Accessible cinemas double
The Commonwealth has announced that 12 more Australian cinemas will be fitted with equipment to assist people with hearing and vision impairments.
People with hearing and vision impairments will be able to enjoy the latest films at more cinemas under an expanded Commonwealth plan.
The Minister for Ageing has launched a $390,000 phase of the national accessible cinema program which will see 12 more Australian cinemas installed with the latest accessibility equipment.
This will bring the total number of accessible cinemas in Australia to 24.
Under the program the cinemas will be fitted with captioning and headset equipment.
“I want to help throw open even more doors in Australian cinemas to people with hearing and visual impairments,” said Mrs Elliot.
“For many, it could be their first movie in a cinema in years as many DVDs are now subtitled. “
The Disability Discrimination Commissioner, Graeme Innes congratulated the Minister on her announcement.
“This is a very important announcement for the four million Australians who are currently unable to fully enjoy the experience of going to the cinema with family and friends because they have a vision or hearing impairment,” he said.
However Mr Innes added that Australia still lags behind countries such as the UK and the USA where 15 per cent of cinemas are accessible.
The Minister said she recognised that this announcement is just a “first step”.
One in two Australians aged between 60 and 70 have some hearing loss. This increases to 70 per cent for those over the age of 70.
