Disability Rights and Resilience - The role of information, advice and advocacy

Jeff Cuthbert AM, Minister for Communities and Tackling Poverty will today (Thurs 17th October) address Disability Wales’ members at their annual conference being held at The Liberty Stadium in Swansea on the crucial role of information, advice and advocacy in ensuring that disabled people continue to access their rights and develop resilience in the face of substantial cuts to their benefits and services.

Disabled people consistently identify the need for information, advice, advocacy and peer support as a high priority in enabling Independent Living. However, the Framework for Action on Independent Living recently launched by the Minister outlines some of the issues and barriers faced by disabled people in accessing these vital ‘entry level’ services. These include: The fragility and patchiness of advice and information services generally; The lack of independent advocacy services for some groups; The importance of disabled people’s organisations in providing peer support and peer expertise; Frustration that public services continue to provide information and advice in inaccessible formats; and the increasing reliance on the internet to disseminate information and advice which excludes many disabled people.

The Conference will bring together disabled people, their organisations and advice agencies with the aim of identifying solutions and sharing good practice in tackling these long standing issues.

Minister Jeff Cuthbert said:

“The current economic climate, cuts in Legal Aid, and reductions in other sources of public funding, together with the UK Government’s welfare reform programme, are taking their toll on the provision of information and advice services across Wales.

“This financial year, the Welsh Government is providing funding to support the work of front-line advice services across Wales. This support is intended to help organisations adjust to the funding cuts which they have experienced, and to ensure that there are still independent providers out there. “With public services increasingly going online, including claiming benefits, it is important that individuals are not left behind. Through our Communities 2.0 digital inclusion programme, we are helping to improve the lives of individuals by opening up opportunities that the latest technology can offer. I am pleased that Communities 2.0 is working closely with organisations like Disability Wales to help maximise the numbers of disabled people that are able to improve their quality of life and life chances through the use of digital technology”.

During the conference the Minister will launch Disability Wales’ NEW website which is part of its Digital Lives Project set up to tackle digital exclusion amongst disabled people and funded through the Welsh Government’s Communities 2.0 Digital Inclusion programme. The new interactive website is designed to enable better communication and promote good practice in online accessibility for disabled people. It features an eAccessibility facility that guides individuals and support organisations through the huge range of screen readers, text enlargers, mobility tools for computers and much more – the essential tools that can help disabled people get online. Staff from Communities 2.0 will be on hand at the Conference to demonstrate how the facility works and get feedback from users.

Other guest speakers include Kirsten Hearne longstanding disabled activist and experienced advisor to government and key agencies as a non-executive director and a freelance trainer, researcher and consultant. She is the chair of Inclusion London, the Deaf and Disabled People’s organisations community interest company and the vice chair of the Equality and Human Rights Commission Disability Committee. The Conference will also hear from Kate Cassidy, Director for Communities and Social Justice at Welsh Government; Lindsey Kearton, Head of Policy and Campaigns at Citizens Advice Cymru and Andrew Dunning, Lecturer in Social Policy at Swansea University.

Rhian Davies, Chief Executive of Disability Wales said:

“The theme of our conference could not be timelier as not only are disabled people across Wales facing cuts in their benefits and services but so also are the traditional sources of support in challenging these decisions such as advice agencies and legal aid. We now need to think creatively and collectively regarding how we can use existing resources and expertise to ensure that disabled people retain their hard won rights and entitlements that enable them to live independently in the community”.

Hawliau Anabledd a Gwytnwch Rôl gwybodaeth, cyngor ac eiriolaeth Heddiw bydd Jeff Cuthbert AC, Gweinidog Cymunedau & Trechu Tlodi, yn annerch aelodau Anabled Cymru yn eu cynhadledd flynyddol yn Stadiwm Liberty, Abertawe ar rôl hanfodol gwybodaeth, cyngor ac eiriolaeth wrth sicrhau bydd pobl anabl yn gallu parhau i fynnu eu hawliau, a hynny yn wyneb toriadau sylweddol i fudd-daliadau a gwasanaethau.

