Inclusion Ireland

Season's greetings from all the Inclusion Ireland team. Thank you for your support throughout 2024, wishing you a happy and peaceful new year.

As we wrap up a very busy 2024 here in Inclusion Ireland we’re working to make disability rights a priority in the new programme for Government. ✍️We are writing to all newly elected TDs to ensure that the rights of people with disabilities are front and center in the new programme for Government. Our priorities include: • Rights-based legislation • Education rights • Health and social care rights • Housing rights • Employment rights • Standard of living rights • Participatory rights Read more about our priorities and actions below ⬇️ Please share this post and tag your local TDs to let them know that you support disability rights!

⭐Become a member of Inclusion Ireland today. We want more people with intellectual disabilities, their families, and supporters to become members of Inclusion Ireland. You can join as an individual or group. Find out more and sign up online here: https://lnkd.in/ef-2gkg

“Like other people my age, I wanted to go to college, study, make friends and graduate. Nobody helped me plan for life after school. This happens to many people with intellectual disabilities." - Tamara Byrne, Self- Advocate Check out this piece in yesterday's Irish Times about access to higher education for people with intellectual disabilities ⬇️ https://lnkd.in/eysEi3PD

🚨Update Following the publication of the Department of Education — Ireland “Understanding Behaviour of Concern” Guidelines, AsIAm - Ireland’s Autism Charity and Inclusion Ireland, alongside other advocacy groups, met with departmental officials as part of a pre-scheduled meeting of the Special and Inclusive Education Forum on Friday. Once again, we raised significant concerns regarding the reporting mechanism on the use of restraint, set out in the guidelines, including in relation to its compliance with Children’s First legislation, public sector duty and international human rights obligations. We raised a number of questions to the Department on the steps they have taken to ensure the reporting mechanism is lawful and robust and unfortunately received no satisfactory response or meaningful engagement with our concerns. We expressed our regret that the Department had failed to engage with these concerns when both our organisations put them in writing in October either by way of meeting or reassurance. We are particularly concerned that the Department continues to speak about the need to equally respect all perspectives and progress change incrementally when the matter at hand relates to the safeguarding of disabled young people. This approach strikes us as neither rights based or child centered and does not proactively ensure the safety, and access to justice, of children most at risk of abuse. Following this meeting, we will continue to engage with the political system, including the new Minister, to ensure the reporting mechanism is reviewed by a recognised child protection expert prior to coming into operation in September. In this regard, we are also considering what other options or steps our organisations can take to vindicate the rights of those we represent.

Guidelines on seclusion and restraint will come into full effect in September 2025 according to the Department. That gives us adequate time to challenge shortfalls and to ensure that children get the respect, protection and support they need and have a right to. Our history in Ireland is shameful when it comes to the protection of children. We are becoming almost immune to traumatising stories of abuse and harm. Let’s refuse to write another chapter in this sad history, let’s choose a new story; one where children’s rights are front and centre, and we shine a light continuously, bravely and openly where it needs to be shone. Our children deserve that. Read more in Derval McDonagh's opinion piece in this evening's thejournal.ie - https://lnkd.in/eiVBdd4v

Following the publication of the Department of Education — Ireland ‘Understanding Behaviours of Concern and Responding to Crisis Situations’ guidelines yesterday we have published a press release on our website. ‘Department of Education Fail in their Duty to Protect Disabled Children against Seclusion and Restraint’ You can read it here: https://bit.ly/3DeFnfX

We note the publication of the guidelines "Understanding Behaviours of Concern and Responding to Crisis Situations" today..Inclusion Ireland ( alongside other advocacy organisations) has called for the publication of guidelines for many years to protect children from the deep harm and trauma resulting from restraint and seclusion. We plan on reviewing the guidelines thoroughly before sharing a more detailed response with our community. On first glance... We welcome the banning of seclusion in schools. It's sad this needs to even be said out loud, but it is critically important for children. We remain deeply concerned that although children's first and child safeguarding obligations are mentioned throughout, schools are encouraged to report incidences of restraint to the NCSE who have no power to investigate the concerns. In no other sphere would this be recommended practice. This potentially leaves children (and indeed schools) unprotected. We will examine these points further and will make a more comprehensive public statement tomorrow.

Do you work in a support role with people with an intellectual disability? 🚀We launched our 'Assisted Decision Making (Capacity) Act 2015 Train the Trainer Guide and Resources' this morning. This resource was created with the help of people with an intellectual disability to make information about their rights easier to understand. The training will help people learn about the Assisted Decision Making (Capacity) Act 2015 and the Decision Support Service (DSS), and how they can use these resources to make decisions about their lives. Visit our website https://bit.ly/3Bbm2M5 to print off the guide and resources for use in your organisation.

Are you a member of Inclusion Ireland? We want more people with intellectual disabilities, their families, and supporters to become members. Join us and strengthen the voices of people with intellectual disabilities and their families. You can join as an individual or group. Find out more and sign up online here: https://bit.ly/41hTAmg