What does a new Prime Minister mean for disabled people with complex needs?
A new Prime Minister doesn’t mean change overnight – to the laws we have, or any benefits or support we receive. But it does matter.
The Prime Minister decides what the government focuses on, where money is spent and who leads different government departments. Those decisions affect the services many disabled people with complex needs and their families rely on every day.
That’s why at Sense we’re going to be working hard over the coming months to make sure your voices are heard.
So what happens next? And what could this change mean for disabled people with complex needs?
Why this matters
Right now, some of the biggest services disabled people with complex needs rely on are changing. The government is looking at the SEND system for children and young people, adult social care, the NHS and disability benefits.
These systems can have a huge impact on people’s lives. They affect whether children get the right support at school, whether adults can live independently and whether families can get the help they need.
At Sense, we regularly hear from disabled people with complex needs and their families who feel they have to fight for support. Many tell us they have to explain their situation again and again to different services that don’t work well together.
A new Prime Minister has the chance to improve that.
Reasons to be hopeful
Andy Burnham has often spoken about making public services work better together. He has said people should not have to keep telling their story to different professionals and that support should come earlier, before problems get worse.
He has also spoken about listening to people with lived experience when designing services. These ideas really matter because they reflect what disabled people with complex needs and their families have been telling us for years.
If services worked together better, families could spend less time battling the system and more time living their lives.
Letter to the Prime Minister
Scott, Emma and Charlotte are Sense ‘Experts by Experience’. They use their lived experience to help improve services, share their stories, and make sure disabled people are listened to, included and valued.
So, who better to write to the new PM on behalf of the 1.6 million disabled people with complex needs in the UK?
They’ve written to Andy Burnham to ask him to help create a better future for disabled people.
Experts by Experience letter – video transcript
The video shows a graphic representation of a letter, with the words spoken by Experts by Experience Emma, Scott and Charlotte appearing on screen. At the end of the letter we see photos of the three authors.
“Dear Prime Minister, congratulations on your new job. We are disabled people who work with sense as Experts by Experience to help improve services. We share our stories and make sure disabled people are listened to and included.
“We are writing on behalf of 1.6 million disabled people with complex
needs across the UK as well as thousands of people who are supported by Sense’s services. For too long, disabled people with complex needs have been left out of decisions that make our lives easier.
“Every day we face barriers that make it hard to do things many people take for granted. spending time with people we love, taking part in local communities and activities. This means we can’t live a full life as we want to.
“At this time your time as Prime Minister, we’d like to invite you to Sense
on the 12th of November to meet us at an inclusive art session we’re holding.
“Come and hear from ourselves and other disabled people about what life is really like, what is working, what needs to change, and how together we can build services that help people live the life they choose. We hope you’ll work alongside us to create a better future.
“We look forward to welcoming you to Selly Oak.
“Kind regards,
Experts by Experience”
What we’re calling for
The new Prime Minister has the opportunity to improve the lives of the 1.6 million disabled people with complex needs across the UK.
We’re calling on the government to:
- Put disabled people at the heart of decision-making.
- Improve the SEND system so children get the right support earlier.
- Make sure disability benefits continue to support people with the extra costs of disability.
- Deliver long-overdue reform of adult social care.
- Build an NHS that works for disabled people with complex needs.
Help us speak louder
Whoever is Prime Minister, our job stays the same.
Sense will keep working alongside disabled people with complex needs, their families and politicians from across the political spectrum to make sure disabled people’s voices are heard.
Together, we can help build a society where disabled people with complex needs have the support, opportunities and respect they deserve.
If you’d like to be part of that change, please sign our petition to send a clear message to the new Prime Minister to protect disability benefits.
Join us
Be part of the change. Help build a world without limits for every disabled person with complex needs.
By signing up to our weekly emails, we’ll let you know more about our work and other ways you can help, including how you can volunteer, make a donation, or support our campaigns.