1. WOW Debate Update
The long-awaited debate on welfare reform took place last Thursday, following the demand of nearly 105,000 people who signed the WOW Petition.
The question put, and agreed to, as taken from Hansard:
"That this House calls on the Government to commission an independent cumulative assessment of the impact of changes in the welfare system on sick and disabled people, their families and carers, drawing upon the expertise of the Work and Pensions Select Committee; requests that this impact assessment examine care home admissions, access to day care centres, access to education for people with learning difficulties, provision of universal mental health treatments, closures of Remploy factories, the Government's contract with Atos Healthcare, IT implementation of universal credit, human rights abuses against disabled people, excess deaths of welfare claimants and the disregard of medical evidence in decision-making by Atos, the Department for Work and Pensions and the Tribunals Service; urges the Secretary of State for Health and the Secretary of State for Education jointly to launch a consultation on improving support into work for sick and disabled people; and further calls on the Government to end with immediate effect the work capability assessment, as voted for by the British Medical Association, to discontinue forced work under the threat of sanctions for people on disability benefits and to bring forward legislative proposals to allow a free vote on repeal of the Welfare Reform Act 2012."
Which looks like a successful outcome for the tireless WOW campaigners. As more details become clear, I will update you here.
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2. Nutrition Blog: A Bitter Sugar Pill
I am very pleased to be able to share with you the latest article by our resident nutrition guru, Mary Farmer. A Bitter Sugar Pill is a clear exposition of the risks posed by excess sugar consumption, and the ways in which we have manoeuvred ourselves into eating way too much of the "white stuff". Often, it has not been so much our own fault, as that of the experts we trust and the food industry we buy from. Definitely a thought-provoking read!
An international initiative was launched earlier in the year, Action on Sugar, with the aim of reducing added sugar in processed foods, in the same way that the salt content has been gradually reduced. You can read more about it here
And don't forget about the free FoodSwitch smart phone app, which helps you make healthier choices in the supermarket: I'm still looking for volunteers to road test it for Independent Living. There's more information and to link to download it, here
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3. NHS Change Day Reviewed
More than 388,000 pledges were made on the NHS Change Day website, in the run-up to Monday's event. Pledges ranged from simple promises to show appreciation for the work of NHS staff by smiling and thanking them more, to innovative Ideas, such as helping terminally ill children understand and relate to the cycle of life by growing and nurturing seeds on the ward.
A number of NHS staff used the day to experience first-hand what their patients have to live with, from the doctor who is spending a week on a special renal diet, to the group of medics who had gastric nasal tubes inserted.
The biggest collective action in NHS history, Change Day is a grassroots movement which focuses on one, simple idea: doing something to make patient care better. You can read more here. With so many negative stories in the news about various aspects of the NHS, it seems right to celebrate the fact that it is an organisation full of people with a strong sense of vocation, and a drive to use their own resources of empathy and ingenuity to make things better.
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4. Case Study - Leopard Print Power!
As I mentioned last week, there is a growing archive of interesting case studies on Independent Living, and the latest addition features the fashion savvy Eden King, and her pink leopard print Balder powerchair from Etac UK. Definitely one of the coolest looks I have come across in a powerchair recently, but more to the point is the range of functions which have transformed Eden's life.
Such equipment does not come cheap, as any parent of a disabled child can testify, and the case study includes the range of philanthropic funding sources that contributed to making the purchase possible. Click to read Eden's story
You can also see more about NHS Wheelchair Services here, and access our area dedicated to the needs of children with a disability, here
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5. Access – People are the Problem
Over the last couple of weeks, I have been highlighting different solutions to problems of access. A story I read recently caused me to reflect that, often, the biggest obstacle to accessibility is not so much the environment as the people in it.
A supermarket customer with mobility problems found himself in need of the toilet. There was a disabled loo in the store, locked with a Radar key, which he didn't possess. No matter, supermarkets have customer service desks, so access to the loo should be straightforward. Except in this particular case, the staff members he spoke to decided that as he didn't have his own Radar key, he shouldn't be allowed to use the disabled facilities... The principle behind the Radar key scheme is fine – disabled toilets can be kept locked, so that they aren't either vandalised or used for purposes other than those for which they were designed. If you need the facility of the disabled toilet, you can buy a key from many outlets for a couple of pounds upwards, so that you are equipped to enter any Radar-locked facility at need. The idea that two Tesco's "jobsworths" should block access to someone who obviously needed to use their disabled loo, just because he didn't have a key of his own, is quite depressing. Especially as the very same company has just installed its first Changing Places fully accessible toilet in one of its superstores. Let's hope they also invested in training the staff.
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6. Latest Updates
If you are a student with a disability, and you would value some work experience during the summer, you only have a few days left to apply for a Change100 paid internship - more here
CareFlex have added their HydroFlex chair to the range available for Express Delivery (five working days from order). CareFlex Express Chairs are built to suit a wide range of requirements and are always in stock and ready for delivery. Following a free no-obligation assessment, if the requirements of the user match the Express Chair specifications, an Express order can be placed. You can see some of their range on their showcase page
Coming up next week, a look at some new developments in postural management.
And that's it for now. Don't forget you can access all the news as soon as it is uploaded in our News Centre.
Our Visitors Forum is the place to start a debate about any topic that interests you.
Previous newsletters are archived here.
Our Facebook page is regularly updated with the latest developments on the site, and is also somewhere that you can share your opinions with us. Or if you want to make it pithy, send us a tweet! @IndLiving
Until next time, all good wishes,
Frances
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Frances Leckie
Editor
e: editor @ independentliving.co.uk
t: +44 (0) 208 133 0628
Skype: francesleckie
w: www.independentliving.co.uk
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