Agenda of Disability Strategic Advisory Panel

I hereby give notice that an ordinary meeting of the Disability Strategic Advisory Panel will be held on:

Date:

Time:

Meeting Room:

Venue:

Monday, 15 September 2014

11.00am

Council Chambers, Ground Floor

Auckland Town Hall

301-305 Queen Street

Auckland

Disability Strategic Advisory Panel

OPEN AGENDA

MEMBERSHIP

Chairperson	Dr Huhana Hickey
Deputy Chairperson	Colleen Brown, MNZM, JP
Members	Sandra Budd
	David Hughes
	Tania Kingi
	Clive Lansink
	Don McKenzie, CNZM, OBE
	Ezekiel Robson
	Susan Sherrard
	Sharon Stewart, QSM

(Quorum 5 members)

Mike Giddey

Democracy Advisor

9 September 2014

Contact Telephone: (09) 307 7565

Email: mike.giddey@aucklandcouncil.govt.nz

Website: www.aucklandcouncil.govt.nz

1 Apologies

At the close of the agenda no apologies had been received.

2 Declaration of Interest

Members are reminded of the need to be vigilant to stand aside from decision making when a conflict arises between their role as a member and any private or other external interest they might have.

3 Confirmation of Minutes

That the Disability Strategic Advisory Panel:

a) confirm the ordinary minutes of its meeting, held on Monday, 18 August 2014 as a true and correct record.

4 Extraordinary Business

Section 46A(7) of the Local Government Official Information and Meetings Act 1987 (as amended) states:

“An item that is not on the agenda for a meeting may be dealt with at that meeting if-

(a) The local authority by resolution so decides; and

(b) The presiding member explains at the meeting, at a time when it is open to the public,-

(i) The reason why the item is not on the agenda; and

(ii) The reason why the discussion of the item cannot be delayed until a subsequent meeting.”

Section 46A(7A) of the Local Government Official Information and Meetings Act 1987 (as amended) states:

“Where an item is not on the agenda for a meeting,-

(a) That item may be discussed at that meeting if-

(i) That item is a minor matter relating to the general business of the local authority; and

(ii) the presiding member explains at the beginning of the meeting, at a time when it is open to the public, that the item will be discussed at the meeting; but

(b) no resolution, decision or recommendation may be made in respect of that item except to refer that item to a subsequent meeting of the local authority for further discussion.”

Disability Strategic Advisory Panel

15 September 2014

Item 5 - Draft Arts and Culture Strategic Action Plan (ACSAP) update

File No.: CP2014/19399

Purpose

1. To provide the Panel with an update on the ACSAP consultation and seek advice on disability led/focused groups that should be included for further targeted consultation.

Executive summary

2. From 23June - 24 July the draft Arts and Culture Strategic Action Plan was out for consultation.

3. There were a total of 440 submissions received. Of these approximately 50 were from organisations. 109 were received from children and young people that were collected via a specific worksheet.

4. Submitters endorsed the six goals and sixteen action areas in the Plan.

5. The draft Plan is being revised in response to feedback. An implementation proposal including defining Council’s role in delivering the plan, timelines and measures, will be the basis for stakeholder partnerships.

Recommendation/s

That the Disability Strategic Advisory Panel:

a) receive the report.

b) advise of any issues particularly relevant to people with disabilities that should be considered in the development of the implementation plan.

c) advise of any disability led/focused organisations that should be included in further targeted consultation.

Comments

Significance for the Disability Advisory Panel

6. The draft ACSAP recognises the positive role creativity can play in health and wellbeing both at an individual and a collective level.

7. From our large institutions to our smaller organisations, including libraries, a number of organisations have indicated in their own plans their commitment to improving accessibility.

8. The draft ACSAP supports this and stresses that “barriers should be removed for people who are disadvantaged or excluded because of […] disability or mental health issues”.

Consultation feedback

From 23June - 24 July the draft Arts and Culture Strategic Action Plan went out for consultation. The draft ACSAP was distributed and publicised via various channels. The draft was not produced in large print or in an accessible online format for a screen reader.

There were a total of 440 submissions received. Of these approximately 50 were from organisations; 109 were received from children and young people which were collected via a specific worksheet.

