“Better Working with Disabled People: The Way Forward”

Thursday 16th January 2014 Written Statements

[The Minister of State, Department for Work and Pensions (Mike Penning)]

I am today publishing the latest part of our fulfilling potential cross-government disability strategy: “Better Working with Disabled People: The Way Forward”. This sets out our new plans for Government engagement with, and advice from, disabled people.

The UK has a proud history of furthering the rights of disabled people, but we know more needs to be done to realise the Government’s aim that disabled people should be enabled to participate in every aspect of society.

The new arrangements will build on the achievements of Equality 2025. The “Better Working with Disabled People” consultation, published in July 2013, sought views on how we can best do this. The responses to the consultation, and our extensive engagement with stakeholders, have helped us to shape the plans set out in “Better Working with Disabled People: The Way Forward”.

We aim to strengthen and broaden input to policy and strategy development from the lived experience of disabled people, and also from people with particular expertise on disability issues, in accordance with the principles of open policy making.

The new arrangements are intended to contribute towards meeting our obligation under the UN convention on the rights of disabled people to closely consult with, and actively involve, disabled people in decision-making processes relating to them.

We are establishing an engagement forum, the fulfilling potential forum, involving around 40 disability organisations, including regional representatives. The forum will meet quarterly to discuss and inform Government strategy. It will be co-chaired by the Minister of State for Disabled People and the Minister of State for Care and Support.

The work of the forum will be complemented by the introduction of the fulfilling potential policy advice service, a call-off list of disability experts who will advise Government policy makers. The management of the service will be contracted out, with the Office for Disability Issues in the Department for Work and Pensions managing the contract.

The first meeting of the fulfilling potential forum is expected to be in April 2014, and the fulfilling potential policy advice service should be operational by mid-2014.

I will place a copy of “Better Working with Disabled People: The Way Forward” in the House Library.