Inclusion and access to communication starts with you!
Inclusion and access to communication starts with you. This is your opportunity to support Deaf Australians, with a $2 lottery ticket and a chance to win $800,000 to spend however you choose!
Your support helps provide equal access to the Australian Deaf community through Auslan interpreters. Auslan stands for Australian Sign Language and is the language used by the Deaf community. The Deaf community use qualified Auslan interpreters to translate meaning from English to Auslan, providing access between Deaf and hearing people.
Deaf Connect and the Deaf Lottery are on a mission to provide equal access to communication and information across Australia through improving access to interpreters. We are doing this by expanding our team of interpreters, working with the government, organisations and the community to implement and advocate for the inclusion of interpreters in everyday life.
In 2021, Deaf Connect delivered 37,255 hours of interpreting, including providing interpreters for over 1,000 COVID-19 press conferences. The role of interpreters exists as a mandatory function outside of emergencies and press conferences in everyday life, connecting people in times of joy and in times of need.
"Interpreters should be there all the time. Not just in emergency broadcasts. We have a right to access information, no matter what that information is.” – Brent Phillips, Deaf Connect Chief Impact Officer.
Through the Deaf Lottery, we can fund and support the provision of pro bono interpreters across community events, emergency and crisis responses, personal times of need and everyday life. The Deaf Connect Translation and Booking Service team are available 24/7 providing round-the-clock support for emergencies to ensure that we are there for Deaf Australians at all times of need.
Your support keeps Deaf Australians informed and represented. Accessibility changes lives.
Don’t miss the chance for it to change yours!
Did you know that 1 in 6 Australians live with some form of hearing loss?
Deaf Connect is the largest provider of support services to the Deaf, deafblind and hard of hearing community in Australia, committed to empowering Deaf and hard of hearing individuals and families, ensuring they are connected and assisting them to achieve their goals.
Deaf Connect is focused on our commitment to community, leadership, innovation and culture. Supported by Deaf Lottery, we aim to:
- Work with individuals and the community to understand and meet their needs.
- Drive improvements and new opportunities aligned with our Mission and enhancing our sustainability.
- Develop our influence and position to enhance the capacity of the Deaf community.
- Enable organisational capability, capacity and readiness.
Your support makes a difference
Deaf Lottery is the fundraising program Deaf Connect, Australia’s largest whole-of-life service provider for Deaf, hard of hearing and deafblind Australians.
With a combined 200-year history, Deaf Services and the Deaf Society rebranded to become Deaf Connect in late 2021.
The Deaf Connect brand was developed for the Deaf community, by the Deaf community and reflective of all Deaf, deafblind and hard of hearing Australians, as well as the families and allies who support them – including you.
Deaf Connect is the largest provider of whole-of-life support to Deaf Australians with offices across the country and staff in every State and territory. Our new brand recognises the scope of the support we provide and reflects the individuality of those that use our services – and support our cause.
Deaf Connect continues to deliver for the community through early childhood intervention and therapy, information and advocacy, life skills development, accredited Auslan courses, aged care, and as a registered service provider under the National Disability Insurance Scheme (NDIS), and an approved provider of home care for seniors.
Your support allows us to continue to grow, innovate and deliver a greater range of services and programs where they are needed most.
Deaf Connect works with all Australians to create a more inclusive, accessible and equitable community through information, advocacy and education.
In 2021, thanks to the ongoing support of Deaf Lottery, Deaf Connect was able to achieve the following:
- Responded to 11,393 general information enquiries
- Provided 47,126 hours of support through the work of our support workers
- Hosted 212 group activities with over 1300 people attending
- 881 students completed accredited training in Auslan
- Delivered 37,255 hours of interpreting, including providing interpreters for over 1,000 COVID-19 press conferences
- Delivered 340 hours weekly individual supports to our Deaf Seniors
- Delivered early intervention services to 374 children