Students, Disability

The Hon. A.L. McLACHLAN (15:14): I seek leave to make a brief explanation before asking the Minister for Employment, Higher Education and Skills a question regarding completion rates of disabled students in vocational education and training programs.

Leave granted.

The Hon. A.L. McLACHLAN: I refer to the Department of Further Education, Employment, Science and Technology Agency Statement in the 2013-14 budget, Volume 3, where it stated that in 2011-12 there were 5,924 students with a disability participating in the vocation, education and training program, but that only 3,655 students with a disability completed their vocation, education and training program. Will the minister explain why, out of 5,924 students participating in the program, only 3,655 completed the vocation, education and training program?

The Hon. G.E. GAGO (Minister for Employment, Higher Education and Skills, Minister for Science and Information Economy, Minister for the Status of Women, Minister for Business Services and Consumers) (15:15): I thank the honourable member for his most important question. This government works very hard to increase training to all South Australians. In an earlier government question today I outlined the percentage increases in training enrolments right across the board, including Aboriginal students, students with disabilities, young people, older people—it was quite a comprehensive list. As I indicated, these things do not happen by accident; they happen because we have worked extremely hard to try to improve access to training for South Australians.

We set ourselves a goal to increase the employment opportunities for people with a disability. We set a target to increase by 10 per cent the number of people aged 15 to 64 with a disability employed in South Australia by 2020. We have set that target because this government is serious about these things, and we are not afraid to set ourselves a target, albeit a very ambitious one, a target that will be extremely difficult to achieve. But we are not afraid to stretch ourselves or to make ourselves publicly accountable by setting these targets and measuring ourselves against them and accounting for them publicly, unlike the former Liberal government, which did not set itself any targets, never held itself publicly accountable.

However, although there has been some movement in that area, as mentioned in the figures earlier today, nevertheless this remains a particularly challenging area for us, and there are a number of actions we have taken to try to improve ourselves in this space. Under the Skills for All reforms the state's training system includes learning support services for the most disadvantaged learners, including those with a disability. These services include things like practical support services for learners with a disability to be able to complete their qualification and then work with disability employment services providers to develop pathways to workforce participation.

I am advised that up to one-third of those students receiving the learner support services have a disability. The South Australian government also aims to be an exemplary employer of people with a disability. An innovative and engaging support and employment model will be trialled in several public sector agencies throughout 2013-14. Positions in the public sector trainee pool will be made exempt for people with an intellectual disability and disability employment service providers will provide specialist support.

The South Australian government's participation and equity programs are connecting the most marginalised people with a disability to support entry points to training and also workforce participation. The government funds the State Transition Program, which supports secondary students with a disability to transition to training or employment options. In addition, tailored accredited and non-accredited adult community education (ACE) for people with a disability forms part of the government's $3 million investment in ACE, and this helps to build pathways for people with a disability for further training or workforce participation.

As you can see, we are active in that place. We would like to see much higher figures of engagement, particularly completion. People do not go through to complete their qualification for a range of reasons. Some of them are very complex. Some of them are simply that they have been able to find employment without having to complete their qualification and they engage that way. In other cases, they choose to enrol or engage in other training pathways, or simply need some time out for personal reasons. As I said, there is a range of reasons why people do not complete. We aim to improve our engagement rates with this important demographic and we continue our efforts in this area.