Left Behind 2011: Monitoring the Social Inclusion of Young Australians with Disabilities, 2001-2009

Adolescents and young adults with disabilities are at heightened risk of social exclusion. Exclusion leads to poor outcomes in adulthood which in turn affects individuals’ health and wellbeing and that of their families and society through loss of productive engagement in their communities. Australia’s Social Inclusion Indicators Framework provides indices in domains of participation, resources and multiple and entrenched disadvantage to monitor and report on social inclusion. The Household Income and Labour Dynamics in Australia survey provides data over time on households in Australia. Using these tools we report here on the extent of social inclusion/exclusion of young disabled Australians over the past decade. Relative to their non-disabled peers, young disabled Australians are significantly less likely to do well on participation indicators. They are less likely to: -Be employed -Be fully engaged in education or work -Have attained a year 12 or equivalent education -They are more likely to: -Live in a jobless household -Experience long-term unemployment -Relative to their non-disabled peers, young disabled Australians are significantly less likely to do well on resources indicators. They are less likely to: -Feel they have someone to turn to in time of crisis -Experience autonomy -Have a voice in the community -They are more likely to: -Have low economic resources -Experience financial stress/ material deprivation -Have mental illness -Have fair or poor health -Have a lower subjective quality of life -Feel unsafe in their local community -Report being a victim of crime The standout finding is that over this decade young disabled Australians were significantly more likely than their non-disabled peers - to the extent of five times more likely - each and every year to suffer multiple disadvantage and entrenched disadvantage (the same measure over 2 consecutive years). Despite social policy interventions the aspiration for young disabled Australians to become more socially included appears even further out of reach than previously, with a widening of the gap between the life conditions of disabled and non-disabled young Australians on five critical areas: living in a jobless household, being fully engaged in work or education, low economic resources and financial stress and, most worryingly, multiple disadvantage and entrenched multiple disadvantage. In only one area did the gap narrow – on being a victim of personal crime.Centre for Disability Research and Polic

The NHG guideline Depression (second revision of the NHG guideline Depressive disorder).

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