DISABLED CHILDREN

The Hon. M.J. ATKINSON (Croydon) (14:48): I ask the Minister for Education: how is the government helping to better support children with disabilities?

Mr Venning interjecting:

The SPEAKER: The member for Schubert, behave!

The Hon. J.W. WEATHERILL (Cheltenham—Minister for Education, Minister for Early Childhood Development, Minister for Science and Information Economy) (14:49): We all know how important it is to help children get quality education, and in doing that we need to meet the needs of every individual child. That is why we are investing so heavily in young people with disabilities in our schools.

Just this morning we announced significant extra funding for the Cora Barclay Centre, a centre which is renowned internationally for its quality programs for children who are deaf or hearing impaired. This $2.05 million funding package over the next three years is a substantial boost to the centre's existing funding—

Ms Chapman interjecting:

The SPEAKER: Order, member for Bragg!

The Hon. J.W. WEATHERILL: An extra $928,000 this funding package amounts to over three years to bring it to a total of $2.05 million. It is in addition to a substantial boost they have received through some commonwealth funding that has been allocated in their favour and in addition to a rescue package that we organised some years ago when this organisation got itself into some financial difficulty.

There is no doubt that this particular service does a fantastic job through its successful early intervention programs. For children who are deaf and hearing impaired, the earliest stages of life are particularly important to ensure that these young people have the best possible opportunity to develop their language and communication skills. The combination of our early intervention screening, which is a great success run through the Department of Health, has created the early identification of the need for these services. The families have been approaching Cora Barclay in greater numbers, and this will provide them with the opportunity to put their funding on a more sustainable basis.

I must say I was very heartened to hear this morning about the fundamental difference that services of this sort make to children. I had a wonderful opportunity of holding a young 10-month-old baby in my hands who had only just three days before received her Cochlear implant and to see the look on that child's face as she was able to hear her mother's voice, obviously for the first time. She was off to the hospital that day to have her Cochlear implant turned up so that she can gradually take into her world these new sounds that she is experiencing. It is almost miraculous.

It is a wonderful thing to witness, and it is great that we have been able to support not only this wonderful service but also this young child and the rest of her family. She has a family where three of the four children are profoundly deaf. Three of them have had the opportunity to take advantage of Cora Barclay services. For this family, Cora Barclay is very much at the centre of their lives. It really does convey to you the impact of these services and the effect they have on people in our community. So this support for the Cora Barclay service is just one of a series of initiatives that we have taken to support students with disabilities in our schools.