Justice system support

Population groups

• Indigenous status

  Does the proportion of people with disability who were supported to communicate with police and judicial officers vary by Indigenous status?

  The data in the graph and the table below show the proportion of people with disability (aged 18 and over) who were supported to communicate with police and judicial officers, by Indigenous status. In 2024, 52% of First Nations people with disability and 69% of non-Indigenous people with disability were supported to communicate with police and judicial officers (please note that the proportion for the First Nations group has a high margin of error and should be used with caution).

  Chart Table Notes

  Download

  • Download table as CSV
  • Download chart as PNG image
  • Download chart as JPG image
  • Download chart as SVG image

  Indigenous status	% of people with disability supported to communicate with police and judicial officers	95% Confidence Interval
  First Nations	#52%	(32.5%–72.0%)
  Non-Indigenous	69%	(64.9%–73.2%)
  All persons	68%	(63.7%–71.9%)

  Notes

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

  1. Restricted to people aged 18 and over with disability, who interacted with the police and/or judicial officers in the last 12 months and needed support to communicate during the interaction.
  2. The measure was calculated as the number of people who answered 'Strongly agree' or 'Somewhat agree' to the question 'Do you agree or disagree that you received support to help you communicate with police/judge or magistrate?' divided by the number of people who responded to the question. People who needed support to communicate with both police and judicial officers were considered to have received support if they agreed for both, and not supported if they disagreed for at least one. People who were not sure or did not provide a response were excluded from the calculation.
  3. For this measure, people with disability are those who both have, and self-identify as having, disability or a long-term health condition.
  4. Indigenous status is voluntarily self-reported based on the ABS Indigenous Status Standard.

  Source: DHDA (Department of Health, Disability and Ageing) 2025. Australia's Disability Strategy Survey – Share with us 2024, DHDA, AIHW analysis of unit record data, accessed 17 March 2025.

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

  Source: Department of Health, Disability and Ageing – Australia’s Disability Strategy Survey – Share with us | Data source overview
  

• Gender

  Does the proportion of people with disability who were supported to communicate with police and judicial officers vary by gender?

  The data in the graph and the table below show the proportion of people with disability (aged 18 and over) who were supported to communicate with police and judicial officers, grouped by gender. In 2024, 70% of men with disability were supported to communicate with police and judicial officers, as did 68% of women with disability (please note that the proportion for 'Non-binary/Other' gender category could not be published due to small sample numbers).

  Chart Table Notes

  Download

  • Download table as CSV
  • Download chart as PNG image
  • Download chart as JPG image
  • Download chart as SVG image

  Gender	% of people with disability supported to communicate with police and judicial officers	95% Confidence Interval
  Men	70%	(63.6%–76.2%)
  Women	68%	(62.3%–73.0%)
  Non-binary/other	%	n.p.
  All persons	68%	(63.7%–71.9%)

  Notes

  • n.p. (not published) Data have been suppressed to avoid identifying individual people.

  1. Restricted to people aged 18 and over with disability, who interacted with the police and/or judicial officers in the last 12 months and needed support to communicate during the interaction.
  2. The measure was calculated as the number of people who answered 'Strongly agree' or 'Somewhat agree' to the question 'Do you agree or disagree that you received support to help you communicate with police/judge or magistrate?' divided by the number of people who responded to the question. People who needed support to communicate with both police and judicial officers were considered to have received support if they agreed for both, and not supported if they disagreed for at least one. People who were not sure or did not provide a response were excluded from the calculation.
  3. For this measure, people with disability are those who both have, and self-identify as having, disability or a long-term health condition.

  Source: DHDA (Department of Health, Disability and Ageing) 2025. Australia's Disability Strategy Survey – Share with us 2024, DHDA, AIHW analysis of unit record data, accessed 17 March 2025.

  n.p. (not published) Data have been suppressed to avoid identifying individual people.