Submission Analysis

Attachment A contains the quantitative summary of the feedback received in response to the specific questions in the survey, displayed graphs and tables. The findings are described below.

90% of responses indicated that the ACSAP vision ‘integrate arts and culture into our everyday lives’ as high or of moderately high importance to them. Submitters endorsed the six goals and sixteen action areas in the Plan.

The most important goals for submitters were:

1. All Aucklanders can access and participate in arts and culture

2. Auckland values and invests in arts and culture.

The actions areas identified as priorities were:

1. Better communicate what is on offer

2. Grow and deliver strategic investment in arts and culture

3. Support arts and culture organisations to engage with Auckland’s diverse population in innovative and inclusive ways

4. Engage more artists and Aucklanders in art in public places

5. Champion Auckland’s unique arts and culture

6. Foster a robust network of creative industries

There were comments on a range of themes. Most comments were about funding of arts and culture and the affordability and accessibility for audiences and participants. The importance of honouring Maori culture and recognising the contribution of multiculturalism to Auckland’s identity is significant to both individuals and stakeholders. We also received many submissions from organisations and individuals wanting to partner with council in implementing and delivering the actions.

The qualitative analysis of the submissions identified overall support for:

· The six goals

· Intent of action areas

· Affordable public transport and Arts Passport scheme

· Better communicate what’s on offer – digital communication tools

· Public art and place-making

· More community focus - local facilities, local artists to exhibit locally, lower fees for community halls, affordable exhibition spaces, and creative maker spaces.

· Auckland artists to design our city

· Simplified funding and improved fairness and accessibility

· Multiculturalism

· More Asia Pacific emphasis/recognition

· Focused support for growing creative industries e.g. Film/TV

· Community arts and grassroots be given more status in the Plan

· An independent structure or body to represent stakeholders i.e. “Creative Auckland’. This organisation also needs a Pacific - and multicultural voice

Submitters identified new actions and gaps in the draft. Examples of proposed new actions are:

· Art should be used as an engagement tool for consultation; a fun way for people to visualise proposals and contribute ideas.

· Undertake a creative and cultural asset inventory across Auckland

· Give autonomy to community facilities - self operated

· Communicate the value of arts and culture to children, i.e. interactive artist/children’s program to foster arts and culture between generations

· More opportunities to be recognised internationally and attract international arts and culture

· Information about public art located on site

· Revise graffiti policy and look at legitimising street art through “zones of tolerance”

The areas that submitters felt were absent from or needed more development in the Plan included:

· Disability access

· New Zealand Sign Language not acknowledged in the Plan (this will be addressed in the document)

· Acknowledge and grow arts infrastructure at grass roots and community arts level

· Music and musicians

· Older persons’ voice

· More focus on youth

· Exhibition space/ platform for emerging 3D/sculpture/object artists and creatives

· Voice for East, West, North Auckland

· Detail on implementation

In response to this feedback we will seek to highlight these areas and include or reword actions where relevant in the final plan and implementation proposal.

The following actions are of particular relevance to people with disabilities, and are currently in draft stage and yet to be confirmed:

Better communicate what’s on offer -

· Develop digital tools to communicate creative activities, events and festivals in multiple languages that are screen readable or audio for the sight impaired.

Remove barriers to access and participation -

· Universal access principles – this is currently embedded in our organisations. We need to develop a monitoring mechanism, and are looking at the Regional Facilities Auckland to provide models for this.

More work is needed on removing barriers and profiling the needs and opportunities for people with disabilities to participate in arts and culture. The Panel is asked to advise on how this can be achieved through implementation.

Current work

9. The draft Plan is being revised in response to feedback. An implementation proposal including defining Council’s role in delivering the plan, timelines and measures, will be the basis for stakeholder partnerships.

10. Discussions are also taking place with stakeholders that expressed an interest in partnering to deliver some of these actions.

Consideration

Local board views and implications

11. There was a predominantly positive response to the Draft Plan from the boards who consider they can use it support their own arts and culture aspirations, and align Local Board Plan objectives to the ACSAP. Local Boards will continue to be on the implementation proposal phase.

Māori impact statement

12. Māori aspirations and outcomes are clearly identified and addressed in the draft Plan, with Māori actions woven through all the action areas. The draft Plan acknowledges and celebrates Māori culture as Auckland’s point of difference and Mana whenua as Treaty partners in a multicultural Auckland.

