The Abuse in Care Royal Commission of Inquiry has been awarded the accessibility tick.  Learn more about 

The Royal Commission of Inquiry is working to ensure that meeting the accessibility needs of our survivors and employees is how we do business. When we design, build and deliver our services, we are ensuring that accessibility is considered.  In doing this, our survivors are critical in testing our solutions and providing feedback. We’re working to better support our employees, so they are able to better support and service our survivors, and the communities in which they live.

A note from our Executive Director

Here at the Commission, we believe that a diverse and inclusive workplace brings out the best in our people and it is a key factor in our mahi. With approximately one in four New Zealanders affected by a physical, sensory, learning, mental health or other impairment, we understand disability touches all aspects of our organisation – our people, survivors and the community in which we operate.

We know many people find it harder to participate productively in workplaces because they are not accessible. Making our workplace and our technologies accessible will be to the benefit of everyone. Adopting accessible strategies and technologies allows the flexibility to boost employee retention, meet regulatory needs, drive higher levels of productivity and ensure that communications content can be used by all.

This means as an organisation we need to continually adapt and evolve to provide secure, accessible products and services that are relevant to how people live and work in both the physical and digital worlds.

I am delighted to announce the Commission is working to improve our own accessibility and inclusion for everyone. We are committed to ensuring all of the Commission’s mahi has an accessibility lens applied.

We are members in The Accessibility Tick Programme which has been designed to help organisations progress along their journeys to becoming more accessible and disability-inclusive.  The Commission is committed to complying with relevant accessibility and disability legislation and to continuous improvement regarding accessibility and inclusion of disabled people. We are committed to consulting employees on matters that may impact their accessibility needs before decisions are made on these matters.

I am proud to say that the Commission is on target to join other organisations in Aotearoa by receiving the Accessibility Tick.

Helen Potiki, Executive Director of the Royal Commission of Inquiry

A note from our Commissioners

The Commissioners of the Royal Commission are passionate about ensuring accessibility for our survivors to engage with us and endorse this important kaupapa. This will be an ongoing journey for the Commission and will help us not only better serve our communities, but leave a lasting legacy also. 

Commissioner Coral Shaw (Chair), Commissioner Andrew Erueti, Commissioner Julia Steenson, Commissioner Paul Gibson and Commissioner Sandra Alofivae

Our Accessibility Action Plan is a big part of our inclusive culture and our vision to continually improve accessibility for our people and survivors. We want to make it easy for survivors with accessibility needs to interact with the Commission. To do this we are focusing on:

• Leading in digital accessibility as more survivors use technology to interact with us
• Creating a more diverse workforce through recruitment of people with a disability
• Further driving inclusion by educating our people about accessibility