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January 2024 Update
Happy New Year and welcome to our first Member Update of 2024.
In this issue we welcome three new members to DFI and draw your attention to our Annual Membership Renewal Process.
We share details about the recruitment of our new CEO who will take over from outgoing CEO John Dolan this year.
In policy, we share some concerns we have around the Green Paper on Disability Reform. We introduce a new Live Consultations web page which includes information on the deadlines for the Green Paper and the National Disability Strategy. We also have an update on the Housing Strategy for Disabled People.
In health,we have an update on Phase Two of the Neuro-Mapping Project and invite you to save the date for our next Health Representatives gathering.
We also have a link to our presentation to the Committee on Assisted Dying.
We have the latest update on the EU Disability Card and some good news about funding allocated for assistive technology in the Create II project.
We are also planning The DFI Podcast episodes for 2024 and welcome your input on what you would like covered. We share a reminder about the availability of our Podcast Studio for use by members.
Annual Membership Renewal
The renewal process for DFI Membership for 2024 will commence shortly, with all registered DFI Members receiving their annual renewal notification by month end. Membership renewals are issued electronically to the primary registered contact.
To ensure you remain connected as a DFI Member for 2024 all renewals and associated membership fees must be returned no later than 31 March 2024.
Any issues relating to the renewal of your membership please reach out to us as soon as possible. If you have not received your renewal notification by the end of January, please do get in touch with our Membership Development Manager Susan O’Brien.
Share the news!
We invite you to share this newsletter with colleagues and invite them to subscribe.
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New Member Spotlight
DFI welcomes three new members
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We are delighted to welcome three new members to DFI:
- Autism Support and Family Advocacy Network (ASFAN)
- Cork Stroke Support
- Donegal Special Needs Parents Committee
You can find out more about their work via the links on our website.
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Events and Consultations
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New ‘Live Consultations’ page on our website
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From time to time there will be opportunities offered by various Government Departments and other organisations to make a submission or offer feedback to ongoing consultations, which are specifically relevant to disabled people and the disability sector.
We have developed a new Live Consultations landing page on our website where we aim to include opportunities along with the relevant closing dates.
Please email us if you are aware of consultations that you think disabled people and organisations should be aware of.
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DFI CEO Recruitment
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We are seeking to recruit a new Chief Executive Officer in 2024 to succeed outgoing CEO John Dolan, who has been CEO since the year 2000.
We are working with Principal Connections, a leading executive search and board advisory firm serving Ireland and the United Kingdom, on the CEO recruitment.
For more information click here.
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Committee on Assisted Dying discusses engaging people with disabilities
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The Joint Committee on Assisted Dying met on Tuesday 16 January to discuss engaging people with disabilities.
Our CEO John Dolan was invited to address the committee+. You can find his opening remarks here.
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‘Never Know Your Place’ to be published in March
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The countdown is on to the publication of Never Know Your Place – Memoir of a Rulebreaker which will be published in March by O’Brien Press.
Never Know Your Place was written by Martin Naughton with Joanna Marsden.
Martin Naughton (1954–2016) was a disabled activist from Spiddal, County Galway, who lived most of his life in Baldoyle in north Dublin. Having experienced institutionalisation and fought hard for his freedom, he became a life-long advocate for the right of disabled people to live independently. Through his personal friendships with American activists, he was instrumental in spreading the Independent Living movement to Ireland, and in the mid-1990s he led the landmark political campaign for Personal Assistant services.
Joanna Marsden is a writer and independent radio documentary-maker who lives in Dún Laoghaire. She got to know Martin when she interviewed him for a book about how life had changed for disabled people in Ireland.
For more information keep an eye on the O’Brien Press website and on our social medic channels.
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Actioning Self-Advocacy
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‘Making Advocacy Real’ events to take place in 2024
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We hosted a ‘Making Advocacy Real’ event in Cork on 30 November last. The event was offered by DFI in response to requests from our members, and it offered an opportunity to reflect on best practice in self-advocacy and to work towards the development of a DFI Self-Advocacy Toolkit.
As we continue to work towards the development of our Toolkit we will be hosting additional regional events this year.
We are currently finalising the dates and will be in touch as soon as possible. In the meantime if you have any queries please email us.
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Policy & Research
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Green Paper on Disability Reform
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As we’ve previously highlighted, the Department of Social Protection’s ‘Green Paper on Disability Reform’ is a significant policy development, which proposes a number of potential changes to Ireland’s social protection approach to disability. If you haven’t yet, we’d strongly encourage all members to read up on this proposal, to make submissions, to ensure the disabled people they work with are aware of the consultation, and to support them to participate in the consultation.
