(Financial statements provided separately)

We are pleased to present the 32nd Annual Report of Blind Citizens Australia for the period ended 30 June 2007.

As this year has seen a change in the governance structure more than half way through the year, this report has been written by Robert Altamore as the immediate past President of BCA and David Blyth, the current President of BCA.

The 2006 - 2007 financial year has seen considerable changes in the make up of our Board. We have also seen some changes to the staff working in the national office. We are pleased to note that the essential work of BCA has continued to ensure that our members receive necessary information and peer support through branch meetings, SoundAbout Audio magazine, BCA News, the BCA email and other lists and our website.

From July 2006 until February 2007 the make up of the BCA Board included:

Robert Altamore - President
Jayson Hanrahan
Craig Magill
Tony Starkey
Robyn McKenzie
Natale Cutri

From 2 February 2007 to 9 March 2007, all full BCA members as at 30 June 2006 were invited to participate in a postal ballot for the election of a new BCA Board and President. The results of the election are as follows:

David Blyth (President)
Barry Chapman
Don Draffin
Greg Madson
Laurie Grovenor
Frank Nowlan
Cheryl Pascual

Rikki Chaplin was subsequently co-opted onto the Board.

We commenced a review of our current constitution to ensure that it is up to date and meets the organisation's current needs as well as all legal requirements.

In October 2006, Aileen McFadzean resigned from BCA after many years of service. I had been working one to two days a week with her before she left, and after she left my workload increased extraordinarily as I tried to manage all of her matters as well as my own. Working with Aileen was an incredible experience, and the steep learning curve that I undertook has so far stood me in good stead!

In January 2007, I formally resigned from BCA as I was intending to write a post graduate thesis in history, however I don't know if my resignation ever became 'real' as I stayed on to close my final matters and I came back full time later in the year!

One of the reasons that I came back is the depth of the work and the expansion or redefining of my role at BCA. By this I mean that when I was working one day a week, I was strictly case focussed, mainly on matters that would lead to a positive systemic outcome, with the handful of individual advocacy complaints that crop up and are just as important. However, as any lawyer who (thinks like a proactive doctor and) believes in 'prevention instead of a cure', I have always had a strong belief in the value and strength of Community Legal Education (CLE) and I have many years of experience delivering such training. CLE is quite simply - breaking down the law and explaining it in 'real terms', making it accessible, in terms of language, structure, participation modules that include quizzes and case studies, basically anything that gets participants to think about the law and how it applies to the facts at hand. I do believe that a lot of the complaints I file and settle stem from the ignorance and discriminatory attitudes of the respondents, and while this is not meant to be a defence to discrimination, this can many a time be addressed with workshops, training and education.

The other area that I have had experience and am passionate about is law reform. I think it is great that we live in a country that has anti-discrimination laws but it is incredibly important to not get complacent about this and constantly make sure that we challenge the status quo and be heard! I represented BCA at a significant forum on the Convention on the Rights of People with Disabilities (CRPD) in June and am committed to lobbying the government to ratify the UN convention so that it becomes a part of our domestic law. I will be contacting members for support when the process is further underway, as we will be devising a campaign to get the government to act now!

Whilst there has been a change of my title to reflect a broader approach to advocacy, my role still comprises mainly individual advocacy work. I continue to work closely with Jessica Zammit and the individual advocacy service so that we can ensure that individual members' blindness related issues are addressed and issues of strategic relevance are also advanced.

A few matters are listed below to give you an indication of the varied matters that I have worked on over the last year. I have been involved in complaints about discriminatory treatment in a myriad of areas including but not limited to the areas of education, employment, access to information and services, access to Commonwealth laws and programs and dog guide usage.

The Disability Standards for Education (DSE) 2005 are now firmly in place and although there are critics saying that they do not go 'far enough'; by cementing the 'reasonable adjustment' provisions, they have definitely gone a major way to promoting inclusion, participation and accessibility.

I have had a few education conciliations that have achieved a 'reasonable adjustment' in that it balances the interests of all parties affected. It is important to note that this may not always be exactly what the student wants, but as long as adjustments are being made and the student is able to access, participate and be included, the service provider has met their obligations.

There have been many varied employment matters I have handled in the last financial year. To note one, BCA had an interesting employment matter that involved a job network provider and a commonwealth agency which failed to achieve resolution at conciliation and was headed to the federal magistrates' court for determination. Discriminatory attitudes and ignorance still continue to exist, employees that have been able to perform the 'inherent requirements of a position' are still being terminated and this is why the conciliation and complaints process remains to be incredibly important. I find that it is not always the private companies that need disability awareness training, but occasionally government departments need a refresher as well!

