To make some Council-hosted, major events more inclusive and accessible for everyone in the community, Council has adopted the use of an ‘Including You’ accessibility tent – which will debut at Lake Festival’s ‘Light up the Lake’ event this Saturday at The Entrance.

An initiative of Ability Links Hunter Central Coast, the tent supports people in the community living with a disability, their families and carers, as well as elderly people, parents with prams and others with limited mobility (from injuries or illness), while also raising awareness around disability, access and inclusion.

The tent provides a range of free to hire sensory, vision, mobility and communication aids and supports, plus a ‘safe space’ for retreat to promote the participation of people living with a disability at Community events. It can also improve the level of enjoyment and the length of time people living with disabilities are able to attend.

Council’s Community Partnerships Unit Manager, Glenn Cannard said this tent promotes social inclusion at events for people living with a disability and delivers on one of our communities’ visions to strengthen a sense of community spirit and belonging.

“One of the goals from the Community Strategic Plan is to create opportunities for inclusion where all people feel welcome and can participate in community life and this initiative is one example of how this is being met. The ‘Including You’ tent is also part of the implementation of Council’s Disability Inclusion Action Plan to improve inclusivity and accessibility on the Coast,” Mr Cannard said.

The ‘Including You’ accessibility tent has been confirmed to run at the following events:

• Saturday 10 November 2018 – Light up the Lake, Memorial Park, The Entrance
• Saturday 1 December 2018 – A Luminous Christmas, Launch Event, Waterfront Plaza, The Entrance
• Saturday 26 January 2019 – Australia Day, Woy Woy
• Saturday 16 March 2019 – Flavours by the Sea, Memorial Park, The Entrance