  Source: Department of Health, Disability and Ageing – Australia’s Disability Strategy Survey – Share with us | Data source overview
  

• Age group

  Does the proportion of people with disability who were supported to communicate with police and judicial officers vary by age group?

  The data in the graph and the table below show the proportion of people with disability (aged 18 and over) who were supported to communicate with police and judicial officers, by age group. In 2024, 79% of people with disability aged 65 and over were supported to communicate with police and judicial officers, compared with 55% of people with disability aged 18–24.

  Chart Table Notes

  Download

  • Download table as CSV
  • Download chart as PNG image
  • Download chart as JPG image
  • Download chart as SVG image

  Age group	% of people with disability supported to communicate with police and judicial officers	95% Confidence Interval
  18–24	55%	(46.7%–63.6%)
  25–44	60%	(51.1%–69.3%)
  45–64	71%	(64.3%–77.7%)
  65 and over	79%	(72.6%–86.0%)
  All ages	68%	(63.7%–71.9%)

  Notes

  1. Restricted to people aged 18 and over with disability, who interacted with the police and/or judicial officers in the last 12 months and needed support to communicate during the interaction.
  2. The measure was calculated as the number of people who answered 'Strongly agree' or 'Somewhat agree' to the question 'Do you agree or disagree that you received support to help you communicate with police/judge or magistrate?' divided by the number of people who responded to the question. People who needed support to communicate with both police and judicial officers were considered to have received support if they agreed for both, and not supported if they disagreed for at least one. People who were not sure or did not provide a response were excluded from the calculation.
  3. For this measure, people with disability are those who both have, and self-identify as having, disability or a long-term health condition.

  Source: DHDA (Department of Health, Disability and Ageing) 2025. Australia's Disability Strategy Survey – Share with us 2024, DHDA, AIHW analysis of unit record data, accessed 17 March 2025.

  Source: Department of Health, Disability and Ageing – Australia’s Disability Strategy Survey – Share with us | Data source overview
  

• Cultural and linguistic diversity status

  Does the proportion of people with disability who were supported to communicate with police and judicial officers vary by cultural and linguistic diversity background?

  The data in the graph and the table below show the proportion of people with disability (aged 18 and over) who were supported to communicate with police and judicial officers, by cultural and linguistic diversity (CALD) status. In 2024, 64% of people with disability from CALD backgrounds were supported to communicate with police and judicial officers, as were 69% of people in the non-CALD group (please note that the proportion for the CALD group has a high margin of error and should be used with caution).

  Chart Table Notes

  Download

  • Download table as CSV
  • Download chart as PNG image
  • Download chart as JPG image
  • Download chart as SVG image

  Cultural and linguistic diversity status	% of people with disability supported to communicate with police and judicial officers	95% Confidence Interval
  CALD	#64%	(53.7%–75.0%)
  Non-CALD	69%	(64.9%–73.6%)
  All persons	68%	(63.7%–71.9%)

  Notes

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

  1. Restricted to people aged 18 and over with disability, who interacted with the police and/or judicial officers in the last 12 months and needed support to communicate during the interaction.
  2. The measure was calculated as the number of people who answered 'Strongly agree' or 'Somewhat agree' to the question 'Do you agree or disagree that you received support to help you communicate with police/judge or magistrate?' divided by the number of people who responded to the question. People who needed support to communicate with both police and judicial officers were considered to have received support if they agreed for both, and not supported if they disagreed for at least one. People who were not sure or did not provide a response were excluded from the calculation.
  3. For this measure, people with disability are those who both have, and self-identify as having, disability or a long-term health condition.
  4. Culturally and Linguistically Diverse (CALD) cohort includes people not born in a main English-speaking country and/or who mainly speak a language other than English at home.

  Source: DHDA (Department of Health, Disability and Ageing) 2025. Australia's Disability Strategy Survey – Share with us 2024, DHDA, AIHW analysis of unit record data, accessed 17 March 2025.

