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Press Release Minister for Disabled People to address Mayor's first disability conference Event: Disability Capital 2003 – the conference PROGRAMME DETAILS FOLLOW BELOW. DELEGATE REGISTRATION contact Louise O'Dwyer Tel: 020 7983 4814 Disability Capital 2003, hosted by Mayor of London, Ken Livingstone is the first conference of its kind in the London for many years and has been organised in partnership with The London Development Agency, Transport for London and the Metropolitan Police Authority. The conference will bring together Disabled and Deaf Londoners with key decision makers to debate the everyday issues of living in the capital as a disabled person and the barriers that lead to exclusion. It aims to set the Mayor’s policy agenda beyond European Year of Disabled People and towards greater disability equality for all Londoners. The debate will also focus on the interim results of the Mayor’s Disability Capital Questionnaire In addition to the Mayor keynote speakers include: Maria Eagle MP, Minister for Disabled People; Bob Kiley, Commissioner, Transport for London; Lee Jasper, Mayor’s Policy Adviser Equalities and Policing; Bob Niven, Chief Executive, Disability Rights Commission; Caroline Gooding, The Mayor's Cabinet Adviser, Disability Rights; Dr Tyron Woolfe, Trustee, British Deaf Association; Peter Beresford, Chair of Shaping Our Lives National User network; Michael Jeewa, Director, Asian People with Disabilities Alliance; Richard Rieser, Director, Disability Equality Education; Frances Hasler, Director National Centre for independent living; Nick Danagher, Joint chair National Centre for Independent Living. Notes to editors 1. The Disability Capital Questionnaire has been extended until end of February 2004 allows more time for more disabled Londoners to give their views. Currently we particularly want to hear from older and ethnic Deaf and disabled Londoners.
For media enquiries please contact Richard Brookes on 020 7983 4713 or Ben McKnight on 020 7983 4071 or Rachelle Laurence on 020 7983 4068 (numbers not for publication) For non media enquiries contact the Public Liaison Unit: 020 7983 4100 For out of hours please contact 020 7983 4000
Disability Capital 2003-PROGRAMME
10.00 – 11.10 FIRST SESSION Introduction The Disability Bill and Single Equalities Commission Key issues for Deaf signers Key issues for mental health survivors **************************************************** 11.20 – 12.30 SEMINARS Seminar 1 An inclusive transport system for London This seminar will look at the main issues and barriers to making public transport fully public. Whilst considerable progress has been made over the last 10 years, particularly in relation to the bus network, Docklands Light Railway, the Jubilee Line Extension and new tram initiatives, access to transport remains number one priority for change for disabled Londoners. How can we best move towards an inclusive transport system and what are the major barriers? Ruth Bashall Accessible Transport campaigner will interview Bob Kiely Commissioner for Transport in London and a panel of disabled people (who both use the system and work within it) and representatives from Transport for London and the Greater London Authority will debate the issues.
One of the main conclusions from the background research work done by the GLA for Disability Capital is that information from a perspective of the social model is very hard to find. Disabled people are in effect statistically invisible. This fact is well illustrated in the area of housing. Disabled people's organisations are acutely aware of the lack of appropriate housing, the difficulties of obtaining it and the numbers of disabled people who are effectively homeless. However, there is no information collected on the amount of accessible housing in London and what the need is. This seminar will look at how disabled people are excluded from social research and the results and lessons of the Pathways Accessible Housing Research commissioned by the Greater London Authority. Richard Rieser Director of Disability Equality In Education will look at the concept of how social inclusion research excludes disabled people and Lynn Watson Director of Pathways research will outline some of the issues coming out from the research on accessible housing in London. The seminar will also highlight some of the main issues coming out of the analysis of the London Household Survey. Seminar 3 Culture How included are disabled people in our city's culture? Are there disability and deaf cultures and identities that should be recognised and celebrated. How inclusive are London's cultural venues and how can they be improved. This seminar will include a presentation from the GLA about how the mayor's cultural strategy will include disabled people, the experience of disabled people and the media and a presentation from Speech Text. Session 4 Employment and education Disabled Londoners are more likely to be unemployed and more likely to have no educational qualifications. Those of us who work also are paid less and are scarcely represented in senior positions. Those of us who do not often face poverty. However organisations both in the voluntary and statutory sector say they find it difficult to meet recruitment targets for disabled staff. How much difference has the Disability Discrimination Act made? How far does the exclusion of disabled people from mainstream education affect our ability to forge a career? What are employers doing to become ‘exemplary’?
Ken Livingstone Mayor of London takes questions from the
13.15 - 14.15 LUNCH
Seminar 5 Inclusive environments Accessing London's buildings and spaces still can be difficult. Only 17 per cent of public buildings in London are accessible. Housing continues to be a major problem. The Mayor, however, has the power to influence the future design of the city through the London Plan and particularly in supplementary planning guidance promoting inclusive design and lifetime homes. This seminar will look at what this guidance will mean and Birger Nord, will look at the experience of Sweden and introduce the work on the Accessibility guide. Mike Donnelly from Habinteg Housing Association will talk about the work around ‘lifetime homes’. Julie Fleck will talk about the London Plan supplementary planning guidance. Seminar 6 A right to Independent Living The development of the Independent Living Movement, direct payments and personal assistance support has been one of the major achievements of the disabled people's movement. The provision of direct payments is now a legislative requirement. However, as local-authority resources become tighter and eligibility criteria stricter, disabled Londoners still find themselves struggling to survive and fearing the ever-present threat of the Institution. Disabled people are also the only the local-authority residents who have to pay charges for local services. This seminar will debate whether there is a need to have a legislative right to independent living from the perspective of person assistance users, mental health survivors, black disabled people and disabled parents.
33 percent of disabled people responding to the disability Capital questionnaire said that they regularly experienced discrimination and 50 percent had experienced bullying or harassment because they were a disabled person. This seminar will look at the reality of life on the streets for disabled people and what needs to be done to counter this experience with presentations from the People First Campaign Network, the Greater London Authority's community safety team, the Metropolitan Police Association and Metropolitan Police Service.
15.20 - 16.00 FINAL SESSION Chair, Lee Jasper - Mayor’s Policy Adviser Equalities and Crime and the experience of disabled people Black disabled people influencing services
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