This issue continues to be a primary concern of people who are blind or vision impaired. Many of my complaints are about access, however on a positive note, many of them have resolved pre formal inquiry or at the stage of conciliation. The more people who are pro-active and self advocate inadvertently raise awareness and can bring about systemic change through their individual complaint. A major telecommunications company, a gas provider, many websites and requests for information are just some of the positive examples of conciliation achieving the desired outcome.

It is frustrating to still have dog guide complaints. There is law protecting people who use assistant animals, and obviously dog guides are an issue for many of our members. Knowledge from one service provider to the next differs and it can be wearisome for people to have to constantly have to explain the rights of access for guide or seeing eye dogs. I welcome any queries or potential complaints members may have as I personally really want to see a campaign that targets the ignorance and therefore stops the discrimination!

Nadia Mattiazzo deftly handled all Centrelink queries and it is interesting to note that even though simple questions like eligibility for the DSP (Blind) seems to still cause confusion amongst Centrelink workers! Nadia worked closely with Centrelink to facilitate greater understanding of the issues affecting our members with the often complicated and rigid Centrelink process.

This area remains a difficult area to negotiate with service providers not always coming to the table! In fact, a proposed conciliation after nearly two years failed to take place due to the respondent's unwillingness to mediate. I look forward to the review of the Disability Standards for Accessible Public Transport (DSAPT) in the hope that the review will achieve what the standards are meant to- accessible public transport!

A few months ago, I decided to write a letter in response to an advertisement for an optometrist's store. The advertisement claimed: "if you can't see, you don't learn" and was in my student diary. I informed my manager and we wrote a letter to both the University and the optometrist stating just how incorrect, inappropriate, unhelpful and demeaning a statement this was and we got responses from both parties apologising and insisting that it would never happen again. All we did was write a letter- but it worked. The federal law would not necessarily have helped us, and there are no disability vilification laws in Victoria, but by making it personal, the two parties actually acknowledged it and made a commitment to prevent this from happening again. This is something that every member can do themselves if they can and want to - write letters, speak out, change cultures. I am proud to be a part of an advocacy service that has the potential to affect positively people who are blind or vision impaired all over Australia.

Australian Standards

BCA has continued its representation on the Australian Standards ME64 Committee dealing with Standard 1428 relating to access. BCA is also represented on ASNZ1428.1 and ASNZ1428.4 which relates to building access, placement of Tactile Ground Surface Indicators and accessible signage.

As per our funding arrangement with the Department of Human Services, the Victorian Project has successfully continued throughout the 2006-2007 period. We would like to acknowledge the support of the department in strengthening our ability to continue to provide high level advocacy, information provision and consultancy in Victoria. We would also like to acknowledge the dedication of our volunteers, including those who sit on the Victorian Coordinating Committee and assist in prioritising the work undertaken in this project and our office volunteers for their continued hard work and dedication.

Requests for individual advocacy received by BCA in the 2006-2007 year have continued to increase. Many of these requests centred on potential discrimination and information provision regarding rights pertaining to employment, education, recreation and transport. Requests for information provision have also been a strong focus within the advocacy role.

Whilst many requests for advocacy begin from a humble phone call regarding potential discrimination, many cases inadvertently become systemic advocacy pursuits. Listed below are some of the areas that Victoria, in conjunction with National staff, have worked to address in the last year.

Electronic Assisted Voting:

One of the most basic democratic rights is the right to cast an independent, secret and unverifiable vote - a right which has not been freely available to people who are blind or vision impaired. BCA led the charge in working with the Australian Electoral Commission (AEC) to lobby the Victorian government for a trial of electronic assisted voting in Victoria for the Victorian State Election, held in November, 2006. This lobbying led to a successful outcome, with screen reader software provided at voting kiosks, as well as the provision of other low tech adaptations to assist those with low vision. With the Federal election looming, BCA has continued to work with the AEC to ensure that this election is also accessible to voters. A number of sites have been identified within Victoria and we encourage members to use these facilities to ensure that they can be provided at future elections.

Victorian Statutory Identification for non drivers:

A frequently raised concern is proof of identity, particularly by those who have recently ceased driving or individuals who do not have ready access to a birth certificate or passport. Whilst the BCA ID Card has significantly reduced some of the barriers associated with proof of identity, in some instances holders are still asked to provide additional forms of identification. Fortunately, a precedent has been set in New South Wales where the Road Traffic Authority have issued an identification card which has the same point structure as a driver's licence and can be accessed by non drivers. BCA have begun to lobby for an equivalent card to be introduced in Victoria, with the support of 25 organisations representing people with a disability and disadvantaged groups. More hard work is envisaged over the next year before such an initiative will be implemented, however we will keep members informed of our progress. BCA also envisages that this initiative will also be progressively explored in other states of Australia.