DFI has engaged in significant member consultation, and attended the Department’s Green Paper events. Like others, we have many concerns about the proposal. We have written a longer update about our work so far, and our concerns about the Green Paper here.
Resources on the Green Paper:
Drop Fleachta a line to share any feedback or ask any questions on this topic, or if you’d like us to share the various policy resources we have on this and be added to our member mailing list on the Green Paper.
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Policy and Advocacy Members Forum on 22 January
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The next meeting of our Policy and Advocacy Members Forum will take place on Monday 22 January from 10.00am to 12.00pm. It will take place in the DFI offices, and as a reward for coming out in the cold we promise to have caffeine and biscuits at the ready!
This is a collective space to support members to share updates and intelligence, collectively strategise on policy and advocacy developments, and to support networking and peer engagement for relevant staff across member organisations.
We had to reschedule a meeting originally scheduled in December due to the level of external busyness and the NDS consultation! We’re looking forward to meeting with all of you and hearing about your plans and hopes for 2024, and celebrating all our achievements last year.
Drop Fleachta a line if you’re interested in learning more about this member space and getting involved.
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National Disability Strategy Consultation – have your say
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As you will know, the consultation process to inform Ireland’s new National Disability Strategy commenced late last year. We engaged in significant advocacy to ensure that the deadline for written submissions was extended – it is now 2nd February.
There are a number of ways to participate too:
You can track all the information as it arrives at the following webpages. It is worth checking back regularly as new information is being added regularly.
We encourage you to participate in all ways that you can, and in particular to make the people you work to support aware of this consultation, and given them support to have their say if needed.
If you’d like to share your thoughts on this important new policy and what you think it should focus on, to inform DFI’s submission, then drop us a line to Fleachta.
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DFI submission to ICESCR highlights poverty, health investment and other issues
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The International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights (ICESCR) enshrines economic, social and cultural rights such as the rights to adequate food, adequate housing, education, health, social security, water and sanitation, and work. Ireland ratified the covenant in 1989, and its fourth report to the Committee of human rights experts that monitors this area is due to be examined in Geneva on 15 and 16 February 2024.
DFI made a submission to the Committee to inform their ‘list of issues’ to Ireland in 2022, and made an updated submission last week, to inform the hearing next month.
You can read DFI’s submission here. To see Ireland’s official report to the ICESCR Committee, the questions from the Committee, and the earlier civil society submissions, click here.
If you’d like to know anything more about this work, email Fleachta.
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Update on Housing Strategy for Disabled People
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DFI attended the first meeting in 2024 of the National Implementation Steering Group for the Housing Strategy for Disabled People on 8 January.
Some of the issued discussed included:
- How the Housing Strategy will be monitored and reported on.
- A website for information on housing and disability that is being developed.
- An upcoming review of the Assessment and Allocation Guidelines for social housing for people with disabilities- there will be an opportunity for DFI members to provide feedback to inform this review and we will be back in touch on this shortly.
Information and Communication Strategy
One of the early actions in the Housing Strategy was the preparation of an Information and Communication Strategy for Stakeholders. This has been developed by the Housing Agency and can be read here. It provides guidance on areas including the provision of accessible information, and accessible communication including meetings, events and consultations.
The Housing Agency are asking stakeholders to sign up to the Strategy. Stakeholder organisations including disability sector organisations and Disabled Persons’ Organisations, as well as the HSE, Local Authorities, Approved Housing Bodies and government Departments.
The steps to sign up to the Strategy are:
• Registering participation with The Housing Agency by the Stakeholder Organisation, giving a formal written commitment to engage with the Information and Communications Strategy and the actions contained.
• Stakeholder Organisation nominating a Champion within their organisation with responsibility to drive through accessibility improvements.
• Using existing forums and groups to engage with the other participating organisations to share learning and experience.
• Engaging with The Housing Agency to feedback progress on their actions and identify other accessibility initiatives they are undertaking.
Stakeholders who sign up to the Strategy will be showcased at an event early in 2024 that will raise awareness of the strategy. We will circulate details on this event when they are available. If you are interested in signing up and do not already have a contact within the Housing Agency, please get in touch with Ríona and she will put you in touch with them.
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Health Update
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The Neuro-Mapping Project update
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The joint DFI, HSE, NAI, Neuro-Mapping Project is seeking to support pathways that occur between existing and developing community services for adults with neuro rehabilitative needs in CHO 2, 3 and 6.
The engagement process with service users in CHO 3 is about to commence, with online and face-to-face sessions taking place at the end of January. Input from Service Providers will then follow.
The engagement with CHO 2 and 6 will take place in Quarter Two of this year.
For more on the Neuro-Mapping Project check out the new dedicated landing page here.
