Popular topics
Popular topic: Community
-
Guide Dogs questions Kettering design award
July 27th, 2010
Posted by James Lahey
A national charity has expressed alarm that a multi-million pound development it considers inaccessible to blind and partially sighted people has been given a design award.
Guide Dogs reports that the Market Place project in Kettering triumphed in the pedestrian environment category of the Local Government News Street Design Competition despite the site being “potentially inaccessible” for blind people.
The charity notes the space could present serious problems for visually impaired people, including the risk of trips and falls caused by tapering ramps, irregular step heights and a recessed water feature.
Graham Kensett, Leamington Guide Dogs district team manager, said the design would make access “very difficult” for blind people.
“We would strongly recommend that the route is either pedestrianised or designated a vehicular only route - not both,” Mr Kensett commented.
Guide Dogs recently confirmed plans to work with the Royal Borough of Kensington and Chelsea on the redevelopment of Exhibition Road in London after the charity challenged shared surface design plans.
- 0 Comments
0 Ratings, Not yet rated
-
Capability Scotland to investigate festival accessibility
July 11th, 2010
Posted by Charlie Powell-Brett
Capability Scotland has launched a new research project to find out how easy it is for disabled people to access outdoor music festivals.
The disability organisation will visit a number of festivals across the country, including T in the Park in Perth and Kinross, Wickerman in Dumfries and Galloway and the Edinburgh Mela.
Its rapid response report will aim to investigate how far festival organisers are going to support disabled people attending outdoor events.
Organisers have an obligation to make reasonable adjustments for visitors with disabilities under the Disability Discrimination Act.
Elspeth Molony, Capability training and consultancy manager, said it can be “challenging” to cater for disabled people at large festivals due to their temporary location.
“However, actively involving disabled people in considering what reasonable adjustments could be made is good practice and a great way to identify solutions to potential barriers,” she added.
The charity will publish the results of its research next month.
Capability has previously published rapid response reports on taxi access, car seats for disabled children and party politics.
- 0 Comments
- 0 Ratings, Not yet rated
-
Families call for service reforms at muscle disease meeting
July 7th, 2010
Posted by Ben Jones
An All Party Parliamentary Group for Muscular Dystrophy meeting was attended by families from across the country yesterday (July 6th).
Chaired by Dave Anderson MP, the session allowed families affected by muscle disease to convey the urgent need for neuromuscular service reforms in the UK.
The Walton report, published by the group in August 2009, highlighted the need for specialist staff and tailored training, as well as funding for vital support equipment.
Nic Bungay, Muscular Dystrophy Campaign head of policy and campaigns, praised the families for attending the meeting, but stated that it should not be up to them to force primary care trusts into funding decisions.
“Muscle disease patients are still struggling with poor services and [have] few places to turn for help,” Mr Bungay said.
“We urge the NHS to help people with muscle disease lead the best lives possible by giving them better care services,” he added.
Health minister Paul Burstow MP was recently forced to acknowledge the widespread failings of wheelchair services in the House of Commons last month after he learned 57 per cent of wheelchair budgets are currently spent on back office costs.
- 0 Comments
- 0 Ratings, Not yet rated
-
Caudwell Children receives disability volunteering grant
June 30th, 2010
Posted by Frances Sullivan
The local branch of a national charity has been awarded £2,500 to boost volunteering for disabled people in Staffordshire.
According to Community Newswire, Caudwell Children in Stoke will use the money to provide training and national vocational qualifications.
The grant comes from the national Access to Volunteering Fund and will also help the charity set up mentoring and befriending schemes for local disabled young people.
Julia Hayne, head of community programmes at Caudwell Children, told the website the organisation is “delighted” to receive financial backing from the fund.
“The new volunteers will be required to mentor and support disabled children as they access a wide range of leisure activities and short breaks throughout the summer months,” she added.
The Access to Volunteering Fund pilot scheme is backed by £2 million from the Office of Civil Society and the grant process is being managed by the Charities Aid Foundation.
Disabled people are nine per cent less likely to volunteer than the rest of the population, according to the fund.
- 0 Comments
- 0 Ratings, Not yet rated
-
EDCM urges more PCTs to sign charter
June 22nd, 2010
Posted by Charlie Powell-Brett.
Almost half of the UK’s primary care trusts (PCTs) have signed up to the Every Disabled Child Matters (EDCM) PCT Charter.
Tower Hamlets PCT became the 75th organisation of its kind to commit to the charter this week, demonstrating a will to provide support and assistance to disabled children and their families.
EDCM is now urging the remaining 76 PCTs to sign the charter, which is based on the elements of standard eight of the National Service Framework for Children.
By making the pledge, PCTs are committing to providing information, support and equipment to disabled children, as well as working towards improving healthcare equality.
Christine Lenehan, EDCM board member and director of the Council for Disabled Children, welcomed the move by Tower Hamlets PCT, adding: “It is shocking that the vast majority of families still have to fight to get the services they need. “
EDCM is a consortium campaign headed by Mencap, Contact a Family, the Council for Disabled Children and the Special Education Consortium.
