Guide Dogs NSW/ACT campaign urges hospitality venues to address increasing refusal incidents
This International Guide Dog Day (Wednesday, 30 April), Guide Dogs NSW/ACT is collaborating with The City of Sydney to launch their ‘Is Inclusion on Your Menu?’ campaign, encouraging the community to better understand the legal access rights for Guide Dogs when navigating public spaces.
Over half a million Australians living with low vision and blindness are regularly being denied entry to public venues because of their Guide Dog. In fact, the latest research commissioned by Guide Dogs found that 80% of those living with blindness or low vision experience access difficulties when navigating their communities. [1]
Alarmingly, the research identified cafés and restaurants as the most common venues where discriminatory refusals take place with 25% of people living with low vision and blindness experiencing access challenges.
To help put an end to access barriers, the City of Sydney has pledged $30,000 to Guide Dogs NSW/ACT's campaign which aims to encourage the Sydney hospitality industry to educate staff on how to support customers with low vision and blindness.
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| Guide Dogs Client Karlee Symmonds with her Guide Dog Isla |
These experiences stick with you.
Every time I go out in public, there’s this underlying anxiousness that Isla will be refused entry or I'll face access barriers. I already have so many things to think about when I am out so this adds another level of stress. It’s disheartening to know that I have to plan my life around where I’ll be accepted, an issue most people will never need to consider.
If it's not an access refusal, there are other barriers to think about, staff grabbing me to direct me to a seat, A frames or chairs left out in the middle of the path, or as simple as not being told where the card machine is to tap. Such simple changes would make the world of difference.
Ultimately, Isla has completely changed my life. She gives me confidence, freedom, and independence when I’m out in the world.”
Sarah Watts, Guide Dogs NSW/ACT Campaigns Manager says, “For many people with low vision or blindness, something as simple as dining out or catching up with friends for coffee can become a major challenge. The harsh reality that they can be turned away from venues because of their Guide Dog. Access refusals aren’t just an inconvenience for Guide Dog handlers – it’s a barrier that excludes them from everyday life.”
“This International Guide Dog Day we’re shining a spotlight on these challenges and calling on businesses to step up. We want to see real change in the way hospitality venues and public spaces welcome people with low vision or blindness, ensuring that accessibility and inclusion are part of every customer's experience”.
In an effort to raise awareness about the access rights of Guide Dogs and to celebrate the indispensable role they play in guiding Handlers on their journeys, this International Guide Dog Day, Guide Dogs NSW/ACT will be taking over Martin Place for the day with 5-metre tall Ambassador Dog Gulliver right in the heart of the city!
City workers can come a capture pics of our huge Labrador Gully, pat some dogs, and learn more from the Guide Dogs community about access rights through Clients inspiring stories to help create a more inclusive world for all and break down barriers in public.
On 28th April, the campaign also came to life in the streets of Sydney, as Guide Dogs NSW/ACT took over The City of Sydney banner network to celebrate the day.
Guide Dogs NSW/ACT statement:
Guide Dogs working with their Handlers have a right to legal access to any event, business, or public premises, and in Public Transport or rideshare vehicles at all times.
A person with low vision or blindness who is accompanied by a Guide Dog is permitted to:
Appendix:
[1] This is according to a recent EY Sweeney report commissioned by Guide Dogs Australia which surveyed people with low vision or blindness to explore access issues including digital barriers.
The Disability Discrimination Act 1992 is the law to provide fair access for those with a disability across Australia: https://www.legislation.gov.au/C2004A04426/2018-04-12/text
If it's not an access refusal, there are other barriers to think about, staff grabbing me to direct me to a seat, A frames or chairs left out in the middle of the path, or as simple as not being told where the card machine is to tap. Such simple changes would make the world of difference.
Ultimately, Isla has completely changed my life. She gives me confidence, freedom, and independence when I’m out in the world.”
“It’s heart-breaking that some businesses don’t recognise that — and instead, refuse our entry or treat us like a burden.”
Sarah Watts, Guide Dogs NSW/ACT Campaigns Manager says, “For many people with low vision or blindness, something as simple as dining out or catching up with friends for coffee can become a major challenge. The harsh reality that they can be turned away from venues because of their Guide Dog. Access refusals aren’t just an inconvenience for Guide Dog handlers – it’s a barrier that excludes them from everyday life.”
“This International Guide Dog Day we’re shining a spotlight on these challenges and calling on businesses to step up. We want to see real change in the way hospitality venues and public spaces welcome people with low vision or blindness, ensuring that accessibility and inclusion are part of every customer's experience”.
In an effort to raise awareness about the access rights of Guide Dogs and to celebrate the indispensable role they play in guiding Handlers on their journeys, this International Guide Dog Day, Guide Dogs NSW/ACT will be taking over Martin Place for the day with 5-metre tall Ambassador Dog Gulliver right in the heart of the city!
City workers can come a capture pics of our huge Labrador Gully, pat some dogs, and learn more from the Guide Dogs community about access rights through Clients inspiring stories to help create a more inclusive world for all and break down barriers in public.
On 28th April, the campaign also came to life in the streets of Sydney, as Guide Dogs NSW/ACT took over The City of Sydney banner network to celebrate the day.
Guide Dogs NSW/ACT statement:
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| Student Zara Perry with Guide Dog Quinland riding on a bus |
A person with low vision or blindness who is accompanied by a Guide Dog is permitted to:
- Travel on any form of public transport, including taxis, buses, planes, rideshare vehicles, trams and trains
- Enter any public place
- Enter healthcare or medical suites
- Visit any theatre
- Eat in any restaurant
- Shop in any store (including supermarkets and food stores)
[1] This is according to a recent EY Sweeney report commissioned by Guide Dogs Australia which surveyed people with low vision or blindness to explore access issues including digital barriers.
MEDIA RELEASE, 30th April 2025