13. The Independent Māori Statutory Board is represented on the Steering Group.

14. Mana whenua and Mataawaka will continue to be engaged through the development of the implementation proposal phase.

Attachments

No.	Title	Page
a View	Consultation Summary	11

Signatories

Authors

Rebecca Kruse - Strategy Analyst

Maree Mills – Principal Strategy Analyst

Authoriser

Kevin Wright - Manager: Transport Strategy – Lead Officer Support DSAP

Disability Strategic Advisory Panel

15 September 2014

ARTS & CULTURE STRATEGIC ACTION PLAN 2014

Submissions Report

Submission Type

Submitter Group

The graph below shows the format the submissions were received in.

182 submissions have been received via the online form, 108 via the hard copy form, 109 from the Youth worksheet, and a further 39 via email non form submissions.

The graph below outlines what ‘group’ submitters belong to.

275 submissions have been from individuals, 51 from some form of group or organisation, and 109 from the Youth worksheet .

Feedback regarding the ACSAP Vision

Submitters were asked to rank how important the vision is to them. The graph shows the importance of the visions to submitters. (270 responses)

Feedback regarding the Goals

The graph outlines what importance submitters placed on each goal. The table below outlines the labels used in the graph below.

Graph label	Goal
Access and participation	All Aucklanders can access and participate in Arts and Culture
Value and invest	Auckland values and invests in Arts and Culture
Organisations and facilities	A network of vibrant Arts and Culture organisations and facilities meets Auckland’s diverse needs
Design and development	Arts and Culture are intrinsic to how we design and develop Auckland
Cultural identity	Auckland celebrates a unique cultural identity
Creative economy	Auckland has a robust and flourishing creative economy

Feedback regarding the Actions

The graphs below show the priority given by submitters to action areas.

All Aucklanders can access and participate in Arts and Culture

Auckland values and invests in Arts and Culture

A network of vibrant Arts and Culture organisations and facilities meets Auckland’s diverse needs

Arts and Culture are intrinsic to how we design and develop Auckland

Auckland celebrates a unique cultural identity

Auckland has a robust and flourishing creative economy

Submission by Local Board

The table below indicates the total numbers of submissions received by the local board area.

Local Board	Individual submissions	Youth worksheet	Organisation submissions	Total submissions
Albert-Eden Local Board	45	4	4	53
Devonport-Takapuna Local Board	14	0	5	19
Franklin Local Board	4	0	0	4
Great Barrier Local Board	0	0	0	0
Henderson-Massey Local Board	9	15	1	25
Hibiscus and Bays Local Board	6	2	3	11
Howick Local Board	12	34	2	48
Kaipatiki Local Board	16	5	2	23
Mangere-Otahuhu Local Board	5	0	0	5
Manurewa Local Board	4	1	1	6
Maungakiekie-Tamaki Local Board	15	4	0	19
Orakei Local Board	17	0	1	18
Otara-Papatoetoe Local Board	7	0	0	7
Papakura Local Board	9	0	0	9
Puketapapa Local Board	8	0	0	8
Rodney Local Board	7	1	1	9
Upper Harbour Local Board	3	1	0	4
Waiheke Local Board	1	2	2	5
Waitakere Ranges Local Board	10	0	0	10
Waitemata Local Board	43	19	18	80
Whau Local Board	16	3	0	19
Regional	1	0	3	4
Not Supplied	2	0	1	3
Outside Auckland	21	19	11	51

Disability Strategic Advisory Panel

15 September 2014

Item 6 - Access for persons with disabilities to and within buildings

File No.: CP2014/20775

Purpose

1. To receive the response from Building Control to DSAP’s resolutions regarding access for persons with disabilities to and within buildings.

Executive summary

2. At its meeting on 18 August 2014, DSAP received verbal responses from Peter King, Senior Technical Specialist Policy, Building Control to questions relating to access to the ANZ Bank branch at 45 Queen Street.

3. DSAP passed a number of resolutions including a request for the following actions to help ensure adequate access is provided for people with disabilities:

i) support a more robust checklist to be developed by building consent staff.

ii) support Council’s submission to the Ministry of Business, Innovation and Employment regarding the Building Code review noting that the current legislation is not fit for purpose in terms of alterations to buildings to make them fully accessible.

iii) reiterate to Council the value of maintaining resources within Building Consents to address these types of access issues, including education of architects.

iv) ensure that inspectors include sufficient time to inspect building accessibility, particularly at the early stages.

v) provide a copy of these resolutions to all Councillors.

