Needs fully met

What is being tracked?

Measure: Proportion of people with disability who had their needs fully met

This measure is part of the Availability of support priority of the Strategy. This priority is about making sure people with disability have access to and receive the support services they need.

The desired outcome is that more people with disability have their needs for assistance fully met by the support services they use.

From July 2024, data about Autistic people with disability have been added to this page (see Population groups – Disability group). This is to help track outcomes under the new National Autism Strategy.

Last updated:

Outcome area: Personal and community support Priority: Availability of support

  • Baseline value

    72%in 2018

  • Latest value

    62%in 2022

Regress the measure is not moving in the direction the Strategy wants

View the data source

Has the proportion of people with disability who have their needs fully met increased over time?

The data in the graph and the table below show the proportion of people with disability (of all ages) who had their needs for assistance fully met. Data from 2012 to 2022 are used. In 2022, 62% of people with disability had their needs fully met, as did 73% in 2012. The baseline used to track change over time was 72% in 2018.

Source: Australian Bureau of Statistics – Survey of Disability, Ageing and Carers (SDAC) | Data source overview

State and territory

Does the proportion of people with disability who have their needs fully met vary between states and territories?

The data in the graph and the table below show the proportion of people with disability (of all ages) who had their needs for assistance fully met, grouped by Australian states and territories. In 2022, 65% of people with disability living in Western Australia and 59% in Tasmania had their needs fully met.

# Should be used with caution: proportion has a Margin of Error (MoE) >10 percentage points and/or proportion ± MoE equals <0% or >100%.

Source: Australian Bureau of Statistics – Survey of Disability, Ageing and Carers (SDAC) | Data source overview

Population groups

How this measure varies by…

  • Does the proportion of people with disability who have their needs fully met vary for First Nations people and non-Indigenous Australians?

    The data in the graph and the table below show the proportion of people with disability (of all ages) who had their needs for assistance fully met, by Indigenous status. In 2022, 58% of First Nations people with disability and 62% of non-Indigenous people with disability had their needs fully met.

    Source: Australian Bureau of Statistics – Survey of Disability, Ageing and Carers (SDAC) | Data source overview

  • Does the proportion of people with disability who have their needs fully met vary by sex?

    The data in the graph and the table below show the proportion of people with disability (of all ages) who had their needs for assistance fully met, for males and females. In 2022, 65% of males with disability had their needs fully met, compared with 59% of females.

    Source: Australian Bureau of Statistics – Survey of Disability, Ageing and Carers (SDAC) | Data source overview

  • Does the proportion of people with disability who have their needs fully met vary by age?

    The data in the graph and the table below show the proportion of people with disability (of all ages) who had their needs for assistance fully met, grouped by age. In 2022, 69% of people with disability aged 45–64 had their needs fully met, compared with 44% for those aged under 15.

    Source: Australian Bureau of Statistics – Survey of Disability, Ageing and Carers (SDAC) | Data source overview

  • Does the proportion of people with disability who have their needs fully met vary by cultural and linguistic diversity background?

    The data in the graph and the table below show the proportion of people with disability (of all ages) who had their needs for assistance fully met, by culturally and linguistically diverse (CALD) status. In 2022, 60% of people from CALD backgrounds with disability had their needs fully met, as did 63% among the non-CALD group.

    # Should be used with caution: proportion has a Margin of Error (MoE) >10 percentage points and/or proportion ± MoE equals <0% or >100%.

    Source: Australian Bureau of Statistics – Survey of Disability, Ageing and Carers (SDAC) | Data source overview

  • Does the proportion of people with disability who have their needs fully met vary by remoteness?

    The data in the graph and the table below show the proportion of people with disability (of all ages) who had their needs for assistance fully met, grouped by remoteness. In 2022, 65% of people with disability living in outer regional and remote areas and 61% in major cities had their needs fully met.

    Source: Australian Bureau of Statistics – Survey of Disability, Ageing and Carers (SDAC) | Data source overview

  • Does the proportion of people with disability who have their needs fully met vary by disability group?

    The data in the graph and the table below show the proportion of people with disability (of all ages) who had their needs for assistance fully met, by disability group. In 2022, 59% of people with sensory or speech disability had their needs fully met, compared with 41% of people with psychosocial disability.

    Source: Australian Bureau of Statistics – Survey of Disability, Ageing and Carers (SDAC) | Data source overview

    Does the proportion of people with disability who have their needs fully met vary for Autistic and non-Autistic people?

    The data in the graph and the table below show the proportion of people with disability (of all ages) who had their needs for assistance fully met, by whether they have autism. In 2022, 27% of Autistic people with disability had their needs fully met, compared with 64% of non-Autistic people with disability.

    Please note that, in this data source, not all Autistic people are considered to have disability. Autistic people who do not report significant limitations, impairments or restrictions are considered to not have disability; these people are not reported on in this graph and table.

    Source: Australian Bureau of Statistics – Survey of Disability, Ageing and Carers (SDAC) | Data source overview

  • Does the proportion of people with disability who have their needs fully met vary by severity of disability?

    The data in the graph and the table below show the proportion of people with disability (of all ages) who had their needs for assistance fully met, grouped by disability severity. In 2022, 30% of people with severe or profound disability had their needs fully met, compared with 79% for people with other disability status.

    Source: Australian Bureau of Statistics – Survey of Disability, Ageing and Carers (SDAC) | Data source overview

Where did these data come from?

Data on needs fully met come from survey data collected by the Australian Bureau of Statistics.

Learn more about these data
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