Disability charter and Inclusion Audit Tool launched

A new inclusion audit tool and charter to give youth organisations the necessary tools to become more inclusive of children and young people with a disability were launched in Belfast today by the Youth Inclusion Hub at its CREDability event.

The event, which was opened by John O’Dowd MLA, Minister for Education, drew on the expertise of the Youth Inclusion Hub, a consortium of disability organisations that support mainstream youth groups to be more inclusive of children and young people with a disability. At the event youth workers took part in a series of workshops to develop their skills and understanding of being inclusive of children and young people who have a disability.

Education Minister John O’Dowd said: “Youth organisations across the north provide a vital service to local young people; a service that complements their learning in school and builds confidence and life skills. And my Department’s Community Relations, Equality and Diversity (CRED) policy is helping promote reconciliation and equality of access for young people, regardless of their background or if they have a disability.

“The Youth Inclusion Hub’s new resources will help local youth organisations equip themselves so that they can better cater for the complex range of needs of young people with disabilities and I wish them every success as they roll the programme out.”

Colette Slevin, Head of Children, Young People and Families at Mencap, the Youth Inclusion Hub’s lead partner said, “The Include Me Charter and Inclusion Audit Tool are practical resources that will help youth service providers consider and change their practice. We want to complement the impact of the department’s Community Relations, Equality and Diversity policy, by providing youth organisations with the necessary information, support and tools they need to become more inclusive of children and young people with a disability.”      
“Of the 182,000 children and young people accessing Youth Services across Northern Ireland, around 3.5 per cent who use the Service have a disability. While much has been done, it is imperative that the drive for inclusion becomes broader than the current ‘cultural/community/equality’ debate so that more children and young people who have a disability have equal access to mainstream provision, which also breaks down barriers and perceptions of disability,” Colette Slevin said.

Officially launching The Include Me Charter and Inclusion Audit Tool, Patricia Lewsley-Mooney, the Northern Ireland Commissioner for Children Young People said, “The United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child is at the heart of everything we do at NICCY. We firmly believe it is essential that every child and young person experiences these rights in a practical, real and meaningful way, so they have the opportunity to reach their full potential.

“I am very pleased therefore, to formally launch this Include Me Charter and Inclusion Toolkit today, and hope that it will help and support and encourage the inclusion of children and young people with a disability, so that they can benefit from the rights they are entitled to,” the Commissioner said.

David Guilfoyle, the Chief Executive of the Youth Council for Northern Ireland, the project funder, said, “The inclusion of young people with disabilities across the Youth Service is a strategic priority for the Youth Council for Northern Ireland. Funding to the Hub is a key aspect of this.