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Inclusive communities for people with communication difficultiesACAA, Sydney 2019
Barbara Solarsh, Ph.D
Scope’s Communication & Inclusion Resource Centre1300 4 [email protected]
Communication & Inclusion Resource Centre
To build the capacity of communities to include and
support people with communication difficulties to
participate in their local communities and towns and feel
part of where they live.
Communication Access in Australia
We want to make everyday public interaction spaces accessible to people requiring supports to address their varied communication needs.
What is the change we want to achieve through communication access?
Accessibility is the design of products, devices, services, or environments for people with disabilities (i)Accessibility is strongly related to universal design which is about making things accessible to all people (whether they have a disability or not) (ii)
A socially inclusive society is defined as one where all people feel valued, their differences are respected, and their basic needs are met so they can live in dignity (Cappo, 2002).
Access and Inclusion
(i)Henry, Shawn Lawton; Abou-Zahra, Shadi; Brewer, Judy (2014). (ii) Concept of Universal Design". udeworld.com. Retrieved 2018-07-02
When the Communication Access Symbol is displayed:
– Staff are respectful and responsive to individuals with communication disability, and
– Strategies and resources are used to achieve successful communication.
The Communication Access Symbol has been awarded to over 200 businesses, services and organisations that demonstrate communication access standards.
Communication Access Symbol
Communication Access Symbol
ü People Staff have received training to understand how different people communicate and how to use communication tools
ü Communication tools and resources Available to support effective communication
ü Written InformationProvided in a range of accessible formats (eg: Easy English, braille, visual, auditory)
ü EnvironmentLighting, noise-levels and signage hasbeen considered
V/Line is Australia's largest regional public transport operator. In 2016-17 more than 19.3 million train and coach passenger trips were taken.
• Of the 14.47 million train and coach passenger trips taken on a V/Line service in 2014, 2 million of those customer interactions were with a customer with a communication difficulty.
• Almost half of those 14.47 million passenger journeys was taken by a customer who could not fully comprehend or solely rely on the written word to understand a message.
V/Line is a major employer with a workforce of 1776, many of whom live in regional Victoria.
V/Line
The Communication Access Journey with V/Line
During 2015, 359 V/Line frontline staff received face-to-face disability awareness with a trainer with a communication disability (39 sessions).
Trained key V/Line staff members to train frontline staff on the use of the ‘Talking to V/Line‘ kit.
Disseminated the ‘Talking to V/Line’ kit resources across all staffed stations and to conductors on trains.
Completed 84 face to face communication access assessments on the 5 regional lines.
Communication Access Award Process
What does communication access look like for V/Line ?
V/Line participated in the annual review process, whereby data as to the maintenance of standards of communication access across the network are gathered in three ways:
• An organisational checklist is completed by the Accessibility Manager
• Induction training is scheduled for all new staff
• Refresher training is delivered to all trained staff over a three year period
• 10 Communication Access Review Assessments are conducted to evaluate passenger experience of communication access and interactions with staff at V/Line
• A survey to evaluate ongoing attitude , skill and confidence of staff in relation to communication access is administered every three years
Communication Access 3 year Review Process
Completed by Accessibility Manager indicates compliance with the 7 aspects of organisational compliance including:
– CA is reflected in organisational policy– Communication tools are available and updated– Disability awareness, including the principles of communication
access are included in staff induction or orientation– Key documents are available in accessible formats– Strategy for ongoing development of accessible documents
Organisational Review Checklist - Additional criteria
• 50% of all staff report that they interact with passengers with disability on a regular basis. More than 20% of station staff surveyed report experiencing difficulty communicating with passengers on a daily basis, with over 25% conductors report experiencing difficulty communicating with passengers once a week or more.
• 90% (n = 72) of station staff and 80% (n = 34) of conductors reported using the Talking to V/Line toolkit a few times a year or less.
• 21% of all of staff report having never received disability training and 24% of staff have never received information about using the Talking to V/Line toolkit.
• Knowledge of communication strategies and tools that could be used to support passengers to communicate was inconsistent throughout the staff group. Only 35% (n = 10) of station staff responded that they would come around the counter to assist a passenger with communication disability who is using a mobility aid.
Key Findings from staff surveys at 24 month review
Comparative findings between staff and Mystery Customer
Staff report n= 142 Mystery Customer evaluations n=10
Use of Talking to V/Line communication tools
Yes62% of station staff n=3081% of conductors n=8
Never 100% of staff
Positive attitude & provided communication support
Majority agreed 4 of the interactions did not show a positive attitude and did not provide communication support
Common communication strategy
Use of pen and paper Use of pen and paper not observed by any mystery customers
• Importance of a regular review process that maintains standards
• Need a staff and customer perspectives
• Willingness to revisit the review process
• Ongoing commitment of the organisation to invest in maintaining communication access standards.
Discussion
“Communication Access is when everyone can get their message
across and understand what is said to them.
Communication works both ways.”
Recap: Communication Access - definition
Scope’s Communication & Inclusion Resource Centre
Email [email protected] www.scopeaust.org.au
Facebook facebook.com/scopeaust/Twitter twitter.com/scopeaust/
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