Westfield to expand Auslan Santa

Westfield has announced an expansion of Auslan Santa to centres this year including North Lakes, giving more deaf and hard-of-hearing families to interact with Santa this Christmas.

Launched as a pilot program in 2022, Auslan Santa offers children who use Auslan as their primary form of communication the opportunity to meet and sign with Santa.

Developed in collaboration with Deaf Australia, the sessions are longer and will have interpreters on hand to assist and make the experience as memorable as possible.

Deaf Australia CEO Jen Blyth says last year’s launch was heartwarming.

“Last year’s launch was a truly magical experience, and we know our community was thrilled to be able to communicate with Santa for the first time,” Jen says.

“We are so excited that this experience will be available to even more deaf and hard of hearing children throughout Australia and we hope they have their wish lists ready.”

Deaf Australia and event service providers, Scene to Believe are also continuing to educate and train all Westfield Santa's to better interact with deaf and hard of hearing children.

The all-inclusive program followed the success of Sensitive Santa in 2017, another Scene to Believe collaboration, which offered a tailored experience for children with sensory challenges, anxiety and disabilities.

Head along

The following dates to meet Auslan Santa at Westfield North Lakes include:

Tuesday, November 28 from 3.30-7.30pm

Tuesday, December 5 from 3.30-7.30pm

Westfield North Lakes is at North Lakes Drive, North Lakes.