Disability Access and Inclusion Plan – 2023 to 2028
This plan is available in alternative formats such as large print, electronic format (disk or emailed), audio or Braille, on request.
We value your feedback
Any suggestions on how we can improve our standard of service to people with disabilities, or feedback on this document is welcome at any time. You can:
- Complete our Access and inclusion - Member and community feedback form
- Contact our Access and Inclusion Coordinator
- Write a letter to:
Access and Inclusion Coordinator
GESB
PO Box J 755
Perth WA 6842
Our commitment
GESB recognises the role we all play in promoting a more inclusive community. Our Disability Access and Inclusion Plan (DAIP) considers the diverse needs of our members, staff and other stakeholders and shows our commitment to ensuring that our services, facilities and information are accessible and inclusive of people with disability, our aging population, and their families and carers. We are committed to ensuring that our business partners and contractors work towards the desired outcomes in our DAIP.
This DAIP aligns with the key areas outlined in the Disability Services Act 1993: services and events, buildings and facilities, information, quality of service, complaints, consultation processes and employment.
Developing our plan
In developing this plan, we:
- Reviewed the A Western Australia for Everyone: State Disability Strategy 2020-2030, the Workforce Diversification and Inclusion Strategy for WA Public Sector Employment 2020-2025, the People with Disability: Action Plan to Improve WA Public Sector Employment Outcomes 2020-2025, our last DAIP, and our Workforce and Diversity Plan to assess our level of achievement and identify opportunities for improvement
- Consulted externally with the Department of Communities, Australian Network on Disability, and the wider community
- Consulted with GESB staff who have lived experience and/or disability access and inclusion knowledge, through our Workplace Inclusion Network team
On this page:
- Our commitment
- Developing our plan
- Reporting our progress
- Reflecting on our achievements
- Improving access and inclusion:
- Outcome 1: our services and events are accessible to everyone
- Outcome 2: our buildings and other facilities will be accessible to everyone
- Outcome 3: our information will be accessible to everyone
- Outcome 4: all persons will receive the same level and quality of service from us
- Outcome 5: all persons will have the same opportunities to give feedback or make complaints to us
- Outcome 6: all persons can participate in public consultation by us
- Outcome 7: all persons are encouraged to pursue employment opportunities with us
Reporting our progress
Achieving the outcomes of our DAIP requires effective monitoring and reporting against the initiatives of the plan. The People and Business Services team will report:
- Quarterly to our Executive Management Group
- Annual progress updates to staff through our staff intranet
- Annually in our Annual Report
- By 31 July each year to the Department of Communities, Disability Services
This plan can be made available in alternative formats by emailing daip@gesb.wa.gov.au or calling our Member Services Centre on 13 43 72.
Reflecting on our achievements
This plan builds on the achievements of our last DAIP. We are proud of the progress we have made towards making our information, tools, and services more inclusive and accessible for everyone, regardless of ability or circumstance.
Our achievements under our previous plan include:
- Being recognised as accessibility leaders at the 2021 Australian Access Awards:
- Winner: Accessibility Person of the Year (Jane Ots)
- Nomination: Government website of the year (for our Selecting your investment plan online tool)
- Nomination: Accessibility initiative of the year (for our Selecting your investment plan online tool)
- Our website being assessed by the Centre for Inclusive Design as 100% compliant with Web Content Accessibility Guidelines 2.0 level AA criteria, based on the sample reviewed
- Partnering with the Centre for Accessibility Australia to review, assess and remediate our online tools and services for accessibility, including our:
- Online statement summaries, which are sent to over 192,000 members
- Seminar and webinar online booking process
- Seminar and webinar email templates, including ensuring our templates can be viewed in dark mode
- Access and inclusion member and community feedback form and other online forms
- Videos
- Portfolio holdings section of this website
- Online Retirement planning calculator and Selecting your investment plan tool
- Establishing a partnership with Employment Edge to provide the opportunity for young people with disability to take part in a work experience placement with GESB
- Enhancing our member services accessibility webpage to showcase how we’re making our services, tools and information more accessible
- Making digital accessibility training available to our Strategy and Member Experience team
- Conducting a suitability audit for all venues used to host member seminars and resolving the issues identified with one venue, resulting in full compliance
- Undertaking a disability access audit before moving to new premises in 2017 and conducting an annual check of our office buildings
- Updating our staff evacuation policy and introducing the use of Personal Emergency Evacuation Plans for staff needing help during an emergency
- Coordinating workplace and home ergonomic assessments to staff and supplying equipment to suit individual accessibility needs
- Increasing awareness of access and inclusion through the creation and promotion of a dedicated diversity and inclusion page and resources on our staff intranet
- Advertised vacancies being distributed to agencies specialising in disability employment
- Ensuring new recruitment and onboarding platforms followed internationally recognised standards for web content accessibility and were accessible for people with different needs
- Reviewing and updating our complaints management processes to ensure all members have an opportunity to make a complaint, regardless of ability or circumstance
- Link Group, our outsourced administration services provider, incorporated our DAIP and disability accessibility training into their induction program
- Adding a notation to all documents, including forms and brochures, to let members know that the document can be made available in alternative formats
- Delivering disability and social inclusion awareness training to staff
Improving access and inclusion
During the five-year period covered by this plan, we will undertake the following initiatives to improve access to our services, facilities and information.
