Tim Hartland (City of Mandurah), Dennis Wellington (Regional Capitals Alliance of Western Australia), Mayor Rhys Williams, Melissa Northcott (MACWA ambassador), and Kellie Wilson and Fiona Allen (City of Mandurah).
Mandurah was named WA’s Most Accessible Community on September 20, recognising efforts and leadership in creating an inclusive city for everyone and strengthening community connections.
The 2020/21 Most Accessible Community in WA (MACWA) Awards were announced earlier this month, with the City of Mandurah taking out first and second placings in two of the three award categories, and being named overall winner among all local government entries.
The City won the Most Accessible Community in WA Award, received first place in the ‘Infrastructure and public open space inclusion and accessibility’ category and second place in the ‘Digital and technology accessibility initiatives’ category.
The accolades reflect the City’s commitment to ensuring services, places, spaces and community life is accessible and inclusive of everyone, delivering on a number of strategies from the City’s Access and Inclusion Plan (AIP). The AIP is aimed at making sure people with disability have the same opportunities as others in the areas of services and events, buildings and facilities, information, quality of service, feedback and complaints, public consultation and employment.
Mayor Rhys Williams encouraged the whole community to take pride in this achievement and the huge positive steps made in access and inclusion over the years.
“We accept this award with great honour in knowing our community, organisations and services are really leading the charge in creating a more inclusive, connected community for all, and we are right behind them all the way,” he said.
“Mandurah is a leader in this space, and we’re proud to say the way we approach and incorporate accessibility and inclusivity has just become part of who we are and what we do. It’s second nature, and how wonderful it is that our residents, visitors, people with disability, carers and support workers can all enjoy our amazing city together.
“We can all take great satisfaction in knowing that creating accessible, inclusive and connected communities is a big part of Mandurah’s story.”
Chief Executive Officer Mark Newman recognised the unwavering efforts of City staff in providing leadership and guidance towards making big improvements in accessibility over the years.
“Congratulations to everyone involved in the many incredible initiatives that have been put into place. We should be proud as an organisation that we’ve created more accessible spaces, places, events and services, which has a significant impact on people living with disability,” he said.
“The way many of our teams across the City have worked with external groups to create better opportunities should be celebrated, and this award is a great reflection of the hard work, dedication and inspiring efforts thus far.”