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Save the Date for the next Member Organisation Health Representatives gathering in DFI on 7 March
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DFI represents its member organisations on over 30 National Health and other Statutory Committees. Last December we hosted a Health Reps gathering in our offices in Dublin.
The event offered us an opportunity to discuss the various representative roles and to take feedback from our representatives. It was also an opportunity for us to say thank you in person for the work that they do.
John Dolan, our CEO, and Emer Begley, our Director of Advocacy and Inclusion were present for the gathering alongside Cathy McGrath, Project Manager.
A follow on in-person meeting was agreed and the date for this is now confirmed as 7 March. Please get in touch with Cathy for more information.
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FreedomTech
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€750,000 funding announced to improve access to digital and assistive technologies
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€750,000 funding will support nine projects under the Health Service Executive’s Cooperative Real Engagement for Assistive Technology Enhancement (CREATE) initiative.
CREATE II is the second iteration of the CREATE initiative, which was initially launched in January 2022, and aims to improve access to digital and assistive technologies (DAT) that can make real changes to the day-to-day experiences of people with disabilities.
The funding, which was announced by Minister Anne Rabbitte, will enable the ongoing implementation and sustainability of selected projects.
Minister Rabbitte said, “After seeing the positive results of the CREATE initiative, I was keen to further support the sustained development of assistive technology projects that I know are having a meaningful impact on people with disabilities.
“Digital and Assistive Technologies enable people with disabilities to live more independent lives and I am proud of having the opportunity to help progress this initiative.
“There is such scope to invest and support the development of assistive technology programme and initiatives, and it is certainly an area I will be looking to fund further in 2024.”
Commenting on the initiative, Dr Rosemary Gowran, HSE Clinical Lead National Clinical Programme for People with Disability, said, “Assistive Technology is a gateway to enhancing health, inclusion, wellbeing and participation. The National Clinical Programme for People with Disability, working to support the implementation of the UN CRPD, is delighted that funding has been made available to support an implementation phase of Digital and Assistive Technology demonstrator projects funded in CREATE I in 2021.”
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An Eye on Europe
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South EU Parliament’s position paves the way for ambitious European Disability Card
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The European Disability Forum (EDF) of which DFI is a member, has welcomed the European Parliament’s official position on the proposed Directive for a European Disability Card and a European Parking Card adopted by unanimity in a vote at the Employment and Social Affairs Committee.
The position clearly reflects the demands of persons with disabilities. It also means that negotiations between the EU institutions on the final text can now begin, the final phase of the EU decision-making procedure.
The EDF has thanked the European Parliament for actively involving organisations of persons with disabilities while drafting it. They especially welcome:
- the demand for the European Disability Card to grant temporary access to allowances, support and social security when moving for work and study.
- the provisions to access support when taking part in EU Mobility Programmes.
- the proposal to reduce the time of transposition and implementation of the European Disability Card – the Card must not take too long to become a reality.
The EDF is now calling on the negotiators from the European Parliament and the Council of the EU to achieve a speedy, ambitious agreement on the European Disability Card and European Parking Card. A deal without loopholes that ensures little delay between the publication of the text and its transposition and issuance of the Cards. The final text also needs to deliver ambitious Cards underpinned by funding and clear information in multiple languages on how to access their different benefits and discounts.
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The DFI Podcast
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Podcast Planning for 2024 and a reminder that our Podcast Studio is available to Members
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We are currently planning our podcast episodes for 2024. Our first episode will be taking a look at elections and disability. As it has been dubbed the year of elections in Ireland, we will be checking in on issues of access and inclusive electoral materials and venues. If you would like to be involved in our podcasts this year please get in touch.
We are delighted that TTM Healthcare will be sponsoring our podcast again this year!
We also remind you that we have a dedicated Podcast Studio in our offices in Dublin which is available to DFI Member Organisations. If you would like to have a chat to explore how you might use it please email our Communications Manager Brenda Drumm.
You can find all previous episodes of The DFI Podcast on Spotify and on our website, where you can also subscribe to future episodes.
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For more on all of the content featured in our newsletter see www.disability-federation.ie.
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Copyright © 2023 Disability Federation of Ireland, All rights reserved.
Disability Federation of Ireland (DFI) is the national support organisation for voluntary disability organisations in Ireland who provide services to people with disabilities and disabling conditions.
Disability Federation of Ireland, Fumbally Court, Fumbally Lane, Dublin 8. Telephone: 01 4547978, Email: info@disability-federation.ie, Web: www.disability-federation.ie
Disability Federation of Ireland, is a company limited by guarantee not having share capital, registered in Dublin, Ireland with offices at Fumbally Court, Fumablly Lane, Dublin 8. Registration Number 140948, CHY No 6177
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