On Wed 11th June '25 members heard from Heidi Biggin on Improving Disability Access and Inclusion in Ballarat.

Accompanied by her guide dog Freya, Heidi spoke to us this week about improving disability access and inclusion in Ballarat. Heidi is a qualified access consultant who assesses buildings, indoor and outdoor customer experiences, sporting and tourist venues and the like for disability access.

Heidi’s own disability is that she only has 10% vision in one eye and she was matched with Freya as her assistance dog three years ago. Heidi spoke first about the process of gaining such a highly trained animal from Guide Dogs Australia; the dogs are trained to be capable of following up to 80 commands.

Heidi then described her career journey; after 13 years as Disability Inclusion Officer with Central Highlands Water and having her family, she started her own consultancy business. Even though Heidi said that she would “ … love to have a day off from advocating …” because of the exhausting nature of her work, she also talked about the importance of equal access meaning dignified access, i.e., it’s not just about compliance with relevant legislation but also about designing places and spaces for people with disability that are navigable and welcoming environments for everyone, consistent with universal design principles.

Heidi described how advances in technology, e.g. talking tape measures and glasses which audio describe the surrounding environment, all help with assessing and evaluating the ease and safety with which people with disabilities can access and utilize a building, environment, or service.