BCA Obstacle Notice:

The Obstacle Notice has continued to develop, with a move to provide these to members in all states of Australia. We would like to acknowledge the recent support of the Blythe-Sanderson Group who has agreed to fund the printing costs of these notices. It is expected that these notices will be launched at National Convention later this year and be available to members after this time.

Public Transport:

As in past years, public transport has been a key focus within the role of the Victorian Advocacy and Information Officer. Much of the advocacy in this area is undertaken through direct consultation with government and providers to ensure equitable outcomes. Listed below are some of the areas which have been examined.

• Transport Ticketing System - Since the writing of the last annual report, BCA has lobbied extensively and provided consultation to ensure that the implemented ticketing system meets the requirements of disability legislation and standards. BCA's lobbying has included a push to ensure that users with a National Blind Travel Pass (NBTP) are not penalised if they are unable to 'scan on' and 'scan off' the system and that interstate users can still use their pass under the current arrangements; lobbying for raised tactile and braille on the purchase device; ensuring that audible output will be considered as part of the release of second generation machines and ensuring the NBTP contains a consistent design that can be recognised in other states and includes a tactile feature. We will continue to monitor the development of this system as it progresses.
• Safety at pedestrian railway crossings - we are happy to report that the Victorian Rail Industry Operators Group Standards for pedestrian railway crossings were finalised with almost all of our recommendations incorporated in these standards. Many pedestrian crossings are now being updated to include Tactile Ground Surface Indicators (TGSIs) parallel with the crossing and hazard TGSIs before the crossing point. These standards are also being examined by other states as an example of best practice.
• TGSIs on the VLine network - another success has been in our work with VLine to develop a standard for the layout of TGSIs along the platform edge at regional and rural stations. BCA lobbied for consistency in the rollout of TGSIs and have ensured that this complies with Australian Standards.
• North Melbourne Station - BCA have provided consultation on access requirements, including placement of Tactile Ground Surface Indicators (TGSIs) to ensure that the station can be navigated safely and independently by people who are blind or vision impaired. BCA will continue to provide consultation throughout the development of this upgrade.
• Passenger Information Displays - BCA provided consultation on the design, colour scheme and font used on the screens. Whilst contrast of the screens has been greatly improved, feedback received by members is that the size of the information provided on the screens is not satisfactory. BCA will continue to work with the rail industry to ensure that people who are blind or vision impaired can independently travel on the network.

BCA has also continued representation on a number of working groups including the Public Transport Access Committee (the Ministerial committee for Minister of Transport, Lynne Kosky); Victorian Council of Social Services (VCOSS) working groups including the Accessible Transport Watch Project; Victorian Equal Opportunity and Human Rights and Commission (VEOHRC) group on taxi accessibility, Able Australia Deafblind advocacy group, Vision 2020 Victorian Low Vision Network and the Arts Access reference group.

The Victorian Project has been extremely busy with presentations made to a number of vision impaired support groups throughout Melbourne and regional areas which have led to increased awareness of BCA. In addition, BCA have presented at a number of conferences, including a presentation made to the Human Rights Conference held by VEOHRC, with two upcoming presentations planned.

Member forums have also been a focus, with a metropolitan public transport forum held in April this year. This forum was attended by representatives from train, tram, bus, and taxi providers, state government representatives and over 70 attendees. Two key issues emerged from this forum – the importance of clear and accessible signage throughout the transport network, particularly at railway stations and the need for raised tactile and Braille signage on the inside of taxis, in conjunction with the legislated external taxi signage. Based on the success of this forum and in recognition of regional transport issues, an additional forum is planned in Geelong in late September. The recommendations sourced from both of these forums will be used to prioritise transport issues and provide valuable feedback to BCA, transport providers and government.

Submissions have also been a key area of advocacy and have been written in a myriad of areas impacting on people who are blind or vision impaired, including a submission regarding the regulation of taxi drivers, input into the Victorian Accessible Tourism Plan and input into our submission regarding the review of the Disability Standards for Accessible Public Transport 2002, amongst others.

