Our key pillars and actions
The DCS DIAP 2026–2029 has three key pillars, which align with the Australia's Disability Strategy 2021-2031 (NDIS) as well as the four focus areas of the NSW Disability Inclusion Plan (DIP) 2026–2029.
Our goal:
People are connected to purpose and empowered to achieve their best.
NSW DIP Focus area alignment:
- Developing positive community attitudes and upholding the rights of people with disability.
- Supporting access to meaningful employment and independence.
What success looks like:
- Improved PMES Inclusion and Diversity scores for people with disability and carers.
- Improved representation of people with disability at all levels.
- Increased accountability and leader confidence in inclusive practices.
Why this is important:
- Consultation and co-design identified inclusive leadership as critical to improving outcomes for employees with disability.
- Employees highlighted the impact of limited visible role models, inconsistent leadership capability, and barriers to career progression.
- Focusing on inclusive leadership ensures we embed accountability, model inclusive behaviours, and create a culture where everyone’s contributions are respected and valued.
Our actions:
Action 1.1: Develop a capable and confident disability inclusive leadership cohort.
| Deliverable | How we will track progress | Timeframe | Responsible area |
|---|---|---|---|
| a) Strengthen the DCS Leadership Development Programs (Essentials and Elevate) to build leaders’ confidence and capability in disability inclusive leadership, through refreshed content and targeted scenarios. | Leaders report increased confidence in inclusive leadership practices through evaluation surveys. | Q4 25/26 then ongoing | People Innovation & Experience Contributors: People Leaders |
| b) Refresh Leadership Training (Mastering Leadership Conversations skill accelerator) to include disability specific scenarios, guidance and practical resources to remove barriers, with a focus on the social model of disability. | Training content is regularly reviewed and updated to reflect contemporary inclusive practice and participant feedback. | Q4 25/26 then ongoing | People Innovation & Experience Contributors: People Leaders |
| c) Co-design key leadership development programs (Essentials for Leaders) to embed inclusive practices and reflect diverse perspectives. | Leadership modules are co‑designed with a diverse group of leaders, subject matter experts and ERG representatives. | Q4 25/26 then ongoing | People Innovation & Experience Contributors: Employee Resource Groups |
Action 1.2: Prepare and analyse diversity and inclusion data for insights and action.
| Deliverable | How we will track progress | Timeframe | Responsible area |
|---|---|---|---|
a) Deliver quarterly executive reporting on:
| Quarterly Inclusion Steering Committee briefings delivered as scheduled with DEI data and insights to inform decisions and resource allocation. | Q4 25/26, then quarterly | People Innovation & Experience Contributors: Talent HR Analytics Workplace Services |
| b) Apply findings from the DCS Behavioural Insights Units’ pilot data collection program to inform future programs of work. | Continue to meet NSW Government disability employment targets as they evolve. Increased workforce disclosure of disability through HR systems. | Q4 25/26, then quarterly | People & Culture Contributors: |
Action 1.3: Promote inclusive leadership development opportunities.
| Deliverable | How we will track progress | Timeframe | Responsible area |
|---|---|---|---|
| a) Create and encourage leaders to connect and share in the Leader Community Network. This will cover a range of leadership topics, including a social model of disability mindset and benefits of a disability confident culture. | Storytelling and showcasing initiatives published on internal forums. Improved PMES results for people with disability in areas of development and progression. A thriving Leaders network sharing visibility of storytelling and actions to removing barriers. | Q4 27/28, then ongoing | People Innovation & Experience Contributors: Disability ERG |
Our goal:
People feel safe, secure and respected with opportunities to grow.
NSW DIP Focus area alignment:
- Developing positive community attitudes and upholding the rights of people with disability.
- Supporting access to meaningful employment and independence.
What success looks like:
- Improved PMES Inclusion and Diversity scores for people with disability.
- Increased number of people with disability recruited, retained, promoted and disclosing disability.
- Improved PMES results reflecting positive experiences with workplace adjustments.
- Improvements in accessing workplace adjustments for employees and candidates.
Why this is important:
- Consultation and PMES results show that while DCS has made important progress, barriers remain to employees feeling psychologically safe, supported and confident to develop and progress their careers.
- Barriers during recruitment and in accessing workplace adjustments affect trust, engagement and retention, with negative adjustment experiences linked to lower engagement.
- This pillar aims to remove systemic barriers and strengthen development opportunities to improve engagement and wellbeing, build confidence, and ensure employees with disability and carers are supported to thrive and contribute fully.
