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2022 10 DDEWG Meeting Summary

The Disability Data and Evidence Working Group met online on  6 October 2022 from 10.00am-1pm.

1. Attendees  

 Government agencies: 

  •  Office for Disability Issues: Brian Coffey (meeting co -chair), Michelle Gezentsvey, Sarah Fuhrer, Catherine Brennan 

  • Stats NZ: Katy Auberson 

  • Ministry of Social Development: Anne Hawker, Sonja Eriksen, Alex Martin 

  • Social Wellbeing Agency: Andrew Webber 

  • Oranga Tamariki: Dr James McIlraith, Elodie Green 

  • Ministry of Health: Shari Mason, Kelly Palmer, Bridget Murphy 

  • ACC: Ben Lucas, Tina Cronshaw 

  • Ministry of Justice: Tadhg Daly 

  • NZ Police: Christine Aitchison 

  • Ministry of Education: David Jagger, Annie Chenery 

  • Education Review Office: Mei Lin Harley  

  • Waitemata DHB: Wesley Pigg 

  • Whaikaha – Ministry of Disabled People: Alex Dixon, Dr Adam Dalgleish 

  • New Zealand Transport Agency: Samantha Eastman 

 Independent agencies:  

  •  Human Rights Commission: Frances Anderson  

  • Office of the Ombudsman: Olivia Soesbergen   

Disabled People’s Organisations Coalition:  

  • Jonathan Godfrey  

  • Tristram Ingham   

 Universities:  

  •  Associate Professor Brigit Mirfin-Veitch 

 Apologies:  

  •  Craig Wright, Social Wellbeing Agency 

  • Laura Cleary, Te Whatu Ora 

  • Robbie Blakelock, Stats NZ 

  • Richard Hamblin, Health Quality and Safety Commission  

1. Welcome, introducing new members and approve June meeting summary & papers for uploading to Office for Disability Issues website  

 2. Update on the UNCRPD Examination and data questioning 

Oral Item – R (DOCX 50KB) eference Paper: Paper 1 - Concluding observations on the combined second and third periodic reports of New Zealand: Statistics and data collection (art.31) (DOCX 50KB)  

UNCRPD committee recommendation: The Committee notes with concern the serious shortcomings of data and statistics on the situation of persons with disabilities across all life domains, including in health, education, employment, justice, and the lack of disaggregated data, including in relation to the situation of Māori, Pasifika, LGBTIQA+, children and women and girls with disabilities. 

NZ’s signing of the CRPD comes with obligations to report and monitor progress, and there is a particular interest in data to understand intersectionality (between disability and other issues or demographics).  

The latest recommendations take us until 2030, but DDEWG indicated the importance of starting work on the recommendations immediately (not waiting until 2029).  

Framework planning would need to begin with a stocktake of the current data, especially a stocktake of intersectional data. Stats NZ has the potential to provide intersectional data (via Census 2023 and the 2023 Disability Survey), Stats NZ already collects this data but does not utilise it. Stats NZ needs to commit to analysing and publishing more disability data that it has in the past (ie Census 2018).   

There was discussion over who would lead this framework – would it be Whaikaha, or a DDEWG workstream. 

3. Revision of workstreams and Terms of Reference for the Group 

Oral Item – seeking commitment from the group as to who will be involved in each workstream and to form a subgroup to review and update the Terms of Reference for the Group. 

Reference Papers:

Review of current membership are current members and agencies wanting to remain in workstreams and are any new people wanting to join. 

It was mentioned that there should be an effort and push to recruit better representation of disabled people in the workstreams.  

Actions:  

  • DDEWG members will confirm their (and their agency’s) membership in the workstreams, 

  • ODI and MSD (Sonja) will investigate ways to invite and include disabled people to join the workstreams 

  • The workstream Engagement, capability building and resources workstream will review the Terms of References and disseminate them to members of the larger DDEWG. 

The role of the larger DDEWG is now to be a governance group (as opposed to a working group). The workstreams will be working groups.  

ODI will continue to coordinate and act as secretariat of DDEWG.   

4. Introducing the Critical Disability Studies Research Network (Guest Speaker – Gill Rutherford)  

CDSRN at Otago University; invited and encouraged DDEWG members to participate in the network.  

Network asked how DDEWG members would like to be involved; the network would like one or two officials to represent DDEWG on the network.  

It was decided the DDEWG representative/s could help the network by providing updates on what disability data, evidence, surveys, and research exists already or is being developed.  

DDEWG member Bridget (Donald Beasley) is also a member of CDSRN and offered to act as conduit between the two.  

5. Engagement, communications, and resources workstream 

Paper 5 – Disability Data Training - Oral Update   (PPTX 250KB)

Noted that the resources website is now live: Disability data and evidence resources - Office for Disability Issues (odi.govt.nz) external URL  

6. Submission on Disaggregating Census 2023 Tables by Disability 

Paper 6 - Making Data about Disabled People Available in the NZ.Stat Tool. (DOCX 442KB) 

The 2023 Census will ask the six Washington Group Short Set. Stats NZ ran a consultation seeking advice on what to publish from the 2023 Census. DDEWG will not make their own submission, but Whaikaha made a submission to Stats NZ, calling for much greater disability data to be released in 2023, especially intersectional data. There is opportunity for the group to meet with Stats NZ to discuss Census outputs in greater detail.  

It was suggested that Census data available to the public might be confined to disability status only, but the 6 individual Washington Group difficulties should be available in the IDI.  

7. Update on reporting workstream 

Oral update  

Growth in govt agencies who are eager to collect data and report on disability (but need guidance on how to do this). The resource website (agenda item 5) will be valuable for these agencies.  

8. Access to Disability Data workstream 

The group was happy with the current disability indicator paper, and therefore does not need to be presented to DDEWG again.  

9. MoH and Stats NZ testing questions designed to identify people with learning disabilities 

Stats NZ and MoH ran a session with People First members, to see which questions worked well for these members. 

The complexity of WG-style questions wasn’t well suited to PF members.  

At the end of the session, MoH settled on two questions: 

  1. Do you have a learning/intellectual disability? Note: This does not include learning differences, such as dyslexia or ADHD.  

  1. Do you sometimes need support to go to the doctor, go shopping or help when things go wrong? 

It was noted by the group that Q1 puts the ownership on the person (the same nuanced difference between “Do you have a disability” vs. “Are you a disabled person”). Alternative wording would be: Are you a person with a learning disability? 

MoH came to final wording of Q1 based on mirroring how PF described themselves, and it is easier for PF members to say, “I have a learning disability.”   

It was also noted that when choosing question wording, there is often a tension between using or avoiding medical-model style questions (for example, asking about a diagnosis), whilst not omitting disabled people.  

10. Additional member updates  

MOH is using SWA’s admin data disability indicator to give an update on vaccination records.  

OT is developing a strategy for disabled people; more details can be found here: https://orangatamariki.govt.nz/consultations/supporting-oranga-for-disabled-people/ external URL   

11. Anne Hawker’s Farewell and Welcome to Sonja Eriksen 

Anne Hawker is retiring and will be leaving DDEWG, Sonja Eriksen will be taking her place.