July 2011     A trial program underway in 150 schools will help develop a nation-wide, consistent model to identify students with disabilities, leading to a better understanding of the funding and support needs of schools.

Minister for School Education, Peter Garrett, said there is currently no agreed national definition of disability in the education sectors, making it difficult to compare the information collected by states and territories on how many students have disabilities and what level of support is being provided.

“The Government is committed to providing increased funding, opportunity and equity for students with disabilities, and to do this we urgently need to develop a clear, agreed model of the best way of identifying those students,” Mr Garrett said.

“We know students with disabilities are a diverse group with varying needs, but we have very little information about them at the national level.  This will be of great use for parents, teachers, and the community in general. It will also help governments and education authorities to better target their resources so that students with disabilities can reach their potential."

The trial is being conducted across a representative sample of schools by PriceWaterhouse Coopers, with the results to be presented to all Australian Education Ministers in October. Once a national definition is agreed by Ministers, it will be used for data collection and reporting, for example on the My School website.

Parliamentary Secretary for Disabilities and Carers, Senator Jan McLucas, said the Australian Government was supporting children with disability through $12,000 per eligible family for early intervention services and therapies such as speech therapy.

“Our children deserve the best possible start in life and these investments could make the difference between a good or poor start for thousands of families,” she said.

Senator McLucas said increasing access to education, training and employment opportunities are key elements of the National Disability Strategy. The National Disability Strategy was agreed by the Council of Australian Governments and sets a ten-year reform plan that will help to ensure that people with disability have the same opportunities as other Australians.

From information provided by the Minister for School Education, July 20, 2011.

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