Making Democracy Accessible

Here is an excerpt from our press release about Making Democracy Accessible:

Politicians must make democracy more accessible, says learning disability charity, United Response

With a general election imminent, the national learning disability charity, United Response, is launching a set of guides – Making Democracy Accessible - to help politicians, party workers and public officials communicate more effectively with the thousands of people with learning disabilities, who are currently not using their vote.

People with learning disabilities have the same right to vote as everyone else, yet at present many of the 1 million adults with learning disabilities in England are not voting. Research carried out by United Response among the people it supports, shows that while 80% are registered to vote, only 16% voted in the 2005 General Election, compared with a national turnout of 61%.

Read the full press release on our website

Read more about the project on our website

Every Vote Counts! in Community Care magazine

Every Vote Counts! - the project United Response has been working on to help people with learning disabilities engage with the democratic procress has been featured in Community Care magazine.

Read the article in full on Community Care's website

Every Vote Counts! pack launched

We have launched free multimedia tool to engage people with learning disabilities in the democratic process.

With European Parliamentary elections this June and a UK general election just around the corner, we have made a pack to make the democratic process more accessible to the thousands of people with learning disabilities in England.

The pack has been made as part of the three year project Every Vote Counts! which is funded by the Electoral Commission.

The CD and booklet helps people with learning disabilities and their support workers to engage more with politics. It covers everything from why politics is important, to how to support someone to lobby their MP or to join a local action group.

Research carried out by United Response, as part of the project, revealed that while 80% of people with learning disabilities supported by the charity are registered to vote, only 16% participated in the last general election. This compares with 61% turnout across the nation as a whole.

Read the full press release about the pack launch on United Response's website

Go to the Every Vote Counts! website to order your pack

Every Vote Counts

Our project looking at the voting system, politics and people with learning disabilities was featured in Guardian Society on Wednesday.

The piece highlights findings from a recent survey we carried out, looking at the number of people we support who are voting and the reasons for non-participation.

The survey highlights that while 80% of people supported by United Response are registered to vote, only 16% took part in their last local elections and 20% in the last general elections. The complexity of the the voting system, a lack of accessible information and a dearth of training for councillors, MPs and other political stakeholders, were all highlighted by United Response support workers as key barriers to participation.

Isabel Ros Lopez, UR First Manager, was interviewed by The Guardian about the project. She said:

"People with learning disabilities are citizens too, and we have a social duty and legal responsibility to enable them to take part in the democratic process. The fact that we are not achieving this is a social failure."

Su Sayer, chief executive of United Response, said:

"Political decisions affect the lives of people with learning disabilities in the same way as they affect everyone else - more so in many cases - and yet they continue to be some of the most disenfranchised people in society."

Here's the link to the article http://www.guardian.co.uk/society/2008/apr/30/learningdisability

Every Vote Counts

Every vote counts: United Response launches campaign to engage people with learning disabilities in the democratic proces

United Response, the charity creating opportunities with people with learning disabilities or mental health needs, has launched a campaign to make the democratic process more accessible to the thousands of people with learning disabilities in England who are missing out on the opportunity to vote.

The campaign will be funded by the Electoral Commission, under its programme to encourage greater participation among disabled people.

In the 2001 General Election only 31% of people with learning disabilities voted compared with a national turnout of 59%. Every Vote Counts is a three year campaign to increase the number of people with learning disabilities that are registered to vote and help them have more of a say in the political decisions that affect their lives.

During the first year of the campaign, United Response will consult with other organisations and people supported by the charity, to create a resource to help people with learning disabilities better understand how politics affects their everyday lives, the reasons for voting and how to engage in the democratic process.

United Response will then disseminate the information, providing training for its staff so they can support people to become more actively involved. It will also offer training to organisations and groups involved in the electoral and democratic process on how to make information about policies and candidates more accessible to people with learning disabilities.

For more information email info@unitedresponse.org.uk