Hi and welcome to the latest news letter from Inclusion.

Welcome to the Inclusion disability news round up…..don’t forget to keep coming back for regular posts and don’t forget to follow us on Twitter (Inclusionme) or join our fans page on Facebook. There are links to both on our contact us page. We hope that you like the new site but do still give us your feedback as we are always looking for ways to improve our service and site. Any suggestions for news or discussion topics will be gratefully received.

Equality Bill receives Royal Assent

On 8 April 2010 the Equality Bill received Royal Assent and formally became The Equality Act 2010.
The provisions in the Act are intended to come into force according to the following schedule:

• October 2010: Main provisions
• April 2011: The integrated public sector Equality Duty, the Socio-economic duty and dual discrimination protection
• 2012: The ban on age discrimination in provision of goods, facilities, services and public functions
• 2013: Private and voluntary sector gender pay transparency regulations (if required) and political parties publishing diversity data

See our blog update for more information:

http://www.inclusion.me.uk/blog/equality-bill-receives-royal-assent/

Workplace Law publishes Equality Bill briefing

Workplace Law has released a briefing on the Equality Bill, called ‘The Equality Bill: Everything you need to know’. The briefing, which was written by Sandra Wallace, Employment Partner and Head of the Equality and Diversity practice at law firm DLA Piper, answers some frequently asked questions on the Equality Bill.

The topics discussed include:

• how the Equality Bill will affect employer
• equal opportunities policies
• positive action
• pre-employment questionnaires

To download the briefing, visit the Workplace Law website www.workplacelaw.net/news/display/id/27319

Tributes paid to access champion David Morris

Senior figures at the Greater London Authority (GLA) and the Olympics and Paralympics have paid tribute to David Morris, the disability campaigner and mayoral adviser, who died on 18 April 2010 aged 51. Mr Morris, who was Senior Policy Adviser on Disability to the Mayor of London, had been on secondment with the London Organising Committee of the Olympic Games (LOCOG) as External Access and Inclusion Coordinator. Among his pioneering ideas was the concept of a ‘Paralympic Inclusive Environment’, which aimed to use the momentum of the Games to extend accessibility beyond the Olympic and Paralympic park.

Boris Johnson, Mayor of London, said he was ‘saddened’ to hear about the death of Mr Morris, who he said ‘campaigned tirelessly for disability rights’, while Lord Coe, chair of LOCOG, called him ‘a life-enhancer who was very perceptive and funny’, adding that his death was ‘far too sudden’.

A joint statement issued on behalf of both the GLA and LOCOG said that Mr Morris had played a ‘key role in diversity and inclusion work’ ahead of the Olympics and Paralympics in 2012.

The Chief Executive of LOCOG, Paul Deighton, said: ‘David played a key role in our diversity and inclusion work right across LOCOG. He led on access and inclusion work and was committed to ensuring all of our clients had a great experience at Games-time. ‘In particular, he pioneered the ‘Paralympic Inclusive Environment’ which garnered widespread support across LOCOG and beyond. He was inspirational in every sense and was a great role model for disabled people and non-disabled people alike. He will be greatly missed.’

For the full report, visit the Disability Now website www.disabilitynow.org.uk/latest-news2/tributes-paid-to-david-morris

Thomas Pocklington Trust launches Light for Sight framework

The Thomas Pocklington Trust, in collaboration with 11 professional bodies, has launched the Light for Sight Framework, which calls for lighting to be acknowledged as a vital aid for sight and to be a routine consideration in health and social care and housing. It is estimated that two million people in the UK have a visual impairment that affects their everyday life and, since much sight loss is age-related, this figure is set to rise as the population ages.

The framework involves different areas of work including:

• specialist lighting training for professionals, from occupational therapists to electricians
• information materials and advice are to be targeted at older people and their families, as well as housing professionals
• making lighting part of routine assessments for health and social care health workers such as GPs and optometrists
• lobbying decision makers to include lighting in current and future policies

The Light for Sight Framework sets out eight key goals for establishing Light for Sight as a routine principle in housing and health and social care. All those signing up to the framework have committed to work towards these goals.

The eight goals are as follows:

• all new houses to be designed and built with light for sight in mind
• sight loss issues to be addressed more explicitly in health and social care assessments
• lighting information to be widely available to social care and housing professionals
• lighting information to be routinely provided to older people, visually impaired people and their families
• skilled advisors to be available to assess lighting needs and identify solutions
• electricians to be able to provide appropriate lighting for people with sight loss
• lighting training to be given to health and social care professionals so that they can assess people’s needs and advise on solutions
• policy makers to be urged to add Light for Sight to policies on health, social care and housing

Ron Bramley, Chief Executive of the Thomas Pocklington Trust, said: ‘Today we call on everyone who can influence lighting in the home to think about people’s sight when they plan their lighting. It sounds simple but research shows that better lighting improves lives. It reduces risk in the home, makes daily tasks easier and enables independence so that people can enjoy life to the full.’

For further information on the framework, visit the Thomas Pocklington Trust website http://tinyurl.com/pocklington

Disabled Facilities Grant funding announced

Before the dissolution of Parliament, Communities and Local Government announced £165 million of funding for the Disabled Facilities Grant programme to local authorities. The means-tested programme funds adaptations to houses to make them more accessible. This year, the funding has been awarded as part of the Right to Control pilots, in which selected people participate in the decisions of how to spend the budgets allocated to them.

The funding streams included in the Right to Control test areas are:

• Access to Work
• Work Choice
• Independent Living Fund
• Non-statutory housing related support (also known as Supporting People)
• Disabled Facilities Grant Adult Community Care will also be joined up in the test areas.

For further information, visit the CLG website www.communities.gov.uk/news/corporate/1527555

RNID launches hearing check iPhone application

The Royal National Institute of Deaf People (RNID) has launched a new iPhone application that allows people to check their hearing. The application is the latest version of RNID’s popular Hearing Check, which, according to the charity, has been used so far by over half a million people, and measures a person’s ability to hear someone speaking when there is background noise. The Hearing Check application for the iPhone, iPad and iPod Touch will allow users to check their hearing for free. It is hoped that this will encourage the 40 million iPhone users worldwide to check their hearing.

RNID’s Chief Executive, Jackie Ballard, said: ‘This is a fantastic new way to encourage people to value their hearing and check it regularly. The Hearing Check application offers quick results and confidential advice from anywhere with a decent phone signal.’

For more information on the application, visit the RNID website www.rnid.org.uk/mediacentre/press/2010/hearingcheck_app.htm

Hopefully that covers some of the key recent events and updates but please do check out our page on Facebook and Tweets on Twitter for more regular updates and more interesting / fun stories and information on a daily basis…..and remember to keep coming back for our blog updates or sign up for our Newsletter which is still coming soon….promise…..

Inclusion are based around London, Kent, Surrey, Sussex and cover the whole of the south of the UK – please contact us for further details or for free support and advice around any DDA or Occupational Therapy issues.