The voices of people with disability living in the Shoalhaven and Illawarra region are being heard through an innovative project being delivered by Flagstaff Group and funded by $268,777 from the Albanese Government’s Information, Linkages and Capacity Building (ILC) program.
‘We Belong’ brings people with disability together to connect, share their experiences, and to create and access resources that support their participation in social and community activities.
The project also works alongside the broader community to raise awareness and provide guidance on how businesses and organisations can become inclusive and welcoming settings for people with disability.
Assistant Minister Thwaites said ‘We Belong’ was a testament to the ILC program’s aim of working with individuals and communities to address barriers to inclusion.
“Every person’s experience of disability is unique. Projects such as ‘We Belong’ play a pivotal role in challenging perspectives of disability through providing a space to share in the knowledge, experience and expertise of the disability community.”
“They are vital in helping individuals to be authors of their own stories and to represent their experiences in a way that is true and authentic.”
Federal Member for Gilmore Fiona Phillips MP met with staff and project participants at Flagstaff’s South Nowra site on Monday.
“Storytelling goes to the heart of who we are as people, and it’s by coming together and sharing these stories that we can understand the challenges that people with disability face and how we can work together to overcome them,” she said.
“When we support local businesses and organisations to take steps towards inclusion, we help make our community a more accessible and inclusive place where everyone has equal opportunities to thrive.”
‘We Belong’ aligns with key priorities under the recently updated Australia’s Disability Strategy 2021-2031 (the Strategy), including changing community attitudes and building more inclusive homes and communities.
More information about the ILC program is available on the Department of Social Services website.
Photo: Federal Member for Gilmore Fiona Phillips toured Flagstaff's South Nowra site.
Media contact: Katrina Condie 0437 662 967