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

  Source: Department of Health, Disability and Ageing – Australia’s Disability Strategy Survey – Share with us | Data source overview
  

• Location

  Does the proportion of people with disability who were supported to communicate with police and judicial officers vary by location?

  The data in the graph and the table below show the proportion of people with disability (aged 18 and over) who were supported to communicate with police and judicial officers, by location. In 2024, 68% of people with disability in greater capital city areas were supported to communicate with police and judicial officers, as were 67% of people in the rest of state or territory locations.

  Chart Table Notes

  Download

  • Download table as CSV
  • Download chart as PNG image
  • Download chart as JPG image
  • Download chart as SVG image

  Location	% of people with disability supported to communicate with police and judicial officers	95% Confidence Interval
  Greater Capital City	68%	(62.6%–73.7%)
  Rest of state/territory	67%	(61.1%–73.5%)
  All locations	68%	(63.7%–71.9%)

  Notes

  1. Restricted to people aged 18 and over with disability, who interacted with the police and/or judicial officers in the last 12 months and needed support to communicate during the interaction.
  2. The measure was calculated as the number of people who answered 'Strongly agree' or 'Somewhat agree' to the question 'Do you agree or disagree that you received support to help you communicate with police/judge or magistrate?' divided by the number of people who responded to the question. People who needed support to communicate with both police and judicial officers were considered to have received support if they agreed for both, and not supported if they disagreed for at least one. People who were not sure or did not provide a response were excluded from the calculation.
  3. For this measure, people with disability are those who both have, and self-identify as having, disability or a long-term health condition.
  4. Locations are based on the Greater Capital City Statistical Areas (GCCSAs) classification.

  Source: DHDA (Department of Health, Disability and Ageing) 2025. Australia's Disability Strategy Survey – Share with us 2024, DHDA, AIHW analysis of unit record data, accessed 17 March 2025.

  Source: Department of Health, Disability and Ageing – Australia’s Disability Strategy Survey – Share with us | Data source overview
  

• Severity of disability

  Does the proportion of people with disability who were supported to communicate with police and judicial officers vary by severity of disability?

  The data in the graph and the table below show the proportion of people with disability (aged 18 and over) who were supported to communicate with police and judicial officers, by severity of disability. In 2024, 49% of people with severe or profound disability were supported to communicate with police and judicial officers, compared with 75% of people with milder forms of disability.

  Chart Table Notes

  Download

  • Download table as CSV
  • Download chart as PNG image
  • Download chart as JPG image
  • Download chart as SVG image

  Severity of disability	% of people with disability supported to communicate with police and judicial officers	95% Confidence Interval
  Severe or profound disability	49%	(40.6%–57.0%)
  Other disability status	75%	(70.0%–79.2%)
  All with disability	68%	(63.7%–71.9%)

  Notes

  1. Restricted to people aged 18 and over with disability, who interacted with the police and/or judicial officers in the last 12 months and needed support to communicate during the interaction.
  2. The measure was calculated as the number of people who answered 'Strongly agree' or 'Somewhat agree' to the question 'Do you agree or disagree that you received support to help you communicate with police/judge or magistrate?' divided by the number of people who responded to the question. People who needed support to communicate with both police and judicial officers were considered to have received support if they agreed for both, and not supported if they disagreed for at least one. People who were not sure or did not provide a response were excluded from the calculation.
  3. For this measure, people with disability are those who both have, and self-identify as having, disability or a long-term health condition.
  4. Severe or profound disability means always or sometimes needing assistance or supervision with self-care, mobility, and/or communication.

  Source: DHDA (Department of Health, Disability and Ageing) 2025. Australia's Disability Strategy Survey – Share with us 2024, DHDA, AIHW analysis of unit record data, accessed 17 March 2025.

  Source: Department of Health, Disability and Ageing – Australia’s Disability Strategy Survey – Share with us | Data source overview
  

• Disability group

  Does the proportion of people with disability who were supported to communicate with police and judicial officers vary by disability group?

