crime Commissioner.

Members provided an update on the work they are doing to advance the aims of the Disability Justice Strategy and to implement the First Action Plan.

Members were provided information about a range of local and inter-jurisdictional programs that operate to support diversion of people with disability from the criminal justice system. Members agreed to the establishment of a working group to consider further opportunities for diversion of people with disability from the criminal justice system in the ACT.

Members were consulted about the development of the second action plan and advised further community consultation about justice related issues will be included as part of a suite of consultation activities being undertaken to inform the development of the ACT Disability Strategy.

Next meeting TBC.

24 August 2021

The ACT Disability Justice Reference Group meeting was held on 24 August 2021. The meeting was chaired by Heidi Yates, Victims of Crime Commissioner.

Members heard from Canberra Community Law (CCL) regarding their development of Social Scripts, person-centred narratives which include the use of images, to introduce new events and interactions, and to foreshadow emotions. Members were welcomed and encouraged to make use of four templates drafted by CCL, which provide a scaffold for organisations to develop social scripts to support people with disability who engage with their services.

Members were updated on various actions under the First Action Plan, including:

• Needs Identification Tool trial;
• Community of practice;
• Police Best Practice Guide; and
• 3^rd Person Support Trial.

Next meeting TBC.

30 March 2021

The ACT Disability Justice Reference Group meeting was held on 30 March 2021. The meeting was Chaired by Dougie Herd, who is also the Chair of the ACT Disability Reference Group and facilitates information sharing between both forums.

Members were briefed on the revision of the Wallet Card designed to support communications between police and people with cognitive disability. Members were advised changes to the card had been made to meet recommendations made by the group, including ACT Policing.

Members were briefed by Victim Support ACT regarding their experiences using a needs identification tool to identify and implement reasonable adjustments for individuals they support as part of the Victims Services Scheme. Members discussed the process to implement trials of a needs identification tool in different areas of the justice system.

Members were updated on a workshop held with agencies and organisations who are hosting Disability Liaison Officers. The aim of the workshop was to develop an agreed set of principles for the implementation of the Community of Practice.

Members were briefed by ACT Corrective Services (ACTCS) on the development and implementation of their Disability Action and Inclusion Plan (DAIP).

Next meeting planned for August 2021.

14 August 2020

The ACT Disability Justice Reference Group meeting was held on 14 August 2020. The meeting was co-chaired by Heidi Yates, Victims of Crime Commissioner and Dougie Herd, who is also the Chair of the ACT Disability Reference Group and facilitates information sharing between both forums.

Members provided updates on the key developments of the Disability Justice Strategy actions within their responsibility. Updates included the work of the first community of practice member; the successful implementation of the Intermediary Program; the finalisation of the Disability Justice specific training package; and the upcoming launch of the of the Capacity Guidelines and Toolkit.

Members discussed the trial of a needs identification tool within different justice agencies to help inform reasonable adjustment requirements for people with disability. Members also noted the opportunity to embed data about reasonable adjustment needs into data systems.

Members discussed the annual report for the Disability Justice Strategy due to be released shortly.

Next meeting planned for December 2020.

3 March 2020

The ACT Disability Justice Reference Group meeting was held on 3 March 2020. The meeting was co-chaired by Heidi Yates, Victims of Crime Commissioner and Dougie Herd, who is also the Chair of the ACT Disability Reference Group and facilitates information sharing between both forums.

Members were updated on the development of a trial of a toolkit to support frontline justice workers to identify people who might need reasonable adjustments.

The toolkit is to be trialled with the first tranche of community of practice (CoP) workers.

Members were updated on the progress of information sharing under the Disability Justice Strategy. It was noted that a number of organisations already collect information regarding disability or a need for reasonable adjustment however, most often this information is recorded in a manner that does not allow for easy access or sharing. Members proposed beginning with the development of a card that could be held and shared by the person it regarded. It was noted that the Companion Card for people with disability, and the Access Card given to refugees were examples of similar cards already in use.

Members were updated on the progress of the CoP. It was noted that the date of commencement of the CoP had been changed to allow for a more solid start by beginning the first four members together. The proposed phase in for the CoP is:

• Year 1: ACT Policing, Legal aid, ACT Corrective Services (AMC), Director of Public Prosecutions
• Year 2: Child and Youth Protection Services, and ACT Courts and Tribunal
• Year 3: ACT Corrective Services (Community Corrections) and Canberra Community Law.

Members discussed how CoP workers could be supported to bring about change within their agencies. Ideas included the structural placement of the CoP worker within the agency to give a level of authority, and providing a clear line of sight to the agency disability justice champion.

Members provided updates on the key developments of the Disability Justice Strategy actions within their responsibility.