Our actions:
Action 2.1: Ensure employees experience psychologically safe, inclusive and accessible workplaces.
| Deliverable | How we will track progress | Timeframe | Responsible area |
|---|---|---|---|
| a) Implement and continuously improve a workplace adjustment framework, building the disability inclusive capability of our leaders with HR Business Partners to support. | A workplace adjustment policy is in place and regularly reviewed to ensure it continues to meet employee needs and statutory requirements. Increased uptake of adjustments by employees and candidates, reflecting improved awareness and access. Improved People Matter Employee Survey (PMES) results reflecting positive experiences with workplace adjustments. | Policy review: 2027 Supporting processes: 2026 then ongoing | People, Innovation & Experience People & Culture Policy & Privacy Contributors: |
| b) Design, pilot, and evaluate a digital Workplace Adjustment Passport to improve access to, and continuity of, workplace adjustments for employees with disability and carers. | A digital Workplace Adjustment Passport is co-designed with employees with disability, carers, and SMEs. A proof‑of‑concept digital solution is developed using ServiceNow that meets NSW Government accessibility, privacy, and security requirements. A minimum viable product piloted within DCS. Employee experience measured through a satisfaction survey for participants and managers. Monitoring and reporting on pilot uptake, usage patterns and completion rates, disaggregated where appropriate and safe to do so. A proposed roadmap developed for broader NSW Government adoption, including governance, scalability, interoperability, and cost considerations. Additional departments and agencies engaged to assess interest and readiness for future adoption. | 2026-2029 | People, Innovation & Experience Contributors: |
c) Deliver disability awareness and inclusive practice education on key focus areas:
| All employees and leaders complete mandatory disability awareness training within the first 6 weeks of employment (Workplace Adjustments Awareness and Workplace Adjustments for Leaders). Hiring managers complete ‘Navigating Recruitment’ online training module within first 6 months of assignment. Increased HRBP and P&C advisor confidence in supporting sensitive and complex workplace adjustment conversations through the completion of Workplace Adjustments Wizard training. | Q3 2026 then ongoing | People, Innovation & Experience Contributors: |
| d) Apply ‘Inclusion Benefits Everyone’ principles to DCS Policies and Programs. | Reporting on numbers of policies where Disability ERG is a key stakeholder in consultation. | Q4 2026 then ongoing | People Services Governance, Risk and Assurance Contributors: |
Action 2.2: Provide focused support for hiring managers and make recruitment and onboarding more inclusive and targeted.
| Deliverable | How we will track progress | Timeframe | Responsible area |
|---|---|---|---|
| a) Review and implement relevant findings from the Disability Employment Network (DENConnect) Disability recruitment audit and NSW Government Inclusive Recruitment Guidelines, to remove barriers and enhance accessibility for people with disability. | Recruitment process improvement opportunities identified, and an improvement plan is endorsed by the Inclusion Steering Committee. Hiring managers and recruiters report increased confidence in inclusive recruitment practices. Candidates report a positive and inclusive recruitment experience as measured through post-recruitment evaluation surveys. | 2026-2029 | Talent |
| b) Strengthen partnerships and employment programs for disability employment and increase targeted recruitment opportunities. | Partnership agreements are established or renewed with disability employment partners. Disability employment programs are launched or expanded, with candidates with disability participating in recruitment activities. | By June 2028, then ongoing | Talent |
Action 2.3: Deliver initiatives to enable barrier free development and progression for employees with disability.
| Deliverable | How we will track progress | Timeframe | Responsible area |
|---|---|---|---|
| a) Embed disability inclusive practices across performance and development processes, and talent and succession planning frameworks, to remove barriers to equitable career progression for employees with disability. | Opportunities in people and capability processes identified and improvement plan endorsed. Performance and development framework resources are accessible and updated to include guidance on supporting employees with disability. Improved PMES scores for people with disability in areas of development and progression. | Q3 2026-2029 | People & Culture People Innovation & Experience |
| b) Improve the accessibility and design of learning to ensure employees with disability can access and engage with learning opportunities. | Employees with disability receive adjustments to support completion of learning. Continuous improvements to accessibility and design of learning. | Ongoing | People Innovation & Experience Contributors: |
c) Deliver programs that create barrier free pathways to employment for people with disability, for example:
| People with disability accessing employment pathways in relevant business areas. | Q3 2026-2029 | DCS and participating Independent Agencies |
Our goal:
People can access what they need, first time, every time, in the way that suits them.
NSW DIP Focus area alignment:
- Creating liveable and safer communities.
- Improving access to mainstream services through better systems and processes.
What success looks like:
- Improved customer satisfaction through first time resolution.
- Reduction in the number of reported accessibility barriers experienced when interacting with digital communications, ICT platforms and systems.
- Increased capability in digital inclusion and accessibility.
- Digital products and services (built or bought) conform with accessibility standards.
Why this is important:
- Consultation told us that inconsistent accessibility across systems, communications, and services continues to create barriers. People shared experiences of needing to repeat requests, relying on workarounds, or feeling excluded by default settings and formats.
- Improving inclusive design and accessibility ensures people can access what they need the first time, every time, in a way that suits them. This benefits everyone - by reducing friction, improving efficiency, and creating a more seamless experience for employees and customers.
- By addressing accessibility at the source, across digital platforms, physical spaces, and communication touchpoints, we can reduce barriers, increase first-time resolution, and improve satisfaction and trust in our services.