  The data in the graph and the table below show the proportion of people with disability (aged 18 and over) who were supported to communicate with police and judicial officers, by disability group. In 2024, 66% of people with sensory or speech disability were supported to communicate with police and judicial officers, compared with 51% of people with intellectual disability.

  Chart Table Notes

  Download

  • Download table as CSV
  • Download chart as PNG image
  • Download chart as JPG image
  • Download chart as SVG image

  Disability group	% of people with disability supported to communicate with police and judicial officers	95% Confidence Interval
  Sensory and speech	66%	(59.8%–72.0%)
  Intellectual	51%	(41.5%–61.4%)
  Physical restriction	65%	(60.1%–69.5%)
  Psychosocial	61%	(55.1%–67.0%)
  Head injury, stroke or acquired brain injury	#54%	(39.4%–68.9%)
  Other disability	67%	(61.2%–71.8%)
  All with disability	68%	(63.7%–71.9%)

  Notes

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

  1. Restricted to people aged 18 and over with disability, who interacted with the police and/or judicial officers in the last 12 months and needed support to communicate during the interaction.
  2. The measure was calculated as the number of people who answered 'Strongly agree' or 'Somewhat agree' to the question 'Do you agree or disagree that you received support to help you communicate with police/judge or magistrate?' divided by the number of people who responded to the question. People who needed support to communicate with both police and judicial officers were considered to have received support if they agreed for both, and not supported if they disagreed for at least one. People who were not sure or did not provide a response were excluded from the calculation.
  3. For this measure, people with disability are those who both have, and self-identify as having, disability or a long-term health condition.
  4. Components will not add to total as people may report impairments related to more than one disability group. In such cases, people are counted separately for each disability group but are only counted once in the aggregated total.

  Source: DHDA (Department of Health, Disability and Ageing) 2025. Australia's Disability Strategy Survey – Share with us 2024, DHDA, AIHW analysis of unit record data, accessed 17 March 2025.

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

  Source: Department of Health, Disability and Ageing – Australia’s Disability Strategy Survey – Share with us | Data source overview
  

• Education

  Does the proportion of people with disability who were supported to communicate with police and judicial officers vary by level of education?

  The data in the graph and the table below show the proportion of people with disability (aged 18 and over) who were supported to communicate with police and judicial officers, by highest level of education. In 2024, 69% of people with disability who completed a certificate or diploma were supported to communicate with police and judicial officers, as were 68% of people with disability who completed a bachelor degree or higher.

  Chart Table Notes

  Download

  • Download table as CSV
  • Download chart as PNG image
  • Download chart as JPG image
  • Download chart as SVG image

  Highest level of education	% of people with disability supported to communicate with police and judicial officers	95% Confidence Interval
  None or below Year 12	#66%	(55.1%–76.5%)
  Year 12	#65%	(52.7%–76.9%)
  Certificate/Diploma	69%	(63.0%–75.3%)
  Bachelor Degree or higher	68%	(61.6%–75.3%)
  All persons	68%	(63.7%–71.9%)

  Notes

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

  1. Restricted to people aged 18 and over with disability, who interacted with the police and/or judicial officers in the last 12 months and needed support to communicate during the interaction.
  2. The measure was calculated as the number of people who answered 'Strongly agree' or 'Somewhat agree' to the question 'Do you agree or disagree that you received support to help you communicate with police/judge or magistrate?' divided by the number of people who responded to the question. People who needed support to communicate with both police and judicial officers were considered to have received support if they agreed for both, and not supported if they disagreed for at least one. People who were not sure or did not provide a response were excluded from the calculation.
  3. For this measure, people with disability are those who both have, and self-identify as having, disability or a long-term health condition.

  Source: DHDA (Department of Health, Disability and Ageing) 2025. Australia's Disability Strategy Survey – Share with us 2024, DHDA, AIHW analysis of unit record data, accessed 17 March 2025.

