A Participatory Research Project on the Effects of Recent Government Cuts in Services to Disabled People

 

If you are a disabled person and have been affected by the recent wave of cuts in services and benefits (or welfare reform) we would love to hear from you.

 

Shoot Your Mouth Off, the North-East’s leading disability film production company, has been given a grant from the Policy and Research Partnership to produce a documentary about how the reduction in Local Authority support, coupled with changes to benefits such as Disability Living Allowance, and the closing of the Independent Living Fund, may be affecting the lives of disabled people in the North East of England.

 

Back in March of this year, a report entitled ‘Social Care: the continuing crisis.’ was produced by the Learning Disability Coalition. This report painted a bleak picture.

‘Loss of local authority care is very worrying for people with learning disabilities,

their families and carers. Of the people we surveyed, 63% were reliant on their

Local authority for the funding of their care and support, and a further 21%

received a combination of welfare support, Disability Living Allowance and

money from the Independent Living Fund in order to pay for their care. Closure

of the Independent Living Fund, changes to the Disability Living Allowance and

overhauling of the benefits system, combined with reduced local authority

funding, has left many people very afraid for the future of their support.

‘Social Care: the continuing crisis’ Learning Disability Coalition

 

SYMO wants to find the people behind the statistics and create a documentary which will bring their stories to life with the aim of influencing policy-makers and those who make decisions which concern the health and well-being of disabled people. If you would like to be involved but are worried that participation may have a negative effect on your situation regarding support and benefits, we can make sure that your anonymity is protected. If you’re interested in taking part, please email Karen Sheader at karen.sheader@googlemail.com or call 07960 532554 for an informal chat.

We aim to recruit all participants to the documentary by 31^st August 2011.

Hope to hear from you soon,

Karen Sheader