In October 2006, Victoria held its third State Convention in Tyabb, a regional centre located just outside of Frankston. The convention was opened by Rosalyn Buchanan MLA, Member for Hastings, with a keynote address from Dr. Kevin Murfitt regarding disability and employment. A session that drew a great amount of interest and debate was a session on transport where discussions centred on the accessibility of the new ticketing system and pedestrian railway crossings. As a result of these discussions, BCA subsequently held the metropolitan transport forum and increased our consultation with the Transport Ticketing Authority. The diversity panel and relationships sessions were also well attended. Victoria has also been involved in the planning of this year's National Convention which will be held in Melbourne.

Victoria's involvement in producing publications and providing content towards National publications has continued. The office has continued to receive positive feedback regarding the Victorian content of SoundAbout, particularly in keeping our members up to date with transport issues and changes impacting members. Victoria has also continued to inform National content through our role on the National SoundAbout working group.

Parent News has also continued with editions released in November and June. Whilst this has continued to be well received by parents, it is interesting to note that orientation and mobility instructors and those working within the blindness sector with young children have also benefited from the publication.

Information provision through our email listings and on our website has also increased, with greater circulation of events, information and vacancies that are of direct interest to people who are blind or vision impaired.

It has been an extremely busy period within this role and one which I have readily enjoyed. It is positive to note that members have taken advocacy in their stride, as judged by the strong turnout at the metropolitan public transport forum and interest in self advocacy, which not only raises awareness but also our voice within the sector. I look forward to another year of hard work and successes.

I am employed two days a week to provide administrative support.

The Sydney office continues to receive numerous phone calls from members, and many inquiries seeking information about blindness and low vision equipment and services, which are referred to the appropriate organisation.

I also received and responded to several phone calls from members asking for advocacy advice and representation with local community access issues, including lobbying local councils for improved access to the community, and ongoing issues of access to public transport, in particular the inconsistent use of tactile ground surface indicator tiles on railway platforms.

I continue to provide administrative support to the NSW/ACT Co-ordinating Committee, which meets monthly by teleconference. I prepare the Agenda and take the Minutes for the meetings, and draft correspondence as required. I also provide administrative support to the Sydney Branch, which involves collecting reading, scanning and distributing the branch mail. I also provide administrative assistance to other branches as required.

Sydney branch members represent BCA on the Interagency Access Forum, which is a group of organisations that meets regularly to discuss and respond to issues related to environmental access for people who are blind or vision impaired.

I wish to extend my sincere thanks to my dedicated volunteers, who have provided administrative support and assistance in the Sydney office this year, particularly to Colin who attended the office whilst I was on extended sick leave. Your assistance is appreciated.

The Sydney Office continues to receive many requests to attend meetings, various disability discussion forums and to provide input into access issues, advocacy and policy processes that we can not hope to meet with our current limited resources. However BCA will continue to work towards obtaining state government funding to maintain and further develop BCA’s presence in NSW.

The chief policy-making body of BCA is the National Policy and Development Council (NPDC) which is made up of the BCA Board and a representative from each state with more than 50 individual members.

The development of submissions and policy statements is generally overseen by members of this group. In some instances, small ad hoc working groups are formed to deal with responses to issues which require highly specialised knowledge and expertise that is appropriate to the issue. Our capacity to form dedicated groups as needed enables BCA to prepare quality submissions and responses within required timeframes.

This year the NPDC has worked closely with the National Policy Officer to provide input into the development of submissions.

The branch had a successful year with membership during the fiscal year increasing by six members. Free local newspaper advertisements assisted in promoting the branch to the local community.

The branch continues its' successful formula of one meeting and one social outing per calendar month. The branch as been generously supported by a volunteer driver piloting a community bus.

At both meetings and outings members continue to provide not only social support to each other, but also assist each other with information regarding available services and aids, as well as tips and hints that assist individuals with independence and quality of life.

Karen Knight was elected President at the 2006 Annual General Meeting. In May, Karen resigned as President, but remained on the Committee, when she took up a new job as the Queensland Regional Manager for Vision Australia. Lyn Eagers was then appointed acting President.

The third Queensland State Convention was held from 27 to 29 October at The Sugar Country Motor In. The theme was "Together We Do Better: The Power of Peer Support". Forty three people attended the convention.

The guest speaker at the December branch meeting was Ann Bright, Queensland Electoral Officer from the Australian Electoral Office who outlined plans for a trial of electronically assisted voting at the next Federal election. There has since been some opportunities to have a look at the system that will be used.

Members are encouraged to vote using the electronic voting system, as the more that do the more likely it is that this arrangement will progress beyond just a trial for future elections.

At the March meeting members learnt about funding available to people with a disability through the Choosability Fund from Cassandra Sheppard from Foresters ANA Mutual Society.