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

  Source: Department of Health, Disability and Ageing – Australia’s Disability Strategy Survey – Share with us | Data source overview
  

• Employment status

  Does the proportion of people with disability who were supported to communicate with police and judicial officers vary by employment status?

  The data in the graph and the table below show the proportion of people with disability (aged 18 and over) who were supported to communicate with police and judicial officers, by employment status. In 2024, 70% of people with disability who were not employed were supported to communicate with police and judicial officers, as were 66% of employed people with disability.

  Chart Table Notes

  Download

  • Download table as CSV
  • Download chart as PNG image
  • Download chart as JPG image
  • Download chart as SVG image

  Employment status	% of people with disability supported to communicate with police and judicial officers	95% Confidence Interval
  Employed	66%	(60.6%–72.2%)
  Not employed	70%	(64.2%–75.7%)
  All persons	68%	(63.7%–71.9%)

  Notes

  1. Restricted to people aged 18 and over with disability, who interacted with the police and/or judicial officers in the last 12 months and needed support to communicate during the interaction.
  2. The measure was calculated as the number of people who answered 'Strongly agree' or 'Somewhat agree' to the question 'Do you agree or disagree that you received support to help you communicate with police/judge or magistrate?' divided by the number of people who responded to the question. People who needed support to communicate with both police and judicial officers were considered to have received support if they agreed for both, and not supported if they disagreed for at least one. People who were not sure or did not provide a response were excluded from the calculation.
  3. For this measure, people with disability are those who both have, and self-identify as having, disability or a long-term health condition.

  Source: DHDA (Department of Health, Disability and Ageing) 2025. Australia's Disability Strategy Survey – Share with us 2024, DHDA, AIHW analysis of unit record data, accessed 17 March 2025.

  Source: Department of Health, Disability and Ageing – Australia’s Disability Strategy Survey – Share with us | Data source overview
  

• Sexual orientation

  Does the proportion of people with disability who were supported to communicate with police and judicial officers vary by sexual orientation?

  The data in the graph and the table below show the proportion of people with disability (aged 18 and over) who were supported to communicate with police and judicial officers, by sexual orientation. In 2024, 70% of straight (heterosexual) people with disability were supported to communicate with police and judicial officers, compared with 53% of people with disability whose sexual orientation was gay, lesbian, bisexual, or other (please note that the proportion for the gay, lesbian, bisexual, or other group has a high margin of error and should be used with caution).

  Chart Table Notes

  Download

  • Download table as CSV
  • Download chart as PNG image
  • Download chart as JPG image
  • Download chart as SVG image

  Sexual orientation	% of people with disability supported to communicate with police and judicial officers	95% Confidence Interval
  Straight (heterosexual)	70%	(66.1%–74.8%)
  Gay, lesbian, bisexual, or other	#53%	(41.2%–65.0%)
  All persons	68%	(63.7%–71.9%)

  Notes

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

  1. Restricted to people aged 18 and over with disability, who interacted with the police and/or judicial officers in the last 12 months and needed support to communicate during the interaction.
  2. The measure was calculated as the number of people who answered 'Strongly agree' or 'Somewhat agree' to the question 'Do you agree or disagree that you received support to help you communicate with police/judge or magistrate?' divided by the number of people who responded to the question. People who needed support to communicate with both police and judicial officers were considered to have received support if they agreed for both, and not supported if they disagreed for at least one. People who were not sure or did not provide a response were excluded from the calculation.
  3. For this measure, people with disability are those who both have, and self-identify as having, disability or a long-term health condition.

  Source: DHDA (Department of Health, Disability and Ageing) 2025. Australia's Disability Strategy Survey – Share with us 2024, DHDA, AIHW analysis of unit record data, accessed 17 March 2025.

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

  Source: Department of Health, Disability and Ageing – Australia’s Disability Strategy Survey – Share with us | Data source overview