Scottish
Disability Equality Forum����
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Scottish
Disability Equality Forum���� |
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� SDEF News� � Edition 6, July 2002 Welcome to this sixth edition of SDEF News, available free to all
members and associate members of SDEF.� We
will keep you up to date on our own activities and relevant events and
publications in the field of disability.� If
you would like your work publicised in future editions, or would like to tell us
about something new, please contact us at the address below.
This newsletter is available by email, on disc or in other formats if
preferred.� Please contact us to let
us know how you would like to receive it.
Forum Update
Please note that SDEF moved premises on 24.6.02.�
Our address is now:
Mansfield Traquair Centre
15 Mansfield Place
Edinburgh EH3 6BB
Telephone number will remain 0131 556 3882
Email will remain [email protected]
Please amend your records.
SDEF�s
Committee has been working hard over the past few months to develop a business
plan and series of projects delivering the priorities set out by members at our
three Members� Meetings.
The business plan is now almost complete, and will be submitted to the
Scottish Executive and other potential funders shortly.�
We are quietly confident that we will shortly be in a sustainable
financial position, based on the analyses and planning we have done.
Your views on the final plan will be sought at our AGM and Conference on
2nd October.� We are keen
for your input into this event � please let us know if you have any ideas for
the discussion sessions.
Meanwhile, we have continued to make links with a wide range of other
organisations to work on the priorities you set.� We are now represented on the Scottish Steering Group for the
European Year of Disabled People (see below) and the BT Countryside for All
Advisory Group, as well as a whole range of informal networks and contacts.����������
EYDP 2003
2003 is the European Year of Disabled
People. The European Year will be launched by events across the UK in January
2003. Local and larger projects will take place throughout the European Year.�
A Scottish Steering Group has been convened to look at activity in
Scotland, and SDEF is represented on this.
The UK theme for projects is �Promote
Rights and Participation�. Sub-themes to support this include:
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Raising Awareness
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Participation
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Advocacy / Mentoring
The European Year is being organised by a
National Co-ordinating Committee (NCC) led by the Department for Work and
Pensions (DWP). The NCC will assess projects and recommend them to the Minister
for Disabled People for approval.�
To support the European Year, grants of
up to �10,000 for local projects and up to �50,000 for regional/national
projects are available. The grants are made up of funding from the European
Commission and the Government. The NCC hope to fund up to 80 local projects and
up to 10 larger projects.�
A �local project� covers an area
smaller than an English Government Office region or smaller than the whole of
Scotland or Wales or Northern Ireland. A �regional/national Project� covers
one or more English Government regions, or the whole of England or Wales or
Scotland or Northern Ireland or the UK.
Timetable:
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Closing date for application forms to arrive at the
Project Office in DWP: 1200 hours September 27 2002
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Assessment of grant applications:�
October 2002.
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Announcement of successful bids: November 2002
Note:��������
Projects
must start in 2003 and be completed no later than March 31 2004. More
information is available from www.disability.gov.uk
Scottish Executive News���
Free
Personal Care For Older People - Helpline Launched:
Leaflets
and special helpline to give advice on Scottish Executive new free personal care
scheme. Call free on 0800 027 7575 for information.
Mental
Welfare Commission for Scotland � invitation to apply
Part-time
Commissioner (with special interest in minority ethnic issues)
The
First Minister will shortly be recommending the appointment of a part-time
Commissioner to serve as a member of the Mental Welfare Commission for Scotland.
The Commission�s role is to protect mentally disordered people who cannot look
after their own interests. It enquires into cases of alleged ill treatment or
deficiency of care or treatment and visits patients in hospital or subject to
guardianship orders.
The
Commission has statutory duties under the Mental Health
Area
Tourist Board Consultation Letter
The
Minister for Tourism, Culture and Sport has put out a call for views on any
potential changes to current Area Tourist Board arrangements.�
The aim is to ensure that support is maximised for local level businesses
through the services that Area Tourist Boards provide.
Views
on any aspect of this area are welcomed, but areas for consideration could
include structure, the role of local authorities, relationships with Local
Enterprise Companies, and how Tourist Boards can best engage with businesses.
Views
should be submitted by 28 August 02, and sent to:
Lesley
Fraser
Area
1A North
Victoria
Quay
EDINBURGH
EH6
6QQ
Or
send by email to [email protected]
Consultation On Draft Guidance And Regulations On Accessibility
Strategies
This
consultation paper asks for views on the draft guidance and draft regulations on
accessibility strategies, to be prepared under the Education (Disability
Strategies and Pupils' Educational Records) Bill.
Copies of this consultation
paper can be found on the Scottish Executive website (under Consultations) at http://www.scotland.gov.uk
or if you would like additional copies, either by e-mail or in hard copy, please
telephone 0131 244 7139 or e-mail: [email protected].
The
consultation falls into three parts:
Part
I �
draft guidance on accessibility strategies
Responses
to this consultation should be sent by Friday 9 August 2002 at the latest
to:
Samantha
Baker
Women
and Transport
http://www.scotland.gov.uk/library5/transport/watg-00.asp
Promoting
Health, Supporting Inclusion - The national review of the contribution of all
nurses and midwives to the care and support of people with learning disabilities
http://www.scotland.gov.uk/library5/health/phsi-00.asp
Scottish
Parliament News
Inquiry Into Mainstreaming Equality Into The Activities Of Committees Of
The Scottish Parliament
This consultation paper sets out the initial proposals of the Equal
Opportunities Committee with regard to how best equality might be mainstreamed
into the activities of committees of the Scottish Parliament.
