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Supporting Families Social Inclusion Strategy

Supporting Families in the community, who experience disability, through advocacy, training, mentoring and awareness raising.

DESSA is pleased to announce the implementation of the Supporting Families Social Inclusion Strategy in identified areas throughout Ireland. In 2011 DESSA will be working with Family Resource Centres, Development Partnership Companies and Childcare Committees in Carlow, Dublin, Donegal, Kerry, Kilkenny, Sligo and Waterford.

The aim of this strategy is to develop a coherent approach to supporting families who experience disability facilitating them to have greater opportunities to participate in and contribute to the life of their communities.

Families are the core units of society and have care-giving responsibilities for their members with disabilities. The number of families who have members with disabilities living in the family home, and the families' needs, and increasing, yet the amount of support of the families is not increasing.

Social isolation is identified as a major issue experienced by parents. Parents identified a lack of access to relevant information and a lack of opportunity to share their experience as adding to this isolation.

Lack of access ti community childcare and play opportunities and services for children was highlighted by parents. Disabled children and their parents have a right to access childcare services and play and leisure activities within their own communities. Research has shown that participating in mainstream childcare, play and community settings benefits disabled children enormously. Disabled children, however, have limited experiences in accessing and participating in these settings. Many disabled children continue to attend specialist support services which can reinforce marginalisation from their community and lead to high levels of social isolation for parents.

DESSA believes that community organisations like local Family Resource Centres and Development Partnerships can play a pivotal role in developing locally based and integrated responses to the particular needs of families experiencing disability.

The strategy will entail the implementation of four discrete training programmes for parents of disabled children, community sector staff and volunteers and childcare staff. Theses are,

The Empowering Parents Programme
The Empowering Parents Programme: Training the Trainer
Community Development & Advocacy
Childcare Inclusive Policy & Practice

It will also entail supporting parents to self advocate through mentoring and supporting the establishment of networks and formal linkages between parents groups and local community and disability service providers.

This strategy is supported by the Family Support Agency and the Department of Community, Equality & Gaeltacht affairs and the Genio Trust.

Community Development and Advocacy Training Programme

DESSA has developed a six-day training programme in Community Development and Advocacy, which has been accredited through the Sligo Institute of Technology. In 2009 DESSA delivered our first Level 6 module to community and voluntary workers in the South East. DESSA assessed the students papers and liaised with Sligo IT Head of Humanities Department. The Programme aims to provide an understanding of disability equality issues and advocacy practices within a community development context.

Course graduates were presented with their certificates by Minister for Social and Family Affairs, Mary Hanifin at the twenty-five year celebration of St. Brigid's Family Resource Centre in Waterford, on 26th February 2010.

A course started in Dublin in November 2010 and will finish in February 2011. The next courses will be held in the following places,

Kerry - 8th February 2011
Waterford -4th March 2011

Anybody interested in participating is invited to contact DESSA.

Parent Advocacy Programme

DESSA has designed a programme to offer information and support to parents of disabled children, in order that they may become more effective advocates for their children. A pilot programme which was delivered in late 2009, in conjunction with An Siol Community Development Project in Dublin 7 has now been evaluated and the content and structure of the Programme has been finalised. If you are a parents group or a community organisation working with parents of disbaled children and you would like more information on DESSA's Parent Advocacy Programme, please contact Development Worker, Emma Byrne-MacNamee on cip@dessa.ie or 01 4538684.

Disabled Youth and Teenagers

In collaboration with Sligo Leader Partnership (SLP), DESSA are facilitating a once a month bridging Youth & Disability Club at Northside CDP for disabled teenagers who would be thinking of moving towards accessing their local mainstream youth clubs. The following Sligo FRCs will be involved in visits by DESSA staff to encourage local participation by disabled teens, Easkey, Tubbercurry, CLASP and Sligo City.

DESSA and Sligo leader Partnership have attracted funding for a summer 2010 arts 'GLEE' camp starting on the 12th July at Northside CDP exclusively for disabled teenagers and siblings. Peter Kearns of DESSA is currently working with SLP Community & Youth Manager Geri Bruce, to design the fun summer camp and he has identified disabled tutors to deliver morning & afternoon workshops. The camp is also envisaged to recruit new disabled teenagers to SLP / DESSA youth work for autumn 2010.

For more information on Youth work contact Peter 087-2506246 or email kearnsp@eircom.net or Geri 071-9141138 or email gbruce@sligoleader.com

North West DESSA Programme Promotional Tour 2010

DESSAs North West Community Support Worker, Peter Kearns will be contacting CDPs and FRCs to promote the planned autumn 'STEPS' Mainstreaming Programmes. If you are a CDP OR FRC staff member, board or volunteer in Monaghan, Cavan, Donegal, Sligo, Leitrim, Roscommon or Mayo you can contact Peter on 087-2506246 or email kearnsp@eircom.net