Yarra Trams partners with The Sunflower

A person with hidden disability can find it more difficult to get assistance, or even understanding, when they need it. We recognised this as a challenge for our passengers, and as an opportunity for us to grow as a business. This is why we have partnered with Hidden Disabilities Sunflower Scheme - Australia & New Zealand to better provide assistance and support to the many passengers travelling by tram who may have a hidden disability.

We’re proud to have formally launched The Sunflower initiative today, the 1st of December. Preparing for today’s launch we wanted to make sure that our front-line teams had the skills and experience required to recognise and provide assistance to those with hidden disabilities. So far we have trained almost 200 team members, with our Customer Service Employees, Authorised Officers, and operational team members making up the bulk of those who have received bespoke training. This training program was delivered to small groups in-person by people with lived experience of hidden disability, in collaboration with Autism Spectrum Australia (Aspect).

Ibrahim Elsoukmani, Yarra Trams’ Inclusive Passenger Network Advisor said, “Introducing The Hidden Disabilities Sunflower initiative into our business and incorporating it within our everyday customer service approach not only will enable people with hidden disability to get to where they need to be, but raises awareness of hidden disabilities in our team and within the community. We are very proud of this initiative."

If you see one of our employees out on the network wearing a sunflower badge, feel free to say hello and ask them about their training!

Pictured are two of our Customer Service Employees with their new Sunflower pins.