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in Northern Ireland designed to promote the welfare of the people
of Northern Ireland. There is no specific mention of disability in the
Order.
The next legislation to address the needs of disabled people was the
Chronically Sick and Disabled Persons (NI) Act 1978 which made it a
mandatory function of HSS Boards to ensure that they were
adequately informed of the numbers and needs of handicapped
persons in their area. The Act required Boards to publish information,
make arrangements for social services to meet the needs of disabled
people, including practical assistance in the home, transport
arrangements, home adaptations, holidays and help obtaining a
telephone. This was amended by the Disabled Person's Act (NI) 1989
which further required Boards to identify the needs of school leavers
with disabilities and provide appropriate services. The Disabled
Persons Act gave people with disabilities rights to representation,
assessment, information and counselling. The Act also gave carers of
disabled people the right to an assessment of their ability to care to
be taken into account and the right to ask for an assessment of the
needs of the disabled person.
Strictly not a welfare provision, but with important implications for
the provision of social care services, the Disability Discrimination Act
1995 stated that disabled people must not be discriminated against
by those providing goods, facilities or services. A failure by a Trust to
provide a service to disabled children could therefore be considered
to be discriminatory.
The Carers and Direct Payments Act (NI) 2001 which is about to be
implemented gives HSS Boards and Trusts the power to make direct
payments to people with parental responsibility for disabled children
so that the child can access mainstream services and leisure activities.
The Act also extends direct payments to 16 and 17 year old disabled
children where they intend to leave home to go into further or
higher education. Children and their families now have an enhanced
choice of services and for the first time, autonomy in choosing the
type of service they wish to receive.
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