DEPARTMENT FOR WORK
AND PENSIONS News Release (DRC-116) issued by COI News Distribution
Service. 25 November 2008
Government
response to the consultation on implementation and monitoring of
the Independent Living Strategy
The Government will today announce plans for involving disabled
people in the implementation and monitoring of the five year,
cross-government Independent Living Strategy.
Launched in March this year, the Strategy aims to increase choice
and control, and promote greater access to housing, transport,
health, employment and leisure opportunities for all disabled
people. A consultation exercise asked for views on how best to
involve disabled people in measuring progress on the Strategy. The
Office for Disability Issues (ODI) not only held public
consultation events but also provided a toolkit to help disabled
people's organisations hold their own consultation events.
The ODI is committed to working in partnership with disabled
people at all stages of the development and implementation of
policies that affect their lives and therefore - after the
consultation exercise closed on 30 June 2008 - also involved
disabled people in developing the Government's response to
the consultation.
Lorraine Gradwell, Chief Executive of Breakthrough UK, and a
disability activist for 25 years, said: "Real progress is
being made by ODI on involving disabled people in planning, using
co-production as the model. The next challenge will be to apply
this model to implementing the strategy, and ensuring other
statutory bodies adopt the model."
Phil Mason, one of the initiators of direct payments, agreed:
"At last, a policy in practice, a consultation where disabled
people were enabled to work together in a meaningful way, to
listen to each other and to make a collective contribution. The
commitment to continue this practice means that our daily
experience will inform future observations and comments."
The ODI also involved the Expert Panel, which helped develop the
Independent Living Strategy, in developing the Government's
response to the consultation, as was Equality 2025, the UK
Advisory Network for Disability Equality.
Baroness Jane Campbell, Chair of the Expert Panel, said: "I
am delighted that disabled people and their allies will play an
integral role in the scrutiny of the five year, cross-government
Independent Living Strategy. We have come a long way from the
days of being consulted on our views and then left to wonder
whether they would be taken on board. Now we will be part of the
action, working in partnership with the government, to make sure
the strategy delivers independent living for disabled people".
Rowen Jade, acting Chair of Equality 2025, said: "One of the
things that has been so remarkable about the Independent Living
Strategy is the co-production between disabled people and
government. This goes so much further than 'involvement'
and I look forward to Equality 2025 playing a key role in the
monitoring of progress on the Strategy".
Following the consultation, and the further involvement of
disabled people, the Government has decided to implement the
following steps to make sure disabled people are actively involved
in making the Strategy a reality and checking that good progress
is being made:
* Establish an Independent Living Scrutiny
Group (ILSG) to review progress on implementing the ILS
* Work
with Equality 2025 to determine how best to use and develop
existing networks to form a 'network of networks',
creating a two-way channel of communication between the government
and disabled people
* Examine some of the options, for
example, specific courses, suggested by respondents for building
leadership capacity
* Work to help disabled people's
organisations benefit more from new opportunities to build the
capacity of the third sector.
Jonathan Shaw, Minister for Disabled People, said: "I am
pleased that so many disabled people and organisations have been
involved in putting together a robust approach that will help
ensure the Strategy does what it sets out to do. I look forward to
continuing to work with them to make the Strategy a success."
Notes to editors (more notes to come)
* A summary of the
Strategy consultation responses can be found at: http://www.officefordisability.gov.uk/working/independentlivingstrategy.asp
* The Independent Living Strategy is jointly owned by the
Office for Disability Issues, Department of Health, Department for
Children, Schools and Families, Department for Transport,
Department for Work and Pensions, Communities and Local Government
and Department for Innovation, Universities and Skills.
* http://www.officefordisability.gov.uk/equality2025/
* http://www.officefordisability.gov.uk/working/expertpanel.asp
* http://www.officefordisability.gov.uk/
Website http://www.dwp.gov.uk