Disability Now. Our voice, our lives.
Presenter Paul Carter is joined by business coach Robin Hindle-Fisher and disability consultant Phil Friend. They discuss unexpected positive consequences from an examination of the extra costs disabled people face which was carried out by Scope, the charity which funds Disability Now. Also on the agenda some research from Nottingham University’s business school which suggests …
Continue reading “The Download: Chasing disabled customers and bad news from the workplace”
Following the announcement by the new secretary of state for Work and Pensions that people with on-going health conditions or impairments which will only get worse will no longer have to go through repeat assessments for Employment and Support Allowance (ESA), Ruth Patrick reflects on the mixed impact of this welcome change. The man now …
Continue reading “End of repeat assessments brings hope and uncertainty”
Ian Macrae sits in for regular host Paul Carter and is joined by guests Mik Scarlet, Jane Hatton and performance poet Callum Brazzo who presents one of his poems towards the end of the show. Also under discussion, the woes of disabled flyers and a company which aims to bring together disabled job seekers and …
Continue reading “The Download: Air travel, employment and poetry”
It’s a lack of enforcement which has left attitudes towards disabled people pretty much unchanged, argues Professor Mike Oliver, and initiatives such as the Government’s Disability Confident can never be more than a busted flush. Since the Second World War the implementation of disability policy has been shaped by a tension between persuasion and enforcement. …
Continue reading “Persuasion’s failed as way of changing attitudes”
With unemployment among disabled people estimated as being more than 50 per cent of those of working age, Edmund West looks at whether work experience can lead to longer term solutions. Why is it so hard to get disabled people work experience and jobs? Steve Candlish is Operations Manager at Working Links, a UK-wide rehabilitation …
Continue reading “Experiencing barriers in getting into work”
In making cuts to out of work disability benefits George Osborne makes wrong assumptions based on flawed ideology, says Ruth Patrick. Perhaps it could have been a lot worse. In the run-up to George Osborne’s much trailed Emergency Budget there were lots of whispers and hints that disabled people might find their social security support …
The Government scheme for supporting disabled people in work should be judged on be benefits it brings rather than what it costs, says Andy Rickell. A long time ago I was asked a question which could have changed my life. I was cruising through the Civil Service Selection Board (“sizzbie”) applying to be a tax …
As a new Minister for Disabled People is appointed, Ian Macrae reflects on whether we dare to hope. After a period of reflection, the result of the general election looks no more reassuring for disabled people than it did following the announcement of the exit poll’s prediction at 10pm on 7 May. Some commentators have …
Paul Carter and Victoria Wright are joined by graduate Megan Field who is currently job hunting and deciding whether or not to declare that she is disabled. They’re also joined by Nikki Mattocks, a 17 year old mental health service user with a story to tell. And Tim Gebbels is an actor who is worrying …
In addressing questions to do with disabled people and work, Andy Rickell defends the rights of those who are unable to work. I want to unpick a matter of principle in the debate about work and disabled people which is underlying an in-depth online discussion between disabled campaigners fighting for the right to work, and …
Disability now 