Throughout the year we have continued to broadcast our monthly radio program, "The Voice", on Radio 4RPH and we thank the volunteers who do the reading for us.

Blind Citizens WA has had another year of successful advocacy, member support, community education and a lot of advice given on the needs of people who are blind or vision impaired living in Western Australia. But, it hasn't all been work; we have had our fair share of fun along the way.

BCWA Supporting Its Members

Through our Joan Lowensohn Fund, once again this year we were able to assist 2 students with a small grant which allowed them to attend the annual music camp, for students who are blind or vision impaired, held in NSW. This brings the number of students we have assisted in attending this yearly camp to five.

Again this year, we have had many opportunities for face-to-face contact with our members. A well attended Christmas party in late 2005 was enjoyed by 50 members, partners and friends.

We once again held a very successful forum and 4 well attended general meetings. These gave our members a chance to voice concerns, consult other members on various issues and gave members access to some informative speakers on a wide range of topics.

Our audio magazine, "Consumer Voice", continues to capture interviews of wonderful educational entertainment.

For those members with access to email, this year BCWA has been able to continue its email dissemination, with Up to date information on train station upgrades, train line closure updates, bus timetable changes and other useful information to assist members in their travel.

We are currently working with Main Roads WA to initiate an email communication system similar to that of the Transperth email system. BCWA had significant involvement in the establishment of the Transperth system several years ago. The new Main Roads email communication system is envisaged to have email updates of such things as details of footpath works, information of installation of new audible pedestrian signals, road closure information and updates to other main road related information.

With Main Roads WA, we have been able to strengthen our contact. For example; ongoing discussions regarding a priority list of audible traffic signals. Main Roads WA inspects intersections for upgrade, and in conjunction with BCWA, identifies intersections to be added to a priority list for installation of audible pedestrian signals. These are some examples of the many issues needing advocacy over the year and dealt with by Kerry Cameron, our Advocacy/Administration officer, Greg Madson, Peter Johnson, Gloria Worgan, Ron Fisher, Ray Kerwin, Peter Cliff and Paul bell who form our dedicated executive, and of course our members.

Financial Support and Fund Raising

As we do each year, in November 2006, we held our annual street appeal. Thanks to members, volunteers and the generous WA public, we managed to collect $2,500 over the course of the day; another great effort.

We had a fantastic response this year to our member appeal letter. Members were very generous and we received $3,430 in donations. With a relatively small membership of around 240, this was another strong indication of support we are privileged to receive from our members.

With assistance from our great supporters, the Lions Club of Inglewood, we raised $1,000 when taking on parking duties at the Lilac Hill cricket game held in November 2006.

BCWA is now moving into its final year of a 5 year RECURRENT funding agreement with the Disability Services Commission of WA (DSC). We will soon be negotiating with DSC for a further round of recurrent funding. The funding we receive from DSC is enhanced with our own fund raising successes, and has seen our financial situation remain stable over the year.

Blind Citizens WA's strength is it's members. Our members who sit on a wide range of local, state and national committees give BCWA the links needed to stay in touch with local, state and national developments. This in turn has allowed the BCWA office to disseminate important information throughout the year, keeping members informed about a wide range of issues that impact upon their lives.

Committees with BCWA members on them include;

Committee of Management - People with Disabilities WA
Disabilities Access Committee - Main Roads WA
Disability Access Committee - City of Nedlands
Access Committee - Town of Victoria Park Council
Disability Access Committee - City of Armadale
Consumer Advisory Committee - Association for the Blind of WA

National Policy and Development Council - Blind Citizens Australia
Employment Policy Group - Blind Citizens Australia
Soundabout Working Group - Blind Citizens Australia
Sector Advisory Group - LotteryWest Adaptive Equipment Grant Project
Joan Lowensohn Scholarship Fund - Blind Citizens WA
Taxi Customer Advisory Forum - Department Planning and Infrastructure WA
Women's Branch Executive Committee - Blind Citizens Australia

The Future

The future for Blind Citizens WA is looking good. Office space is being made available to BCWA as part of the Association for the Blind redevelopment at Victoria Park. Building is still being finalised but in the next few months we can look forward to sharing some modern facilities at the redeveloped ABWA site.

Nine hundred packs of Braille paper weighing approximately 2 kgs were sent to approximately 20 overseas organisations providing services for people who are blind or vision impaired living in developing countries. One thousand blank audio cassettes and several hundred pairs of spectacles and folding canes were also sent to developing countries.