The
paper provides further details of the consultation on an approach, set out in a
series of high-level Mainstreaming Equality Guidelines. The draft Mainstreaming
Equality Guidelines aim to outline the features of an effective mainstreaming
process and define the intended outcomes. Once these are established, then
further work on developing appropriate support structures may begin.
Go to http://www.scottish.parliament.uk/official_report/cttee/equal-02/eo02-ime-01.htm
or phone 0131 348 5216 for a copy of the paper.
Please
send any written comments by Friday 27 September 2002, to:
Equal Opportunities Committee
Room 2.8 Committee Chambers
The Scottish Parliament
EDINBURGH
EH99 1SP
Email to [email protected]
UK Government News
Transport the biggest barrier for disabled people
Nearly half of disabled people polled (48%) say transport is their most
important concern. But only a fifth (21%) believe those responsible for
transport planning and development give enough attention to their needs.
That�s according to the recent report, �Attitudes of Disabled People to
Public Transport in England and Wales�, published by the Disabled Persons
Transport Advisory Committee (DPTAC).
To read the full report, follow this link:
http://www.dptac.gov.uk/01report/index.htm
News from the Sector
On
Eve Of Free School Meals Debate New Survey Uncovers Families With A Disability
Losing Out (20/06/02):
For
more information, go to http://www.capability-scotland.org.uk/
and click on Press Releases
Improved
Access For Deaf People To Their MSPs (17/06/02):
http://www.britishdeafassociation.org.uk/newsflash.php?id=44
More
Concerns Over New Anti Discrimination Body (18/06/02):
Government
plans to set up a single new anti-discrimination commission, replacing three
existing agencies, could make disability laws more difficult to implement, the
RNIB has warned.
DRC News
The
Report Of The Conference "Researching Disability In Scotland" Held In
June 2001 Is Now Available (19/06/02):
http://www.drc-gb.org/drc/default.asp
and scroll down to NEWS
DRC
calls for shake-up of legislation
Major changes to the law are urgently needed so that disabled people can
use public transport and enjoy equal employment rights. At the launch of its
first major review of disability legislation, Caroline Gooding, the DRC�s
Special Adviser, says: "Many disabled people still don�t have the right
to get on a plane or a train or effective rights in the workplace.
"After six years of the DDA, the gaps in the law are clearer than
ever. The DRC needs your help to make the case for legal change."
The DRC has launched a public consultation on its recommendations for
changes to the DDA. Responses to the consultation must be received by 16 August
2002. You can help us by giving your comments online.
To read the consultation, and complete the online questionnaire, click here.
Professor Peter Willetts tried to open an account with smile,
the internet bank, on behalf of his disabled father. He has a registered
Enduring Power of Attorney, which gives him the right to act on behalf of his
father in all his financial affairs. When Professor Willetts was refused, he
asked the DRC for help. After the DRC�s intervention, smile agreed
to alter its procedures and terms and conditions.
Professor Willetts explains: "I was getting more and more upset
because most financial institutions seemed to have no understanding of our
situation�I am delighted with smile�s decision."
The DRC has called on all banks to change their rules, so that those
holding a registered Enduring Power of Attorney can open accounts on behalf of
their relatives.
To
read the full story, click here.
DRC Legal advice surgeries
Last month, DRC Scotland held the first in a series of free legal advice
surgeries for people in the Highlands and Islands. The surgery, which took place
in Brora, is the first in a series of four events aimed at giving free legal
advice, on a one-to-one basis, to disabled people who feel that they are being
discriminated against. The surgeries also aim to give disabled people in the
Highland and Islands areas equal access to the DRC�s advice, information and
other services.
The next surgeries will take place in:
Skye - July 2002
Mull - September 2002
Aberdeen - November 2002
For more information, contact:
Email: highland&[email protected]
Telephone: 0131 444 4300
Textphone: 0131 444 4302
Civic Forum News
Forum on DiscriminationThe Forum on Discrimination Steering Group met last week to review the
launch event in June, and to pinpoint areas for future activity.�
Two working groups have since been formed, one looking at Mainstreaming,
the other at Media.� If you would like to get involved, please contact Niall
Hermiston at the Forum office on 0131 225 6789 or email [email protected].�
A Conference Report from the June launch event will be published and
circulated in the near future.
Rural Network
There is a generally acknowledged �vacuum� resulting from the
passing of the Rural Forum that has not been filled by other agencies picking up
the work.� How can rural Scotland
organise, find its voice and use it?� How
can communities as diverse as rural Lanarkshire and the Islands find a common
agenda, or even a common way of working?��
What can we learn from the examples of other countries who are held up as
models of rural community participation, like Sweden, Germany and Canada?
A small action group that emerged from the seminar on 29 May in Aberdeen
on rural participation will address these and other questions.�
On that occasion, we heard about the experience of the Swedish Rural
Parliament, the Village Actions Movements, in Sweden and elsewhere in
Scandinavia.� But the situation in
Scotland is different, and we have first to decide what we are looking for, and
what kind of structure or network would enable those who feel the �vacuum�
to make their voices heard.
If you have views on this, or wish to be kept informed, please contact
Donald Reid at the Civic Forum ([email protected]
or 0131 225 6881)
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� Scottish Disability Equality Forum Working together for the disability movement SDEF is a recognised Scottish charity no. SC031893 end of page |