If this campaign was not running, then AtW would surely be in a worse mess for Deaf people right now and probably be on the way out in the name of cuts. Keep it up Stop Changes! Let’s not see everything we fought for over 30 years destroyed. Reblogged from the excellent campaign site: https://stopchanges2atw.com/2014/12/27/campaign-highlights-from-2014/
The #stopchanges2atw group have been extremely busy over the past year. A lot has happened and there is a lot of work which we are enormously proud of. We thought we’d share a few of the key moments of the campaign and also what’s happened with AtW to remind you how far we’ve come.
Tom Watson, described by Limping Chicken as a “Labour Big Beast”, shows support for our campaign. We were very grateful for Tom’s support which got attention for our campaign and also, more importantly, raised awareness about the issue and what was happening within AtW.
JENNY SEALEY JOINS US
We we’re delighted that Jenny Sealey joined the campaign and became our spokesperson. Jenny is hugely respected, and has experienced cuts not only to her own support, but has seen other people’s budgets cut too. Having witnessed the impact these changes were having across the community, Jenny was therefore the perfect person to represent the campaign.
TERESA PEARCE MP SUPPORTS US
We were extremely pleased to have the support of Teresa Pearce, a member
of the Work & Pension Select Committee. Teresa has worked
tirelessly on the issue of Access to Work and we can’t thank her enough
for everything she has done.
PETITION REACHES 5,000!
A milestone which we were very pleased to reach. We are continuing with the petition and are about to reach the 7,000 mark!
CAMPAIGN VIDEOS
We released a series of campaign videos to raise awareness for our campaign. There were nine videos, showing how different people were being affected.
WORK & PENSION SELECT COMMITTEE ANNOUNCE INQUIRY
On 12th May the WPSC announced they would be launching an inquiry into
AtW. We began supporting as many people as possible to make submissions
and along with others, raised the issue of access to the committee
clerk, enabling submissions in BSL. This was the first time that an
inquiry had been made BSL accessible in this way which in itself was a
significant moment.
30 HOUR RULE SUSPENDED
On 14th May the then Minister for Disabled People, Mike Penning,
announced the suspension of the 30 hour rule and a review into AtW. This
review was to last three months, however, it is still ongoing and we
are not expecting to see anything until the new year.
PHSO COMPLAINTS
Alongside our work, DeafAtW have been guiding people through the
Obudsman process. We see this as an alternative route to challenge what
is happening with AtW. This is an important piece of work which we have
been supporting wherever possible.
LEIGH DAY – FIGHTING FUND
We have been working with Leigh Day, the human rights law firm, over
Access to Work for some time & have now had two successful outcomes.
The first case we tried to take was settled, and the individual named
had their AtW support fully reinstated. In the second case, we asked
that the AtW guidance be published as we believed to not have this in
the public domain was unlawful. This has now been acted on. We are very
grateful to Leigh Day for all their work and support. In Particular we
would like to thank Ugo Hayter and Richard Stein. We now have a fighting
fund of £3,000 and are in a strong position to be able to make legal
challenges where deemed necessary. We are continuing to communicate with
Leigh Day and will look at any next steps needed in the new year.
WPSC INQUIRY
The inquiry receives a record number of submissions (over 300) and holds
a series of four evidence sessions. The report is published before
Christmas and is welcomed by the campaign, including all the issues we
have raised.
THANK YOU’S:
Our supporters:
Teresa Pearce MP, Disabled People Against Cuts (DPAC), Inclusion London, DeafAtW, Graeae Theatre Company, NUBSLI.
We would like to take this opportunity to thank the following people/organisations:
The Limping Chicken.
Ian W Gouldstone.