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c/o Council for Disabled Children
National Children's Bureau
8 Wakley Street
London EC1V 7QE
tel +44 (0)20 7843 6448
fax +44 (0)20 7843 6313
[email protected]
Care Matters - but disabled children need to matter more
Media Release - For immediate release
Thursday 21 June 2007
Contact: Pamela Shaw, 020 7843 6318, [email protected]
EDCM today welcomes the publication of ‘Care Matters: Time for Change’, the government’s White Paper on children in care. However, the campaign is calling for government to go further in the following areas:
- A right to short breaks for families caring for severely disabled children
- A right to advocacy for all disabled children placed away from home
- A guarantee that all disabled children in 52-week placements will have the protection offered by looked-after children status
The White Paper builds on the proposals of the original Care Matters Green Paper, setting out plans for a new framework for children in care. It is backed by a package of £305 million over the next four years to deliver the proposals.
Christine Lenehan, Director of the Council for Disabled Children and EDCM Board Member, comments:
‘The White Paper sends a strong message from government about the vital role of corporate parents. There are a significant number of references to disabled children in the White Paper and it goes some way to addressing the issues that matter to these children. However, the White Paper does not fully recognise the complexity or the vulnerability of the current population of disabled children in the system. Ministers need to go further to make sure that the proposals deliver for disabled children, one of the most marginalised groups in the care population.’
EDCM will be lobbying government to improve the Care Matters proposals when new legislation is announced in this year’s Queen’s Speech.
EDCM is supporting the Children’s Society campaign ‘Stand by Me', calling for every disabled child placed away from home to be given access to an independent advocate.
- ENDS -
Notes to Editors:
For media enquiries, and to arrange case studies and interviews with campaign spokespeople, please contact the EDCM campaign team on 020 7843 6318 or at [email protected]
For out of hours enquiries, please contact Steve Broach, EDCM Campaign Manager, on 07879 638 102
Every Disabled Child Matters is a campaign by four organisations working with disabled children and their families: Contact a Family, Council for Disabled Children, Mencap and the Special Educational Consortium. It is a three-year campaign funded by a grant from the True Colours Trust, a Sainsbury’s family trust.
Contact a Family is the leading organisation supporting parents and carers with disabled children in the UK. The Council for Disabled Children is the voice of the disabled children’s sector. It brings together the widest range of individuals and organisations with an interest in disabled children. Mencap is the UK's leading learning disability charity working with people with a learning disability and their families and carers. The Special Education Consortium is a network of the Council for Disabled Children, focussing special educational needs and disability issues in education policy and practice.
