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Parliamentary inquiries / Inquiry into voting centre accessibility
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Final report - Voting centre accessibility


Appendices


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Table of contents

  • Preliminaries

    • Terms of reference
    • Chair’s foreword
    • Executive summary
    • Findings and recommendations
  • 1. Introduction and guiding principles

    • 1.1 Voting centre accessibility
    • 1.2 The Inquiry process
    • 1.3 Lived experience is important for understanding
    • 1.4 A new approach is needed, incorporating three guiding principles
    • 1.5 Structure of this report
  • 2. Background

    • 2.1 Introduction
    • 2.2 Understanding disability
    • 2.3 Victorian legislation, Commonwealth legislation and the United Nations’ Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities
  • 3. How the VEC considers the needs of voters with disability

    • 3.1 Introduction
    • 3.2 Alternatives to voting centres suit some people with disability
    • 3.3 Voting centres are still important for people with disability
    • 3.4 The VEC’s plans for future elections
    • 3.5 An Electoral Access Advisory Group provides advice to the VEC
  • 4. Selecting venues for voting centres

    • 4.1 Introduction
    • 4.2 How voting centre venues are selected
    • 4.3 The VEC has struggled to find accessible early voting centres
    • 4.4 Low-sensory voting venues
    • 4.5 The proximity and availability of public transport is important for accessibility
  • 5. Operating voting centres

    • 5.1 Introduction
    • 5.2 Voting centres need clear, safe, accessible approaches
    • 5.3 Campaigning needs to be restricted for low-sensory voting
    • 5.4 Queues should be managed in ways that maximise accessibility for all voters
    • 5.5 Voting outside the voting centre could be of assistance
    • 5.6 Internal layouts should be designed for universal accessibility
    • 5.7 Signage must be clear, unambiguous and placed for optimal coverage
    • 5.8 Accessibility needs to be built into processes and manuals
  • 6. Equipping voting centres

    • 6.1 Introduction
    • 6.2 Furniture supplied by the VEC
    • 6.3 Reading and writing devices
    • 6.4 Assistive listening systems
    • 6.5 Auslan interpreting service
    • 6.6 Some additional reading and writing tools would be helpful
    • 6.7 Accessible communication enables dignified, independent participation
    • 6.8 Electronic voting
  • 7. Communication about voting and voting centres

    • 7.1 Introduction
    • 7.2 Some voters need more information
    • 7.3 Information needs to be provided in accessible formats
    • 7.4 The EasyVote guide
    • 7.5 Voters need to know what voting options are available
    • 7.6 Voters need to know about voting centres
    • 7.7 Voters need accessible information about candidates and parties
    • 7.8 Communicating at the voting centre
  • 8. Staff training and the voter experience

    • 8.1 Introduction
    • 8.2 Voters’ experiences with staff have been mixed
    • 8.3 The VEC’s training products and processes could be improved
    • 8.4 Current training arrangements are not sufficient to ensure consistent and effective support for all voters at voting centres
  • 9. Measuring and reporting on accessibility and inclusivity

    • 9.1 Introduction
    • 9.2 How the VEC currently measures its education and engagement activities
    • 9.3 To make progress, the VEC must evaluate its efforts to make elections more accessible and inclusive
    • 9.4 How measurement and reporting could be improved
    • 9.5 Gathering more information
  • Appendices

Findings and recommendations View inquiry Download full report

Appendix A

Inquiry process, Submissions, Public hearings

Appendix A - About the Inquiry (PDF 133 KB)

Appendix B

Committee memberships, Functions, Secretariat, Contact details

Appendix B - About the Committee (PDF 112 KB)

Appendix C

Alternative text for figures

Appendix C - Alternative text for figures (PDF 105 KB)

Chapter 9
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