Bydd pobl anabl yn gyson yn nodi’r angen am wybodaeth, cyngor, eiriolaeth a chymorth cyfoedion er mwyn hwyluso Byw’n Annibynnol. Ond mae’r Fframwaith Gweithredu Byw’n Annibynnol a lansiwyd yn ddiweddar yn amlinellu rhai o’r materion a rhwystrau mae pobl anabl yn wynebu wrth geisio defnyddio’r gwasanaethau ‘sylfaenol’ hanfodol hyn. Maent yn cynnwys: yn gyffredinol, gwasanaethau cyngor a gwybodaeth yn wan ac anghyson diffyg gwasanaethau eiriolaeth annibynnol ar gyfer rhai grwpiau pwysigrwydd cyrff pobl anabl wrth ddarparu cymorth ac arbenigedd cyfoedion rhwystredigaeth fod gwasanaethau cyhoeddus yn parhau i ddarparu cyngor a gwybodaeth mewn fformatau anhygyrch dibyniaeth gynyddol ar y rhyngrwyd i ledu cyngor a gwybodaeth sy’n eithrio llawer o bobl anabl.

Bydd y Gynhadledd yn cynnwys pobl anabl, eu cyrff ac asiantaethau cyngor. Y nod eleni yw nodi atebion a rhannu arferion da wrth daclo’r materion hir dymor hyn.

Dywedodd Jeff Cuthbert:

“Mae’r hinsawdd economaidd, toriadau cymorth cyfreithiol, gostyngiadau mewn ffynonellau cyllid cyhoeddus eraill, ynghyd â rhaglen diwygiadau lles Llywodraeth San Steffan, yn effeithio gwasanaethau cyngor a gwybodaeth ar draws y wlad.

“Yn y flwyddyn ariannol hon, mae Llywodraeth Cymru yn darparu cyllid i gefnogi gwaith gwasanaethau cyngor llinell flaen. Y nod yw helpu cyrff i addasu mewn ymateb i’r toriadau a sicrhau bydd dal rhai darparwyr annibynnol ar gael.

“Gyda gwasanaethau cyhoeddus yn gynyddol yn mynd arlein, yn cynnwys hawlio budd-daliadau, mae’n bwysig sicrhau na fydd unigolion yn colli allan. Drwy ein rhaglen cynhwysiad digidol Cymunedau 2.0, rydym yn helpu i wella bywydau pobl wrth ddangos y cyfleoedd mae’r dechnoleg ddiweddaraf yn cynnig. Rwy’n falch o ddweud bod Cymunedau 2.0 yn cydweithio’n agos â chyrff fel Anabledd Cymru i gynyddu nifer y bobl anabl sy’n gallu gwella ansawdd eu bywydau wrth ddefnyddio technolegau digidol.”

Yn ystod y gynhadledd, bydd y Gweinidog yn lansio gwefan newydd Anabledd Cymru. Mae’n rhan o broject Bywydau Digidol a sefydlwyd i daclo eithrio digidol ymhlith pobl anabl, gyda chyllid drwy raglen cynhwysiad digidol Cymunedau 2.0 Llywodraeth Cymru. Cynlluniwyd y wefan ryngweithiol newydd er mwyn hwyluso cyfathrebu a hyrwyddo arferion da ym maes hygyrchedd arlein ar gyfer pobl anabl.

Bydd y siaradwyr gwadd yn cynnwys Kirsten Hearne, ymgyrchydd anabl profiadol a chynghorydd i’r llywodraeth ac asiantaethau allweddol fel cyfarwyddwraig anweithredol. Yn ogystal, mae’n gweithio fel hyfforddwraig annibynnol, ymchwilydd ac ymgynghorydd. Mae’n gadeirydd Inclusion London, cwmni diddordeb cymunedol cyrff pobl fyddar ac anabl, ac yn is-gadeirydd pwyllgor anabledd y Comisiwn Cydraddoldeb a Hawliau Dynol. Bydd y Gynhadledd hefyd yn clywed gan Kate Cassidy, cyfarwyddwraig cymunedau & cyfiawnder troseddol Llywodraeth Cymru; Lindsey Kearton, pennaeth polisi ac ymgyrchoedd Citizens Advice Cymru ac Andrew Dunning, darlithydd polisi cymdeithasol Prifysgol Abertawe.

Dywedodd Rhian Davies, prif weithredwraig Anabledd Cymru:

“Mae thema’r gynhadledd yn amserol oherwydd mae pobl anabl ar draws y wlad yn wynebu toriadau mewn budd-daliadau a gwasanaethau, a hefyd ffynonellau cymorth traddodiadol sy’n herio’r penderfyniadau hyn, megis asiantaethau cyngor a chymorth cyfreithiol. Bydd rhaid i ni gydweithio wrth feddwl yn greadigol am sut allwn ddefnyddio’r adnoddau ac arbenigedd sydd ar gael er sicrhau bydd pobl anabl yn cadw’r hawliau ac adnoddau sy’n eu galluogi i fyw’n annibynnol yn y gymuned”.