We know that where we live, or someone’s neighbourhood, can make life easier or harder. Features of your neighbourhood, like safety and nature, can affect your health.  

Kids with disability have poorer health compared to kids without disability. They can also face more challenges than other kids. This is not just from their disability, but from being left out, which might be because of where they live.  

In this paper, we looked at Australian policies to see if they made neighbourhoods better for children with disability.
A policy is a document that guides how the government will deal with important issues (like healthcare and housing). It explains the rules and actions to help make decisions about those issues.  

We searched a database of current Australian disability strategy documents for relevant policies. We found 13 policy documents. Some of these were Australia-wide and some were specific to a state or territory. 

We checked each policy for eight measures of what makes a good neighbourhood. These measures were: 

1. Education – childcare centres, pre-schools and schools 

2. Family friendly destinations – swimming pools, libraries and community centres 

3. Food outlets – supermarkets, fast food outlets and takeaway places 

4. Housing – the amount and cost 

5. Public open space – parks and playgrounds 

6. Public transport – bus, train or tram services in the area 

7. Traffic – how safe or busy the roads are 

8. Walkability – the number of houses, the types of buildings, and how well streets are connected 

Our findings 

Out of 13 policy documents, only 2 were specific to kids with disability. Most policies considered at least 1 of the 8 neighbourhood measures listed. Policy documents considered education and housing the most often, but no policy looked at food outlets. 

Unfortunately, the policy strategies and recommendations were too simple and missed things that were important for kids with disability. We need to think about how different parts of the neighbourhood interact to best support kids with disability. For example, schools should not be on busy roads and need to be close to parks and public transport. Current policy isn’t using this sort of approach. 

Policy should support families’ needs to raise kids with disability. A policy should also make sure governments and communities follow through on what they promised. This could make neighbourhoods more inclusive. 

Our research shows that Australian disability policy needs to better consider kids with disability. This is especially important when it comes to neighbourhoods. It will lead to stronger action linked to worldwide goals. We need good neighbourhoods to help all kids stay healthy and feel included. 

About the author:

Rosie (she/they) is one of RAY's lived experience research assistants. She is a poet and physiotherapist living with mental illness. They work on unceded Gweagal and Gadigal land.