The branch financially assisted four organisations for people who are blind or vision impaired in Sri Lanka. Three thousand dollars was contributed towards the cost of building a fence around a school for the blind in Sri Lanka. Fifteen hundred dollars was sent to the Ratmalana School for the Blind to build a toilet blok. Seven hundred and fifty dollars was donated to the Sri Lankan Council for the Blind for the development of a student scholarship, and $450.00 was sent to the Welfare Society for the Blind.

The primary focus for the Women's Branch this year has been preparation of a session for the BCA national convention. The topic is body language and nonverbal communication. We approached our membership via both the email discussion list, BCA-Womentalk and Aspirations, our quarterly publication asking members to choose their preference for one of three topics. Nonverbal communication won the prize above women in leadership and tai chi; two topics brainstormed by the committee. The session will consist of a panel of speakers both blind and sighted and also a professional in the area of nonverbal communication.

The Women's Branch will also host a session at the Western Australia state forum on the topic of meditation entitled The Power of the Mind

Our mind is our most powerful resource.

When we think of exercise, what usually comes to mind are physical activities to improve our outward appearance and fitness. But how often do we think about exercising our mind?

Come and learn techniques, like positive thinking and meditation, to use your mind effectively. Explore your mind's potential to enhance your personal Success and spiritual wellbeing in this session with Carolyn Minter from the Brahma Kumaris Raja Yoga Centre, Subiaco.

BCA-Womentalk Email Discussion List

At the beginning of this two-year term, the committee established an email discussion list for branch members to share ideas and become more involved in the direct work of the committee. For a national branch, creating an environment where everyone is involved over such a vast area is a challenge, but with email this process is so much easier. Each month or so the committee poses a focus question to liven up discussion and encourage members (perhaps the less talkative ones too) to reflect on a chosen topic. We have had positive and fruitful discussions to our first focus questions and look forward to your continued participation. If you are not a member of the email list, please contact the branch. Remember: you must be a member of the National Women's Branch to join BCA-Womentalk.

Women's Branch Flyer

We have developed a flyer that will be distributed along with the BCA membership kit to inform new BCA members of the work of the Women's Branch. The aim is to increase members and encourage more participation by women in the branch and the work of BCA.

Aspirations

The quarterly magazine for the National Women's Branch, Aspirations, has been a much enjoyed resource over the years. Christine Simpson kindly continued editing the magazine for us this year, and we sincerely thank Christine for her unwavering support to the committee in this role and to the branch in general. This freed up the work of the committee considerably and allowed focus on other projects. Christine has contributed to the magazine herself in the form of recipes and other tidbits, and we appreciate her dedication to the branch and keeping us on track with the magazine.

Aspirations Award

For the past few years, our Branch has presented its Aspirations Award to a woman who possesses unique leadership qualities; someone who shows resourcefulness and has made a demonstrable difference to her local community or the blind community in general. The winner of the 2005 Aspirations award was Patricia Stillman from Queensland who works hard in her local community and the blind community in general to promote the work of BCA and the women's branch. This year the Aspirations Award will be presented at convention dinner which will allow the entire convention to witness the presentation.

Pathways to Parenthood

We have been asked to promote the availability of Pathways to Parenthood - a "One Stop" information resource for people with disability who are considering pregnancy and parenthood. This guide includes both mainstream and disability-specific resources that can be of benefit to parents [to be] with disability and chronic illness - along with websites, books, DVDs, support groups, personal stories, and where to access (plans on) modified equipment for parenting.

It has been produced by and is available from the NSW Network of Women with Disability (NNWwD) and mentions one of our publications "Kids are Fun for Everyone" as a reference.

If you are interested in running for a position on the women's branch committee, please express your interest to one of our committee members or at the AGM. There are no prerequisites in standing for a position except that you be a full member of our BCA Women's Branch and you must be prepared to participate in telephone meetings on a regular basis and contribute to the Committee's work.

In conclusion, I would like to thank you, the membership. This term has seen a much more balanced flow between the committee and the branch members with the introduction of the BCA-Womentalk email discussion list and I thank those that contributed ideas and suggestions, but also those who have gained something from the branch. I encourage you to send us articles to include in Aspirations. You never know, perhaps something you have discovered to make life just that little bit easier, is it a recipe, a book that stood out or a breakthrough in educating those around you about your vision impairment? Maybe that knowledge could help someone else in turn.

In the year to 30 June 2007, the Sydney branch despite low meeting attendances, had two successful social functions, continued to represent the needs of blind and vision impaired people to government and the blindness sector, and participated in meetings with government at all levels on access to community services and transport.

