Dear Premier

Dear Mr Newman,

After reading in the media some of the feedback you are receiving about the job you and your government is doing, I would like to give you my feedback.

Firstly, I would like to thank-you for making sure part of our car registration bill will not increase this year, and for anything you do to help with our ever increasing electricity bills, every little bit helps.

I'm a mum of two young (under 5 years) children, and like all mums, I want the best for my kids. I never imagined myself to be someone who would need to rely on government services. I have always thought of myself as quite independent and self-sufficient. Life circumstances have dictated otherwise. You see, one of my children has special needs.  This has changed my plans to return to full-time work which has had an enormous flow-on effect. Navigating the world of government services is still new to me and more time-consuming and confusing than I could have ever imagined. Yes, please streamline whatever you can!

We have accessed some State Government-funded services, so I am going to share with you some of my most recent experiences over the last 4 years.

First, was Child Health. Great. I love them. I certainly hope this valuable service is spared any funding cuts. At one of my son's regular developmental check-ups I was given a referral to Children's Developmental Services. We had access to therapy and more assessments over approximately an 18 month period, at the end of which we received a diagnosis, an information pack and a letter which gave us access to a Federal Government-funded package.

The second State Government-funded initiative we accessed is the Early Childhood Development Program run under Education Queensland. While this is a great program, with hard-working, well-meaning staff, after 2 terms at 5 hours per week, we determined that it did not work for our son. This has led us away from Education Queensland and over to a non-profit
organisation (which thank goodness is there!) with less subsidies and more out-of-pocket expenses for our family. However, like I said, I want the best for my kids and the Government service in it's current state does not provide that. I would like to hope that if a non-profit organisation can work out how to cater for my son, so should a Government department.

My third encounter with a State Government service was when I made a call to DSQ (Disability Services Queensland). They were lovely and gave me a "number" which I needed for a form at the time. I also made an appointment for an assessment, with approximately 1 month waiting time. My husband took time off to attend the appointment with me during work hours, and one hour later we were left with no doubt that we were "elligible" for services, eg. Respite. Fantastic, we received our piece of paper in the mail later that week confirming our "elligible" status. What has that meant for us? Nothing. That's right, we are "elligible" for respite but apparently there is no funding. So the State Government is appearing to provide a service, there are people answering the phones and assessors attending appointments and filling in paperwork and information is being gathered and filed somewhere, but when it comes to any actual service,
there isn't any, not for us anyway. I know there are families who do receive valuable services from DSQ, but I cannot comment on their behalf, only my personal experience, so I’m sure there are also others like me.

Now our son with special needs is approaching school age, we are once again looking at dealing with Education Queensland. I cannot begin to explain the anxiety this is causing me. The current education system does not cater for children like my son. He is not intellectually disabled so does not "qualify" for Special School. He is not physically impaired in that he requires a wheelchair or assistance to walk. He is not vision or hearing impaired. So what IS wrong with him you are probably wondering? Nothing. Nothing is "wrong" with him and I think that is where
the problem begins. His special needs cannot be addressed with ramps, or guide rails. Although, there are certain physical aids that would assist him, what he needs most is a properly trained teacher who understands his condition. A neurological condition which means he thinks differently, and more importantly, LEARNS differently to most children. My son has autism.

At the moment, it is OPTIONAL for teachers to learn about this increasingly common condition and yet there is almost no chance of a teacher not meeting a child with autism in their career. I would sincerely like to see this changed. I am asking you, can your government administration please ensure that autism awareness AND understanding be compulsory in all teachers' training/qualification?

Finally, your decision to not contribute funding to the NDIS trial infuriated and saddened me. However, that is yet another battle for those of us advocating for those who can't advocate for themselves. I agree, that the NDIS should be federally funded. What I don't understand is
why there cannot be some cooperative funding in the interim to help start a system that should be better, and more efficient in the long run? Particularly when you consider who the Scheme is being set up for.

I look forward to hearing your response to my question above.

Best regards,

Concerned Mum