Global-Report-Living-Colour-dr2-2

More documents

Recommendations

Info

Inclusive Communities = Stronger Communities GLOBAL REPORT ON ARTICLE 19: THE RIGHT TO LIVE AND BE INCLUDED IN THE COMMUNITY 73 ‰ Disability supports and services tied to housing When a person with an intellectual disabilities decides that he/she would like to move out of their family home or when their family is no longer there to care for them, the residential options available to them are significantly limited by the fact that the supports and services which they need are only available in certain settings such as care homes (group homes, seniors homes etc.). Having access to services and supports which could be used in the residential setting of their choice would significantly change the way in which people are included in the community. ‰ Access to inclusive services Families reported that even when they have the finacial resources (personal or funded by government) to purchase services, the range of appropriate and reliable services available is extremely limited. From a public policy perspective this may be a result of the fact that government funding is heavily weighted towards the supply-side and the service agencies have not been forced to be accountable to what people with intellectual disabilities and their families are demanding. For example, government funding to sheltered workshops, group homes and day programmes means that people with intellectual disabilities who would chose to work in the open labour market or to live on their own or volunteer in the community often cannot access the supports they require to do so. We learned that in many cases the lack of access to inclusive services stems from a misunderstanding of what “community based” should mean. Governments and those who deliver services believe that the location of services in the community in itself means inclusive services as is the example from a provincial government in Canada; CANADA “Across the province of Ontario, there are 23,000 people with a developmental disability languishing on waitlists for services – 12,000 of those individuals are waiting for residential supports. 44-year-old Hamilton resident, Akhil Agarwal, is one of them. His 70-year-old father, Naresh Agarwal, is worried that families like theirs have to go into crisis to get the supports and services they need.” 4
74 Inclusive Communities = Stronger Communities GLOBAL REPORT ON ARTICLE 19: THE RIGHT TO LIVE AND BE INCLUDED IN THE COMMUNITY The Developmental Services Act made some attempts to respond to the social model of disability. For example, the Act provided for public funding of community-based services and supports for people with intellectual disabilities. Such services include group homes, individual living arrangements in which people with disabilities received support services, sheltered workshops, day programmes and life skills training programmes. 5 ‰ Government cut backs and austerity measures Photo: Ulrich Eigner In countries impacted by the global financial crisis we heard that government cutbacks are making people with intellectual disabilities more vulnerable, that services are being cut and that eligibility for income support is being further restricted. <strong>Global</strong>ly, governments and service providers are experiencing significant economic pressure... pressure to do more with less and to reduce overall expenditures. In such a context services and supports to people with intellectual disabilities and families often become the targets of “cost-saving” measures. We have heard stories from individuals and families whose lives have been negatively impacted by such measures. We witness countries that choose to invest in “fixing-up” institutions rather than investing in community based supports and a process of deinstitutionalization with a rationale that such will reduce costs. We also heard that families once again are picking up the additional responsibilities when services are not accessible. “Following cuts to services in England, our national member’s survey reveals that one in four people with an intellectual disabilities now spends less than one hour outside of their home everyday.” – UK Country profile for the initiative MENCAP’s online survey
Page 1 and 2:
Inclusive Communities = Stronger Co
Page 3 and 4:
Library and Archives Canada (LAC) I
Page 5 and 6:
iv Inclusive Communities = Stronger
Page 7 and 8:
vi Inclusive Communities = Stronger
Page 9 and 10:
viii Inclusive Communities = Strong
Page 11 and 12:
x Inclusive Communities = Stronger
Page 13 and 14:
xii Inclusive Communities = Stronge
Page 15 and 16:
2 Inclusive Communities = Stronger
Page 17 and 18:
Page 19 and 20:
Page 21 and 22:
Page 23 and 24:
Page 25 and 26:
Page 27 and 28:
Page 29 and 30:
Page 31 and 32:
Page 33 and 34:
Page 35 and 36: 22 Inclusive Communities = Stronger
Page 85: 72 Inclusive Communities = Stronger
Page 113 and 114: 100 Inclusive Communities = Stronge
Page 137 and 138:
124 Inclusive Communities = Stronge
Page 139 and 140:
Page 141 and 142:
Page 143 and 144:
Page 145 and 146:
Page 147 and 148:
Page 149 and 150:
Page 151 and 152:
Page 153 and 154:
Page 155 and 156:
Page 157 and 158:
Page 159 and 160:
Page 161 and 162:
Page 163 and 164:
Page 165:
Printed in Canada Inclusion Interna
show all

Global-Report-Living-Colour-dr2-2

Create successful ePaper yourself

Delete template?

Save as template?