Outcome 1: our services and events are accessible to everyone
| Initiative | Measures of success | Timeline |
|---|---|---|
| Staff are made aware of our DAIP and their responsibilities under this plan. | Our DAIP is published on our GESB website and intranet and communicated to staff. | March 2023 |
Teams with responsibilities under our DAIP are given a copy of this plan. | March 2023 | |
New employees receive information on our DAIP as part of our induction process. | Ongoing | |
Member Services staff receive information on our DAIP during the induction process. | Ongoing | |
A minimum of two articles celebrating our successes are published on our intranet. | Ongoing | |
Accessibility and inclusion issues are considered when buying goods or services. | WA community aims and policies related to social procurement activities are communicated to staff. | June 2023 |
Our procurement policy and practices incorporate social procurement principles. | January 2024 | |
Increased buying from Australian Disability Enterprises. | December 2023 | |
Events and seminars are planned, designed, and communicated to be inclusive and accessible. | The Australian Network on Disability event accessibility checklist is circulated to staff. | Ongoing |
Attendees are given an opportunity to share individual accessibility needs. | Ongoing | |
A process for managing individual accessibility needs is formalised. | December 2023 | |
On demand webinars are available with captioning and/or interpreting options. | June 2024 | |
Suitable captioning options for live webinars are investigated. | June 2024 | |
Accessibility information, including venue features, are communicated for all events. | December 2023 |
Outcome 2: our buildings and other facilities will be accessible to everyone
| Initiative | Measures of success | Timeline |
|---|---|---|
We only use venues that meet disability accessibility standards. | Universal design principles are incorporated into the design of office refurbishments/relocations. | As required |
An independent access review is completed on new and refurbished premises. | As required | |
Regular workplace inspections are completed, and issues responded to promptly. | Quarterly | |
Different access needs are considered for people attending seminars, annual meetings, or other member events. | Where possible, our venues are in easily accessible locations. | Ongoing |
Venue accessibility features are communicated during the registration process. | December 2023 | |
Attendees are given an opportunity to share individual access needs. | Ongoing | |
Appropriate evacuation and safety procedures are in place for people with disability. | Fire wardens are trained in evacuation procedures for people with disability/mobility needs, feedback is sought following emergency evacuations and drills to identify areas for improvement. | Ongoing |
Employee induction process includes personal emergency evacuation plan (PEEP) information for employees with disability/mobility needs. | Ongoing | |
Staff receive a quarterly PEEP reminder. | March 2023 | |
A PEEP register is maintained and regularly reviewed by fire wardens. | Ongoing | |
Instructions on evacuation for people with disability and/or staff with mobility needs are available on our intranet and posted at office exit points. | Ongoing |
Outcome 3: our information will be accessible to everyone
| Initiative | Measures of success | Timeline |
|---|---|---|
Digital content and platforms, including our website, online tools, and intranet meet the accessibility and inclusivity standards outlined in the WA Government’s Digital Services Policy Framework. | New online tools and services are audited for accessibility compliance, including our Member Online portal. | Ongoing |
Our new intranet will be audited for accessibility compliance. | December 2023 | |
Our new webinar platform will be audited for accessibility compliance. | December 2024 | |
Our information is accessible and inclusive. | New member documents in PDF format are remediated for accessibility or available by request in an accessible format. | Ongoing |
Existing member documents are reviewed and remediated for accessibility or available by request in an accessible format. | June 2023 | |
Information is offered in a range of formats, including digital and hard copy. | Ongoing | |
Translating and interpreting services are offered. | Ongoing | |
Employee knowledge on accessible and inclusive information will be supported and developed. | Inclusive communication training will be sourced for our Strategy and Member Experience and Key Account Management staff. | June 2023 |
Relevant staff will complete inclusive communication training. | December 2023 |
Outcome 4: all persons will receive the same level and quality of service from us
| Initiative | Measures of success | Timeline |
|---|---|---|
Access and inclusion principles are embedded in our policies and practices. | Measures of success are incorporated into relevant business unit plans and individual performance plans. | Ongoing |
Develop the capability of our staff to provide quality services to people with diverse needs. | Access and inclusion resources are available on our intranet. | Ongoing |
Learning and engagement activities in support of International Day of People with Disability (3 December) are delivered. | Annually | |
Targeted disability confident training will be sourced. | June 2023 | |
Recruiting managers will complete disability confident recruitment training. | December 2023 | |
Managers will complete disability confident manager training. | December 2023 | |
Member Services staff will complete inclusive member experience training. | June 2024 |
Outcome 5: all persons will have the same opportunities to give feedback or make complaints to us
| Initiative | Measures of success | Timeline |
|---|---|---|
Our complaint, feedback and compliment processes are accessible to people with different backgrounds and abilities. | Our complaint procedure is easy to find and user friendly. | Ongoing |
People can make a complaint or give feedback in a variety of ways. | Ongoing | |
Access and inclusion complaints are acted on promptly, where required actions are implemented to improve our services. Our performance is reported in our Annual Report. | Ongoing |
Outcome 6: all persons can participate in public consultation conducted by us
| Initiative | Measures of success | Timeline |
|---|---|---|
| Our consultation processes are accessible for people with disability. | Our Workplace Inclusion Network includes people with disability and considers the experiences of people with disability, their families, and carers. | Ongoing |
Established consultation processes are accessible to people with disability. | Ongoing |
Outcome 7: all persons are encouraged to pursue employment opportunities with us
| Initiative | Measures of success | Timeline |
|---|---|---|
| Employment of people with disability will be increased to 5% of our workforce. | Targeted disability access and inclusion initiatives outlined in our Workforce and Diversity Plan are implemented. | Ongoing |
Thank you for printing this page. Remember to come back to gesb.wa.gov.au for the latest information as our content is updated regularly. This information is correct as at 23 April 2024.