Next meeting planned for August 2020.

8 November 2019

The ACT Disability Justice Reference Group (DJRG) meeting was held on 8 November 2019. The meeting was Chaired by Dougie Herd, who is also the Chair of the ACT Disability Reference Group and facilitates information sharing between both forums.

The meeting welcomed members and acknowledged new members. The meeting also Welcomed Minister Suzanne Orr, as Minister for Disability. Minister Orr and members discussed their key priority outcomes for the Disability Justice Strategy, highlighting the importance of Disability Action and Inclusion Plans, the community of practice and support for people with disability during the Disability Royal Commission.

Members were updated on the progress of the First Action Plan as per Attachment 4.1. There was some discussion around the issues, and in particular two activities were noted:

• The NDIS is introducing Justice Liaison Officer to support detainees in the justice system to have a way to access the NDIS in recognition of the complexity of engaging with the NDIS. ACT will have 1 allocated position.
• The National Data Asset mapping trial that seeks to find a way to match commonwealth data with State and Territory data with an aim to address the absence of data on people with disability.

Members nominated themselves for of various working groups to progress the work of the First Action Plan, and the revised Terms of Reference were passed.

Next meeting planned for March 2020.

23 August 2019

The ACT Disability Justice Reference Group (DJRG) meeting was held on 23 August 2019. The meeting was co-chaired by Heidi Yates, Victims of Crime Commissioner and Dougie Herd, who is also the Co-Chair of the ACT Disability Reference Group and facilitates information sharing between both forums.

The meeting welcomed members and acknowledged new members. The meeting acknowledged the key contributions Ms Axell had made to the conception, development and delivery of the Disability Justice Strategy and First Action Plan.

The group was provided with an update on development of Disability Justice Strategy and First Action Plan. This included:

• Significant Government investment
  • The ACT Government announced an investment of $4.8m over the next four years to support the role out of the First Action Plan under the Disability Strategy. This funding will focus on foundational actions such as better service delivery, education, and establishing building blocks for cultural change.
• The Implementation Plan, including key deliverables such as:
  • The Establishment of a community of practice
  • The development of disability justice focused training
  • Best practice guides for Police, Child and Youth Protection Services and legal professionals
  • The development of accessible information
• Training development under the strategy
  • The development of training is progressing
  • A series of four Easy English workshops will be made available to justice agencies over the next 12 months
  • A number of workshops will be held to assist members to develop project plans for key deliverables

The meeting discussed the future role of the Reference Group, given that the Disability Justice Strategy and First Action Plan were launched on 9 August 2019. Members agreed that the role of the Reference Group move from a planning role to one of governance and oversight. New Terms of Reference will be drafted and discussed.

Next meeting planned for November 2019.

22 May 2019

The ACT Disability Justice Reference Group (DJRG) meeting was held on 22 May 2019. The meeting was co-chaired by Heidi Yates, Victims of Crime Commissioner and Dougie Herd, who is also the Co-Chair of the ACT Disability Reference Group and facilitates information sharing between both forums.

The group was updated on the training that is part of the development of the Disability Justice Strategy, aimed to upskill diverse frontline workers within the justice system. Various training packages have been trialled. Based on feedback from the trials, the ACT Government is now working collaboratively with local training partners to develop training modules that can be flexibly assembled to better meet the expectations of ACT justice agencies.

The group were updated on the development of the Disability Justice Strategy and first action plan. The Disability Justice Strategy has been written with higher overarching strategy in mind with the detail to be found in the First Action Plan. It will be outcomes focussed and will name the agencies that have committed to take specific actions.

The group workshopped discussions to explore the development and implementation of various aspects of the First Action Plan. The groups explored what success would look like, who needed to be involved and what the first steps should be. The results and ideas from the discussions will be used to progress the First Action Plan.

Next meeting planned for end of July 2019.

28 February 2019

The ACT Disability Justice Reference Group (DJRG) meeting was held on 28 February 2019. The meeting was co-chaired by Heidi Yates, Victims of Crime Commissioner and Dougie Herd, the Co-Chair of the ACT Disability Reference Group and facilitates information sharing between both forums.

This meeting welcomed Mr Sean Moysey, Executive Branch Manager Early Childhood Policy and Regulation.

The group were provided with information regarding the development of the Early Childhood Strategy. The aim of the Strategy is to enable every child to participate in quality early childhood education and care prior to school. The Strategy will focus on four key elements: increasing access, equity and affordability, enhancing workforce and qualifications, ensuring seamless transitions from education and care to school, and maximising the benefit to children from money spent.