4. Peter King has provided a response to these requested actions i to iv (Attachment A). This information is provided for DSAP’s information. Mike Giddey provided a copy of the resolutions to all Councillors.

Recommendation/s

That the Disability Strategic Advisory Panel:

a) receive the response from Building Control to DSAP’s requested actions.

Attachments

No.	Title	Page
a View	Building Control Response to DSAP requested actions	19

Signatories

Author	Kevin Wright - Manager: Transport Strategy – Lead Officer Support DSAP
Authoriser	Kevin Wright - Manager: Transport Strategy – Lead Officer Support DSAP

Disability Strategic Advisory Panel

15 September 2014

Response for DSAP meeting 15 September 2014

Action (i): Support a more robust checklist to be developed by building consent staff.

Response: The Building Policy Team are currently investigating ways to increase the content of the processing and inspection checklists in relation to accessibility components associated with a building under the New Zealand Building Code.

Action (ii): Support Council’s submission to the Ministry of Business, Innovation and Employment (MBIE) regarding the Building Code review noting that the current legislation is not fit for purpose in terms of alterations to buildings to make them fully accessible.

Response: The submission has been made to the MBIE and the Office of Disability Issues on the Disability Access Review. Malatest International was the consultancy agency who gathered the information from various sectors of the community and Councils. This report was compiled in May 2014 and has subsequently been passed to MBIE and ODI for consideration. To date no results have been published.

Action (iii): Reiterate to Council the value of maintaining resources within Building Consents to address these types of access issues, including education of architects.

Response: Currently all Commercial processing and inspection staff have received the Barrier Free Trust training at some stage. When staff encounter an issue the procedure is to escalate it to the Technical Expert or to their Team Leader for assistance. Decisions are made for a way forward when meeting the owners, developers, architects, suppliers or designers over these matters. If an agreement cannot be reached, or the applicant is not happy with the Council decision, there is always the option to seek a Determination from MBIE.

When discussing the issues with the applicants, amendments do get lodged or changes made achieving a better result for all. This may be above the NZ Building Code Acceptable Solutions and hopefully a “best practice” outcome. Often with these discussions there is an element of education for those concerned that will lead to better applications or better awareness for future applications. The NZ Building Code is a “minimum standard” and a lot of applicants want to adhere to this for many reasons, mainly cost and space. Increasing space can lead to lost rental space, therefore lost income. Another factor is the “attitude” by some who say that “we will not employ people with a disability” mentality.

Another area that can and does have an impact on accessibility issues is having to deal with the Resource Management Act – District Plan versus the Building Act. The accessibility matters differ between these Acts that puts one or the other of not meeting compliance.

A lot of consents are for retrofits and this is where many non-compliance matters need to be resolved. Legislation in the NZ Building Code give the Acceptable Solutions, and is very prescriptive in dimensions. Many cases these dimensions cannot be met and this is where Section 112 of the Building Act 2004 is used. It states “after the alteration, the building will – (a) comply, as nearly as is reasonably practicable with the provisions of the building code that relate to – (i) means of escape from fire, and (ii) access and facilities for persons with disabilities. In these situations the decisions become an individual interpretation of the situation at hand. Each staff member may interpret differently, but the basis of all decisions will have to based on the Objective, Functional Requirement and Performance provisions outlined in the NZ Building Code. This acts as guidance for assessing the situation and making the decision.

What is presented on paper can, and often differs on the site during construction.

It is admitted that not all decisions will be acceptable to all parties concerned but it has to be seen as “reasonable and practicable” in most cases. An analysis of the sacrifices versus the benefits can help in reaching the decision.

The option to seek a Determination from MBIE does not always result in a clear guidance in similar circumstances. Different factors can make a difference into something which may be similar in most areas. The Determination decisions are generally on a case by case.

There is one rule that will meet all categories for people with a disability in the community.

Action (iv): Ensure that inspectors include sufficient time to inspect building accessibility, particularly at the early stages.

