Making the invisible, visible.

The Hidden Disability Sunflower program is designed to bring awareness for many non-visible disabilities and empower and encourage people across the broader community to offer support to those who choose to wear the sunflower products.

As you may be aware Bayley House is supporting this incredible global initiative by helping to distribute the sunflower products across Australia and New Zealand. Hidden Disabilities began in the UK and since bloomed across many countries.

Not all disabilities are visible – some are not immediately apparent

Globally 1 in 7 of us live with a disability, 80% of the 1 in 7 are non-visible. That is approximately 1.3 billion people. But while some of us experience a disability that is visible, many have a non-visible condition or experience a combination of both visible and non-visible conditions. These can be physical, visual, auditory or neurological and range from autism and ADHD to cognitive impairments such as learning difficulties and dementia, as well as mental health conditions. They can also be respiratory and chronic conditions such as asthma, diabetes, chronic pain and sleep disorders. There are thousands of non-visible disabilities, too many to mention here.

Over the coming weeks, a complimentary lanyard will be sent out to all Bayley House service users. Should you choose the wear the lanyard in the community, we hope you enjoy the awareness and support that it brings. Please visit the map on the Hidden Disabilities website to find Sunflower friendly venues.

We also hope you will share this story with organisations who might like to join and train their staff and volunteers to support people with hidden disabilities.

For more information about Hidden Disabilities Sunflower, please visit their website.