The group was updated on the series of training packages, run as part of the development of the Disability Justice Strategy, to upskill diverse frontline workers within the justice system. Three training packages have been piloted to date: disability awareness for Court Transport Officers, supporting parents with cognitive disability, and supporting victims of crime with cognitive disability. Feedback has been positive, with some useful suggestions for improvements.

The group discussed activities that inform the development of the first four-year action plan of the Disability Justice Strategy.

Next meeting planned for end of April 2019.

6 November 2018

The ACT Disability Justice Reference Group (DJRG) meeting was held on 6 November 2018. The meeting was chaired by Heidi Yates, Victims of Crime Commissioner, as Co-Chair Dougie Herd (who is also the Co-Chair of the ACT Disability Reference Group and facilitates information sharing between both forums) was an apology.

This meeting welcomed Ms Kelly Williams, Executive Director, Legislation Policy and Programs in the Justice and Community Safety Directorate, who are jointly responsible for the Disability Justice Strategy work.

The group was provided with updates and an overview of the key pieces of reform work happening across ACT Government that impact on, or intersect with, the Disability Justice Strategy. This included updates on the following:

• Early Support by Design
  • The Early Support by Design project is a long-term reform project, delivered jointly through the Human Services Cluster directorates. Early Support by Design is driven by a recognition that no single directorate or organisation working alone can change whole of life outcomes for vulnerable individuals or families.
• The initiative aims to improve wellbeing and positively impact life trajectories for three priority groups: vulnerable children and their families, with a focus on early childhood; Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander families and children; and families who have experienced domestic and family violence.
• Justice Reinvestment
  • At its heart, justice reinvestment is a way of re-imagining our responses to those in the community who are at risk of, or already in, contact with the criminal justice system.
  • The development of the JR Strategy involves identifying drivers of crime and criminal justice costs and then developing and implementing new ways of reinvesting scarce resources – both in the community and within the prison system – in a way that reduces crime and imprisonment, reduces recidivism, improves community safety and strengthens our most disadvantaged communities. This goal is achieved by making changes to the justice system and running programs that prevent people from entering, or re-entering, the justice system.
• Charter of Rights for Victims of Crime
  • The ACT Government is introducing a Charter of Rights for Victims of Crime. The Charter will outline victim rights, justice agency obligations when dealing with victims, and a complaints resolution process when rights are not met. It is likely to replace the current governing principles for the treatment of victims in the Victims of Crime Act 1994.
  • The Charter shares an interest with the Disability Justice Strategy to increase access to justice for all ACT community members. Following in-depth consultation, a proposed model for the Charter is currently under development and the ACT Government will consider these reforms alongside other justice projects in a cohesive way.

Next meeting planned for end of February 2019.

19 June 2018

The ACT Disability Justice Reference Group (DJRG) inaugural meeting was held on 19 June 2018. The meeting was co-chaired by Heidi Yates, Victims of Crime Commissioner and Dougie Herd, who is also the Co-Chair of the ACT Disability Reference Group and facilitates information sharing between both forums.

The Disability Justice Reference Group was established to:

• provide advice on priority inclusions for the strategy;
• foster cooperative linkages across the justice and disability sectors in preparing the strategy;
• guide the strategy development and respond to issues that arise from consultation; and
• ensure the lived experience of people with disability is central to the strategy development.

The group was provided with an update from the Community Services Directorate (Office for Disability) and the Justice and Community Safety Directorate (Legislation, Policy and Programs) who are working in partnership to develop the strategy.

As at June 2018 the following work has been undertaken to progress the development of a Disability Justice Strategy:

• Review of literature - relevant research, guidance material, reports, disability justice plans and related material;
• A review of the ACT context;
• Presentation to the ACT Disability Reference Group;
• Launch of public consultation on disability justice issues;
• A public seminar on disability and criminal justice in Law Week featuring Professor Eileen Baldry, Victims of Crime Commissioner Heidi Yates and Autism Advocate Jeanette Purkis;
• Commencement of the Disability Justice Reference Group;
• Review of NSW Disability Justice Project training material;
• Commencement of targeted consultation with key stakeholders to explore issues raised in the review and literature review; and
• One public consultation of a planned series of four
• Two staff resources funded through the budget process for 12 months;
• Funding to support the socio legal practice at Canberra Community Law.

Members of the DJRG discussed the Terms of Reference for the group and agreed that the group needed representation from the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander community. The group also agreed to invite Rachel Stephen-Smith, Minister for Disability, Children and Youth to the next meeting to speak to her disability justice priorities.

Members of the group discussed the ways in which their organisations could benefit from a Disability Justice Strategy and began to identify pressure points and activities that could be impacted to create better access to justice for people with disability. This conversation will continue as a theme throughout the development of the strategy.

Next meeting planned for end of August 2018.