The branch holds meetings and functions at the Association of Blind Citizens of New South Wales. Some of the quarterly meetings have featured speakers, such as Media Access Australia presenting on audio description. In addition, the branch holds a mid year social and fundraising function a Christmas function, and social gatherings following branch meetings, which raise some money to support branch activities and In early 2007, the Australian Radio Network invited us to participate in the "right a wrong" segment for which we received a donation of $500.

We continue to be involved in the Interagency Access Forum, an informal network of blindness service providers and consumer organizations, focusing on access issues in New South Wales.

The branch co-ordinated a meeting with the NSW Ministry of Transport and their consultants to examine a range of customer information needs, and this was an excellent opportunity to re-enforce the importance of directional Tactile ground surface indicators.

At local government level, We attended a forum held by consultants for Burwood council, seeking input on the development of a new library. We raised ideas which would benefit blind and vision impaired people and promoted BCA'S Library Services Policy and we responded to a road safety survey also by burwood council. We continue to attend City of Sydney Access Forums and out of concern about their footpath policy, lodged a DDA complaint along with some other members of the Interagency Access Forum.

In March 2007, the branch had an excellent opportunity to present BCA to potential new members at a forum "InView", held by the Catholic education system, aimed at blind and vision impaired students, their parents and teachers. We participated on a panel and were also able to present information about BCA at an afternoon workshop.

In June, we assisted a high school student who interviewed the President for a school assignment on the issue of blind and deaf juries, in the wake of the NSW Law Reform Commission Report on the subject.

Finally, looking to future membership, The Branch Executive has this year had 2 members under 30, who it is hoped will help us connect with younger members and potential members. As a first step, they assist with communicating branch activities to blind youth via a youth orientated email group.

The branch continues to meet on a monthly basis to share information and provide peer support. In April, a sub-committee of the branch was formed to discuss the future of the branch and it's activities.

Membership remains strong and most general meetings, which are held bi-monthly, are well attended. The Executive Committee also met every other month by teleconference. With a couple of exceptions the meetings were all well attended and proved productive.

The 2006 state Convention was a combined effort with New South Wales and was held at Goulburn. The keynote speaker was one of our own members, Sharon Sobey, who gave a very interesting presentation. Representation was excellent with 10 members from the ACT participating. I think this format of joining with New South Wales for the Convention was of great benefit.

Barbara Blackburn was the guest speaker at the February General Meeting. She gave a presentation on her long involvement with BCA. Barbara has been involved in radio and other endeavours revolving around the blindness community for many years.

At the June General Meeting members voted to send a $100.00 donation to the National Office from the ACT Branch.

For some time now the question of blind people serving on juries in the ACT has been the centre of communication between BCA and the ACT Attorney-General. A positive response from the Attorney-General was received on 30 April 2007 in response to our correspondence seeking an amendment to the Juries Act 1967 to remove section 10(d), which disqualifies blind people from eligibility for jury service. The Attorney-General advised us that the amendment to Section 10(d) of the Juries Act 1967 will be prepared for introduction into the Legislative Assembly in late 2007. This is a very positive step forward and my thanks go to Robert Altamore for his excellent work in achieving this goal.

We thank the Canberra Southern Cross Club for their Community Grant of $400.00. This grant helps with administration costs and allows us to continue to hold seminars with no cost to our members. This is a vital part of the ACT Branch's funding and helps us with the postage and printing costs to enable the Branch to distribute information to those of our members who do not have access to email.

We would also like to thank the Canberra Blind Society for allowing us the use their premises for conducting our Branch meetings. We very much appreciate being able to have a central location, close to transport, to hold our Branch meetings.

The Melbourne branch and its executive committee was inactive this year due to illness of the branch President. Dale Simpson was appointed acting branch President in May. The branch has contributed $300.00 towards the cost of the welcome function at the 2007 National Convention.

As at 30 June 2007, BCA has 2,622 full individual members, 20 junior individual members and 283 organisational individual members, totaling 2,925 individual members. In addition, BCA has eight Organisational (class A) members and five Organisational (class B) members. The total number of BCA members is 2,938.

