The right to a fully inclusive education system is still out of reach for too many children and young people with disability in Australia.
Just last year, three out of four disabled students were bullied and 72% were excluded from school events and activities, according to an alarming new CYDA survey.
Now, a coalition of 19 leading Australian disability organisations is calling for all candidates this Federal election to show real leadership by committing to a National Roadmap for Inclusive Education.
We urgently need a clear, timely and evidence-based plan to transform Australia's education system so that every student is genuinely included and supported to succeed.
"Inclusive education is not negotiable," said Children and Young People with Disability Australia CEO Skye Kakoschke-Moore.
"But without a concrete and actionable plan to address systemic barriers in Australia, students with disability will continue to be denied their fundamental right to be safe and included at school.
"It's time for every candidate that cares about children and young people to come to the table, to pledge to a National Roadmap, and to make sure the Federal government guides and supports states and territories on timely implementation."
The Disability Royal Commission recognised the urgent need for a roadmap in recommendation 7.13 of its final report, released in 2023.
While the Federal government and all states and territories accepted this need 'in principle', to date there have been no clear steps toward implementation or to phase out segregated education as outlined in recommendation 7.14.
Crucially, none of the Royal Commission's recommended reforms, including the Roadmap, have been backed by funding, nor has there been sufficient commitment to ensure full public school funding is directed toward making schools truly inclusive.
"What we have unfortunately seen in the 18 months since the Royal Commission is an unwillingness to commit to real change to the education system," said Youth Disability Advocacy Network CEO Isabella Choate.
"What message does that send to the many disabled children and young people who took the time to share their experiences of exclusion, segregation, and bullying at school with the Commissioners?
"This delay on meaningful action is just not good enough, and I think that's something most electoral candidates would agree on. It's time for leadership on inclusive education."
CYDA's recent youth education survey showed that rates of bullying and school exclusion of disabled students have significantly worsened since 2022.
Meanwhile, evidence shows all students experience better learning, social, behavioural, and physical development outcomes when they are taught in truly inclusive settings.
Australia committed to inclusive education when it ratified the UN Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disability (UNCRPD) nearly two decades ago in 2008.
Article 24 of the UNCRPD requires signatories to guarantee an inclusive education system at all levels and to provide accommodations and individualised support for students with disability.
While recent news of additional funding for public schools under the Better and Fairer Schools Agreement 2025-2034 is welcome, it is severely undermined by an overall lack of inclusion and accessibility measures.
Any meaningful National Roadmap for Inclusive Education should include:
- Inclusion as a core part of teacher training
- Professional development for teachers to adapt the curriculum for diverse learners
- Tracking progress with better data
- Definitive rules for reasonable adjustments in schools
- A clear right for all students to be included in their local school and to learn together in the same classroom as their peers
Inclusive education is not an optional ideal but a fundamental human right. It must be an urgent priority for all candidates this election.
Additional comments:
Australian Autism Alliance (AAA) Co-chair Jenny Karavalos:
"With education being the key to life chances, all education settings should be inclusive and provide the same rights, choices, and opportunities for all. Yet the barriers start at an early age with pre-school-aged Autistic children 10 times more likely to be permanently excluded from childcare. There is a desperate need for a national roadmap that provides for safe, quality and evidenced-based inclusive design learning standards to remove harm and so that we do not limit the contribution of Autistic people to the workforce."
Down Syndrome Australia (DSA) Chief Executive Officer Darryl Steff:
"It is unacceptable in 2024 that Australia continues to have no clear plan towards an inclusive education system, which is a requirement under international human rights agreements. Students are currently all too often denied the opportunity to learn and grow alongside their peers. Failing to commit to ending education segregation means students will continue to be impacted for generations."
"Discrimination and exploitation of people with disabilities have no place in our society. We know that students in segregated settings overwhelmingly go on to be workers in segregated settings – segregated education leads to segregated employment. We must tackle both to ensure people with disability live within our communities."
Family Advocacy (FA) Executive Officer Cecile Sullivan Elder:
"All children learning, growing, and developing into young adults together through a genuinely inclusive education system is far too long overdue. We cannot leave the efforts required for change to chance as too many children and young people will continue to be collateral damage to this."
"To work towards making this a reality so every student has the support they need to thrive, Family Advocacy supports this national campaign and asks for a National Roadmap to Inclusive Education, stronger oversight to ensure schools meet inclusion standards, more funding for early childhood and schools that improve inclusion, and better pathways into higher education."
This statement has been endorsed by:
- All Means All (AMA)
- Australian Autism Alliance (AAA)
- Australian Disability Clearinghouse on Education and Training (ADCET)
- Children and Young People with Disability Australia (CYDA)
- Community Mental Health Australia (CMHA)
- Community Resource Unit (CRU)
- Disability Advocacy Network Australia (DANA)
- Down Syndrome Australia (DSA)
- Family Advocacy (FA)
- First Peoples Disability Network (FPDN)
- Imagine More (IM)
- Inclusion Australia (IA)
- National Ethnic Disability Alliance (NEDA)
- People with Disability Australia (PWDA)
- Physical Disability Australia (PDA)
- Purple Orange (PO)
- Queensland Advocacy for Inclusion (QAI)
- Women with Disabilities Australia (WWDA)
- Youth Disability Advocacy Network (YDAN)
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