Thursday, 19 March 2026

 Wendy LOVELL (Northern Victoria) (18:45): (2433) My adjournment matter is for the Minister for Carers and Volunteers, and the action that I seek is for the minister to grant funds to Mooroopna Education and Activity Centre, MEAC, to enable them to employ a living blind support coordinator. Historically Greater Shepparton was well served when it came to services for those living blind in our community. Rotary had built a facility for the provision of programs and services which were delivered by Vision Australia. Rotary had also purchased a bus to pick up clients to transport them to the facility, and there were around 200 registered volunteers to assist clients. A few years ago Vision Australia sold this facility, and services for those living blind in Greater Shepparton declined.

One of those people living blind in Greater Shepparton is Dr Peter Eastaugh, a highly regarded paediatrician and the husband of the former member for Shepparton Suzanna Sheed. Dr Eastaugh is fortunate to have the support of Suzanna, but he has been horrified at the lack of support for others in the community and has been advocating to Vision Australia for better support, but unfortunately there has been no response. Dr Eastaugh has advised me that of the 66,000 people living blind in Australia, 70 per cent are over 65, and most of them sit aimlessly in nursing homes all day. They are socially isolated and cannot read, watch TV or do craft, and it is very difficult for older people to learn braille. He said that while those under 65 qualify for the NDIS, those over 65 need to apply for a My Aged Care package to access services. Dr Eastaugh held a meeting of those living blind in Greater Shepparton. Fifty people attended, 30 of whom were legally blind, and only one of them had an aged care package.

Dr Eastaugh is now working with Jan Phillips at MEAC, and they are looking for funding to employ a living blind coordinator. This proposal is for the coordinator to work two days a week, both providing support directly and training other volunteer community members so that support and resources can be made available Monday to Friday. MEAC seeks grant funding of approximately $150,000 for a three-year program to employ the coordinator and train volunteers. MEAC wants to offer a welcoming space where people with low or no vision can connect socially, get assistance to apply for a My Aged Care package as well as develop skills in using tools that can enable independent living. There are a variety of assistive technologies that can improve daily life for those with low vision, including text-reading devices, magnification tools and even more cutting-edge technology, like Ray-Ban Meta glasses. However, many of those living blind, especially older people, lack confidence in using these technologies and would benefit significantly from having hands-on assistance and guidance using these tools. This is a very worthy proposal that deserves the government’s support.