- 0 Comments
- 0 Ratings, Not yet rated
-
Online accessibility forum launched
June 20th, 2010
Posted by Frances Sullivan
Disability organisation Vitalise has launched a new online forum aimed at giving a voice to disabled people and their carers in the UK.
The Care to Share forum was launched on Wednesday (June 16th) as part of Carers Week and aims to provide a platform for discussion and debate about accessibility issues.
It is hoped the forum will become a hub of views and experiences relating to travel and accommodation for disabled people and breaks for carers.
The website was launched following figures from Carers Week that indicate that three-quarters of carers have not taken a break since they began caring.
Vitalise chief executive Neil McConachie said the organisation hopes the web forum will become “a real force for change”.
“With your help the Care to Share forum hopes to convince the holiday and travel industry to start thinking seriously about accessibility for all,” Mr McConachie added.
The organisation will be encouraging holiday providers to view the forum.
- 0 Comments
- 0 Ratings, Not yet rated
-
Sheffield council to host special needs services meeting
May 7th, 2010
Posted by Ben Jones.
Parents and carers of disabled young people living in South Yorkshire have been invited to attend a meeting to discuss future special needs services in the region.
According to the Sheffield Star, the event will be an open discussion of the city council’s review of future services and has been arranged in conjunction with Sheffield Parent Carer Forum.
The meeting will take place on May 11th between 11:00 and 12:30 BST at the Megacentre in Bernard Road.
Eva Juusola of Sheffield Parent Carer Forum told the publication that parents often struggle to secure “an adequate education” for their disabled children.
“We welcome the fact the council has decided to review its approach to meeting the needs of children and young people with additional needs in schools,” she added.
Sheffield Parent Carer Forum is based at Bells Court and recently became a limited company.
A similar consultation to discuss parents’ information requirements will take place at Carlton Park Hotel in Rotherham on May 13th.
- 0 Comments
- 0 Ratings, Not yet rated
-
Marathon runners raise £1m for Whizz-Kidz
May 7th, 2010
Posted by James Lahey.
A total of 600 London marathon runners generated funds for disability organisation Whizz-Kidz, the charity has revealed.
Fred Flintstone, Willy Wonka and Minnie Mouse were among the costumes worn by fundraisers when they took to the streets last month (April 25th) to run the 26-mile race.
Runners from Africa, America and Europe travelled to the city to support the charity, which is set to receive £1 million in sponsorship money.
Jess Leigh, London Marathon coordinator at Whizz-Kidz, said the organisation set up five ‘cheering points’ at strategic sites around the course in order to boost the morale of its fundraisers.
“The day was a great success for Whizz-Kidz. Feedback from our runners and their families has been extremely positive and we’re very grateful to Santander for helping us to make it such a success,” Mr Leigh said.
It is estimated that the London marathon has raised £500 million since its inception in 1981, the charity notes.
In related news, Whizz-Kidz is currently collaborating with Devices for Dignity and Frazer-Nash Consultancy to produce a “wheelchair of the future”.
- 0 Comments
- 0 Ratings, Not yet rated
-
Capability launches disability employment initiative
April 16th, 2010
Posted by Ben Jones.
Disability organisation Capability Scotland has announced a joint initiative with the Scottish Union of Supported Employment (SUSE) to secure long-term, paid employment for disabled people.
The partnership is a response to the Scottish government’s A Working Life for All Disabled People report and aims to raise awareness of supported employment and its benefit to local services.
Callum MacGregor, head of employment services at Capability and chair of SUSE, stated that less than half of disabled people in Scotland are currently in paid employment, in comparison to 75 per cent of the general population.
“There continues to be challenges in providing support for those furthest from the labour market who have severe disabilities or long-term health conditions,” he said.
Mr MacGregor added that the framework focuses on “consistent, person-centred support” and developing new opportunities for disabled people who want to work.
Capability aims to ensure that disabled people achieve full equality and have the choice to define their own lives by 2020.
- 0 Comments
- 0 Ratings, Not yet rated
-
Mencap hosts Chinese learning disability meeting
April 16th, 2010
Posted by James Lahey.
Mencap has hosted an event aimed at raising awareness of learning disabilities within Chinese communities in the UK.
The first national meeting of its kind took place at Queen Alexandra College in Birmingham on Tuesday (April 13th) and was organised by the charity in conjunction with the UK Association for Chinese Mental Health.
Some 120 carers, parents and professionals attended the event, which was part of Mencap’s Inform Me campaign to address the needs of black and minority ethnic communities.
The organisation notes that very little information exists about learning disabilities within the UK’s 500,000-strong Chinese population.
“The Chinese are one of the largest minority groups in the UK, but their absence within the delivery of services is notable,” Mencap ethnicity lead Oi Mei Li commented.
She added that the charity hopes the event will be “a starting point for professionals and support services to work more effectively with communities that can be hard to reach”.
There are 1.5 million people with a learning disability in the UK, Mencap reports.
- 0 Comments
- 0 Ratings, Not yet rated