Response: When inspectors undertake their inspections, these are done at various stages throughout the construction of the building work. A lot of access matters generally are not installed until the final stages of the construction. The access levels can even change when final furnishings are installed, and these generally become “too late” to completely address. It is hoped that with the proposal to increase the checklist items some of these concerns can be addressed much earlier.

Disability Strategic Advisory Panel

15 September 2014

Item 7 - Correspondence from Minister for Disability Issues

File No.: CP2014/20777

Purpose

1. To consider a letter from Minister for Disability Issues.

Executive summary

2. On 8 September 2014 the Mayor received a letter from the Hon. Tariana Turia Minister for Disability Issues (Attachment A). In this letter the Minister refers to representations from Tania Kingi and problems that disabled people are experiencing accessing the built environment and the responsiveness of Auckland Council in addressing these issues.

3. The Minister notes that a better understanding of the work of the Disability Advisory Panel and its relationship with Auckland Council would be very useful in informing the Building Access Review. The Minister has asked Megan McCoy, Director, Office for Disability Issues, to contact the Panel to arrange a meeting so she can get a good understanding of what is happening.

4. DSAP may wish to consider how it would respond to this request.

Recommendation/s

That the Disability Strategic Advisory Panel:

a) consider how it would respond to the Minister’s request.

Attachments

No.	Title	Page
a View	Minister for Disability Issues Letter to Mayor Brown 8 September 2014	23

Signatories

Author	Kevin Wright - Manager: Transport Strategy – Lead Officer Support DSAP
Authoriser	Kevin Wright - Manager: Transport Strategy – Lead Officer Support DSAP

Disability Strategic Advisory Panel

15 September 2014

Item 9 - Auckland Council Inclusive Employment Forum

File No.: CP2014/20774

Purpose

1. To consider the Panel’s involvement in the Auckland Council Inclusive Employment Forum.

Executive summary

2. The date for a disability related employment forum has been set for Thursday, 27 November 2014. The plan is to focus mainly on what council can do to improve EEO (Equal Employment Opportunities) and other inclusive employment practices for disabled job seekers.

3. There will also be a focus on who council should be liaising with in order to reach the target audience.

4. Contact has so far been made with the Mayor’s office about opening the forum, and with Human Resources and other employment related staff in order to have short presentations/ information sharing sessions on current council initiatives such as:

· Youth Connections,

· Youth Cadet Scheme,

· Work experience opportunities,

· Student scholarships and placements.

5. At present other agencies and departments that showed an interest in some form of involvement on the day are the Be. Institute in relation to its Be. Employed programme, Ministry of Social Development, the Human Rights Commission (as they recently did work in the area of disabled youth and employment) and the Disability Employment Forum (a grouping of employment related organisations) and Disabled Persons Organisations (DPOs).

6. The target audience is intended to be DPO’s, disability and employment related service providers and disabled job seekers in general. The intention is for council staff, working in above mentioned areas, to link and liaise with the disability sector and community on the day.

7. DSAP is asked whether it wants this event to be one of its community forums. If this is to be the case, the staff and units who are supporting DSAP would become actively involved in organising this event and it will influence promotion or marketing information for on the day as well.

8. DSAP members may also wish to influence the scoping of this forum.

9. If DSAP prefers that this event is not one of its community forums, then DSAP members would still be involved if they wish to be present on the day. DSAP had identified in its work programme that it would plan one or two community forums in 2014/15. It would select from:

· Universal Access Design Community Summit [@ September 2014]

· Input to Accessible Employment Forum as required [@ November 2014]

· Community Summit on a specific topic [@ May 2015].

10. DSAP may wish to consider topic options for a Community Summit proposed to be held in May 2015. This will help inform the work programme over the next 6 months.

Recommendation/s

That the Disability Strategic Advisory Panel:

a) consider its involvement in the Auckland Council Inclusive Employment Forum.

b) consider topic options for a Community Summit to be held in May 2015.

Attachments

There are no attachments for this report.

Signatories

Author	Kevin Wright - Manager: Transport Strategy – Lead Officer Support DSAP
Authoriser	Kevin Wright - Manager: Transport Strategy – Lead Officer Support DSAP

Author	Mike Giddey - Democracy Advisor
Authoriser	Kevin Wright - Manager: Transport Strategy – Lead Officer Support DSAP