ENABLE the Vote

Just think - all politics is local. Often the things that bother us most - day-to-day issues in our street, at the school gates or in our town centre - have the greatest impact on our lives. Issues like pot holes, school placements or anti-social behavior, are controlled, not in Westminster or Holyrood, but by local Councils in offices just down the road. On 4 May we will elect Councillors to make decisions on these issues and many others. Turnout is traditionally low in local government elections but, at ENABLE Scotland, we know participation is vital to make a choice and influence change on issues that impact most on our communities. We know the number of people who have learning disabilities participating in the democratic process has been as low as 30%.  People face a number of barriers; a lack of accessible information during registration and voting, a lack of information about who is entitled to vote and what support a person can get to vote leads to them missing out. We have campaigned to change this; our highly successful #ENABLEtheVote Campaign in the 2016 Scottish Parliament Election engaged hundreds of people in accessible voting workshops. We also held eight regional hustings events with candidates and 80% of people who attended went on to vote! Building on this, we rebooted #ENABLEtheVote with a local focus for 2017’s Council elections. Alongside the Electoral Commission we have produced easy-read guides to the voting process (from registration to options for voting) for people who have learning disabilities, their families and support staff. Feedback on these has been extremely positive. But we like a challenge and to go one step further. So this year we are hosting 19 unique hustings events across Scotland to engage people who have learning disabilities and their families in the pre-election debate. Candidates from all the major parties are attending and speaking to people in an accessible way. So what are the big issues being put to candidates? Local groups have produced manifestos with issues, evidence and solutions on which the candidates are questioned. Issues vary between areas, and each manifesto is rooted in individuals’ daily experience. Education is a priority for our members, and our calls for change are supported by evidence from our national conversation - #IncludED in the Main?! Our members want a commitment to reinvest in specialist additional support for learning teachers; lessons on learning disability embedded into school curriculum; and investment in training for classroom support assistants. Social care is another hot topic. Our members want local councils and Scottish Government to work together to end charging for social care. They also want councils to help end recruitment challenges by enabling support providers to pay the Living Wage for every hour of support, including overnight support. This is vital to support people to live independently in their homes. This month ENABLE Scotland will launch a manifesto for change – calling on local councillors to commit to #BeTheChange for people who have learning disabilities in 2017-2022!