Association of Blind Citizens of NSW

Naomi Clark
Executive Officer
11A Ethel Street
BURWOOD NSW 2134
Phone: 02 9744 1516
Fax: 02 9744 1575
E-mail: admin@asnblind-nsw.org.au

Blind Workers Union of South Australia

Peter Meiksans
PO Box 30
GREENACRES SA 5086
Phone: 08 8261 4121

Blind Workers Union Victoria

Martin Stewart
201 High Street
PRAHRAN VIC 3181
Phone: 03 9521 3050

Retina Australia

Robyn Wright
Secretary
72 Regent Drive
THORNLIE WA 6108
Phone: 08 9493 1858

Retina Australia (NSW)

Graeme Banks
PO Box 397
STRATHFIELD NSW 2135
Phone: 02 9744 7738
Fax: 02 9715 1314

Retina Australia (Qld) Inc

Graeme Ferguson
President
PO Box 12544, Elizabeth Street
BRISBANE QLD 4000
Phone/Fax: 07 3229 0482

Retina Australia (Vic) Inc

Charles Rogers
4th Floor Ross House
247-251 Flinders Lane
MELBOURNE VIC 3000
Phone/Fax: 9650 5088

South Australian Association of and for Blind Citizens Inc.

Len Clothier
President
PO Box 1336
GOLDEN GROVE SA 5125
Phone: 08 8289 9880

Deaf-Blind Association

Celestine Hare
PO Box 267
CLIFTON HILL VIC 3068
Phone: 03 9482 1155
Fax: 03 9486 2092

DeafBlind Association of NSW

Stephen Hallinan
Secretary
PO Box 1295
STRATHFIELD NSW 2136
Phone: 02 9334 3333

RPH Australia

Peter Luckett
PO Box A840
SYDNEY SOUTH NSW 1235
Phone: 03 9864 9207
E-mail: admin@rph.org.au

Senswide Services

Andrew Lyall
Level 7
34 Queen Street
MELBOURNE VIC 3000
Phone: 03 9015 5155
Fax: 03 9614 3070
TTY: 03 9614 3062

Statewide Vision Resource Centre

Deb Lewis
Manager
Phone: 03 9841 0242
Fax: 03 9841 0878

BCA takes seriously our responsibility to represent people who are blind andvision impaired. We believe it is critical to be part of other organisations and to receive information from them, to give advice to them and to ensure that when they speak out or develop policies on blindness or disability related matters, they do so in the context of our published policies. BCA has enjoyed productive working relationships with many external bodies, and we value the contacts we have made and the information and advice we have received.

Members of BCA serving on national organisations and committees as direct representatives or nominees of BCA chosen by the Board are:

• Australian Blindness Forum: Nadia Mattiazzo, David Blyth, Robert Altamore;
• Australian Braille Authority: Bill Jolley
• Australian Communications Industry Forum: Frank Nowlan;
• Australian Federation of Disability Organisations (AFDO): Robert Altamore;
• Centrelink Customer Reference Group: Nadia Mattiazzo;
• Consumers' Telecommunications Network: Frank Nowlan;
• Optus Consumer Liaison Forum: Frank Nowlan;
• Round Table on Information Access for People with Print Disabilities: Nadia Mattiazzo;
• Standards Australia Committee ASNZ1428/1, 2 & 4: Access for People with Disabilities, Nadia Mattiazzo.
• Standards Australia Committee ME/64: Access for People with Disabilities, Nadia Mattiazzo;
• Telstra Disability Forum: Frank Nowlan;
• The Telecommunications and Disability Consumer Representation (TEDICORE): Frank Nowlan;
• Human Rights and Equal Opportunity Commission (HREOC) Roundtable on DVD accessibility.

World Blind Union (WBU)
BCA is an active member of the WBU and its many committees. BCA, as the National consumer body, has two nominees to the WBU through the Australian Blindness Forum, Robert Altamore and Nadia Mattiazzo.

BCA recognises the following members of BCA currently serving on the WBU in their own right:

WBU First Vice-President: Maryanne Diamond;
WBU Nominations Committee: Bill Jolley;
WBU Low Vision Working Party: John Simpson.

Other International Organisations
Members of Blind Citizens Australia serving on other International Organisations include:

• Australian and New Zealand Access to Information Group: John Simpson (BCA nominee);
• International Council on English Braille: Bruce Maguire and Bill Jolley.

Members of the Board are: David Blyth (President), Cheryl Pascual, Barry Chapman, Riki Chaplin, Laurie Grovenor, Don Draffin, Frank Nowlan and Greg Madson.

The Board met monthly by teleconference until February. Since March the newly installed Board has met twice per month. Board meetings are also attended by the Executive Officer.

The position of Company Secretary was held by Nadia Mattiazzo for the reporting period.

The Finance and Audit Committee members are:
BCA - Don Draffin (Chair) David Blyth, Natale Cutri, Nadia Mattiazzo (Executive Officer);
External Member - Bill Jolley

National Office - Melbourne
13 Barrett Street
Kensington, VIC 3031