Be part of decisions that affect your organisation and disabled people in your community.
May 6 2021
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Ever asked…Why didn’t anyone ask us before this was built? Why are there no places on that programme for disabled people?
DFI recognises that our members do a lot more than simply provide services. You are also working to promote equality of access, support people with disabilities to live well in their own community, and you are working in a million ways every day to bring about a society where equal life opportunities are there for all, especially disabled people.
We can achieve positive change within the voluntary disability sector to some extent and there are others whose role it is to work towards this goal also. The challenge for us is that the voice and lived experience of disabled people is often missing from the tables where major decisions are being made.
The good news is that we can all engage more in the decision making process locally and we are already recognised as key stakeholders. We also don’t have to be the person at the table, we just need to be linked in so that we can get the issues/solutions /opinions to those who are.
Local decisions include how local, national and EU funding is spent in our community, who it targets and how the long term impact is planned, implemented and measured. Decisions cover all aspects of life, e.g. housing, employment, education, local transport, training, social and leisure activities and everything else in between.
How do we participate?
One simple way is to Join your local Public Participation Network (PPN) under the Social Inclusion College.(Pillar).
This is a local network for all non-profit organisations in every County/City. They elect representatives to sit on local decision making committees and foras’ where real decisions are made on funded programmes and actions, engage in consultations and develop engagement foras’ on a variety of issues. Follow this link to find your local PPN and contact them today.