Our actions:
Action 3.1: Review and align digital DCS systems and processes to ensure ongoing conformance with required accessibility standards.
| Deliverable | How we will track progress | Timeframe | Responsible area |
|---|---|---|---|
| a) DCS will conduct an annual accessibility maturity assessment (AMA) using the W3C Accessibility Maturity Model (AMM) to baseline accessibility maturity across DCS. | All DCS divisions to:
Digital NSW to collate results and identify strengths and gaps in agency actions.
| Oct 2026-2029
| DCS and participating Independent Agencies
|
| b) Issue sector-wide Digital Accessibility Policy, for all NSW Government agencies and state-owned corporations to support consistent accessibility standards across government digital services. | A sector-wide Digital Accessibility Policy is issued. | Q2 2026/27 | Digital NSW |
| c) Adopt and embed the Digital Accessibility Policy within the DCS operating environment. | The policy is adopted by DCS and participating Independent Agencies verified through compliance checks and reporting to DCS Inclusion Steering Committee. | 2027-2029 | DCS and participating Independent Agencies |
| d) Develop and embed NSW Digital Inclusion Standard and Community Consultation Guidelines across all DCS business units. | Delivery of NSW Digital Inclusion Standard to align with the Digital Accessibility Policy.
| Aligned to the Digital Inclusion Strategy implementation plan timeframe | NSW Telco Authority
|
| e) Implement accessible procurement processes that align with the Digital Accessibility Policy. | Amendment of the DCS procurement policy, processes and measurement in alignment with Digital Accessibility Policy. | Q4 FY 2027/28 to ongoing | DCS Procurement & Digital NSW |
Action 3.2: Build DCS workforce capability in digital inclusion and accessibility.
| Deliverable | How we will track progress | Timeframe | Responsible area |
|---|---|---|---|
| a) Update and socialise the Digital NSW Accessibility and Inclusivity toolkit. | Alignment of content with Digital Accessibility Policy. Pre and post relaunch internet traffic data for Digital NSW Accessibility and Inclusivity toolkit. | Q3 2026 to ongoing | Digital NSW supported by Accessibility professional network (A11y Community of Practice) |
| b) Consolidate accessibility training modules and track completion of fundamental and role specific accessibility training. | Identification of new and existing accessibility training modules and paths to support implementation of the Digital Accessibility Policy.
| Q4 2026
| Accessibility professional network (A11y Community of Practice)
People, Innovation and Experience
DCS Executive Leadership Team (ELT)
Digital NSW |
| c) Update and maintain DCS Canva and Microsoft Suite templates to include accessibility options. | All DCS Canva and Microsoft Suite templates include accessibility features. | Q1 2027 | DCS Brand & Digital Comms |
Action 3.3: Deliver inclusive and accessible services for people in NSW (multi-channel).
| Deliverable | How we will track progress | Timeframe | Responsible area |
|---|---|---|---|
a) DCS products and services across relevant public facing channels achieve a reading age of 9-11 years. Note: Where a 9-11 reading age cannot be achieved without loss of meaning, agencies to prioritise clarity, apply plain language principles, and use supplementary aids to support comprehension. | An increased number of Easy Read resources and information available for users across government digital platforms.
| 2026-2029
Q3 2026
| Digital NSW (GTP) and Service NSW (Digital Services)
DCS ELT
Digital NSW (GTP)
|
| b) Deliver and promote Digital Photo ID Card in line with the NSW Digital Strategy. | The Digital Photo ID Card is delivered in line with agreed timelines. | 2026-2029 | Service NSW in partnership with Transport NSW). |
| c) Personalisation of the customer care experience. | Customer communications preferences recorded in myService NSW customer profile. Customers able to request support or adjustments with every interaction. Employees trained to identify and respond to additional support requests including adjustments to communication styles. Increase in appointment booking options available across relevant agencies. Percentage of customers who have completed additional fields in their MyServiceNSW account relating to adjustments. | 2026-2029 | Service NSW |
d) Develop an ongoing customer communications campaign to build awareness on existing accessible services available to customers including:
| Relevant participating Agencies have a communications plan in place. | 2026-2029 | DCS and participating Independent Agencies |
| e) Provision of text to speech functionality across all DCS online products and services, to support customers with reading difficulties or low literacy levels. | Aggregation of existing DCS agency licences for ReadSpeaker into a single license.
| Q2 2027
| Digital NSW (GTP)
|
| f) Collaborate with national partners, including the Australian Bureau of Statistics, the Australian Institute of Health and Welfare and the Commonwealth Department of Health to promote the sharing and use of data to better understand and meet the needs of people with disability. | Annual reporting of progress towards sharing and use of disability data. | Q4 June 2026-2029 | Policy, Strategy & Governance |
| g) Review and re-design the complaints system to identify matters relevant to customers with disability. | Baseline data captured to identify complaints made by people with disability. Accessible and varied mechanisms for complaint submission created for customers. Data reporting shared with senior leaders for action and accountability. | 2026-2029 | Service NSW Followed by other DCS Divisions and Agencies |
| h) Complete an audit or source existing reporting on accessibility compliance across each customer facing location, including service centres. | Report commissioned and action plan created based on findings. | Q4 26/27 | Service NSW Followed by other DCS Divisions and Agencies |
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