This is the seventh monthly update about the Strengthening DPULOs Programme, which aims to ensure DPULOs can provide a strong voice for disabled people by being more sustainable. You can find the sixth update here.
Breakthrough UK’s Independent Living Awards
The excellent DPULO in Manchester, Breakthrough UK, has launched its 5th National Independent Living Awards.
These are a tremendous opportunity to showcase the work you do, either by yourself or working with other partners.
To find out more about Breakthrough UK’s Independent Living Awards and enter, please visit their website: Breakthrough UK Independent Living Awards
The closing date for applications is Monday 15 October 2012.
Easy Read learning resources
We are starting to receive very useful learning resources from some organisations that have been funded through the Facilitation Fund.
Recently, People First Ltd – an organisation run by and for people with learning disabilities – completed their project, and kindly shared their Easy Read guidelines with us, as well as learning from their project.
You can read more about this here.
Impact MH’s employment success
Impact MH is another DPULO that has been funded by the Facilitation Fund. They run an excellent peer support programme for people with mental health conditions, and have written about the success of their work in this dedicated blogpost.
If you’ve got a success story you’d like to share with us, please email us at richard.watts1@dwp.gsi.gov.uk.
DPULOs in Scotland and Wales
If you’re a DPULO in Scotland or Wales, don’t forget that the Strengthening DPULOs Programme is now available for you, too. This includes the opportunity to apply to the £3m Facilitation Fund.
You can find out more about the programme here: Strengthening DPULOs Programme
The dedicated Ambassador for Scotland is Margaret Simpson and the dedicated Ambassador for Wales is Cerrys Hill. You can find their contract details here.
Useful resources
One key part of the Strengthening DPULOs Programme is to share learning and useful resources. Some useful links to recent information we’ve published are below:
- Mark Baggley writes about a D/deaf DPULO working with a local infrastructure organisation
- Community Catalysts are running a series of free events on partnerships and supporting flourishing enterprises and disabled entrepreneurs
- The Department of Health has launched the third round of its volunteering fund
- The Office for Disability Issues has published a guide for businesses on how to grow their business by being more accessible and inclusive to disabled people
- The Equality Evidence Grid from the Scottish Government
- The Cabinet Office has a “mystery shopper” scheme that DPULOs can get involved with
- HealthWatch England has launched its new website
- The EHRC is recruiting new Commissioners, including a Disability Commissioner
- Half of all people who have never used the internet are disabled people
- Funding Central is a free funding database that any DPULO can use to find out what funding is available
- Similarly, the Government publishes every contract opportunity over £10,000 on Contracts Finder
Oh, and it’s the Paralympics! Come on ParalympicsGB!
If you have any learning or resources you’d like to share or have any resources you’d particularly like, please let us know (contact details are at the bottom of this update).
Find out more about the Programme
To find out more about the Strengthening DPULOs Programme, you can visit our website: http://odi.dwp.gov.uk/dpuloprogramme
We have now “liked” every DPULO we know about on Facebook and will regularly share news from them around the country. If you are on Facebook you can keep in touch with the programme through our regularly updated page: facebook.com/dpulos
If you are on Twitter, you can share information and find out more about DPULOs using the hashtag #dpulo.
As always, we’d be grateful if you can spread the word and publicise this news throughout your networks / newsletters / websites etc. We’d also be grateful for any feedback you have on this regular email.
Contact us
For information, biographies, contact details and details of the areas covered by each of the DPULO Ambassadors covers, please visit the Ambassadors page.
If you have any questions about the Facilitation Fund or any part Strengthening DPULOs Programme, please contact odi.businessperformance@dwp.gsi.gov.uk.
Please feel free to forward this information on to any DPULOs, networks or stakeholders you think might find it interesting. If you didn’t receive the original email, please share your contact details with us so you can receive our monthly emails.
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