CONTACT BOARD

SHOPMOBILITY

n ALTRINCHAM . Tel 0161 929 1714 n ASHTON-UNDER-LYNE. Tel 0161 339 9500 n BARROW. Tel 01229 434039 n BIRKENHEAD. Tel 0151 647 6162 n BLACKBURNAND DARWEN. Tel 01254 690566 or 07757 502217 n BLACKPOOL. Tel 01253 349427 n BOLTON. Tel 01204 392946 n CARLISLE. Tel 01228 631564 n CHESTER. Tel 01244 312626 n CHORLEY. Tel 01257 260 888 n COLWYN BAY. Tel 01492 533822 n CREWE. Tel 01270 580 031 n ELLESMERE PORT. Tel 0151 355 1420 n KENDAL. Tel 01539 740 933 n LEIGH, Wigan. Tel 01942 777 985 n LIVERPOOL. Tel 0151 707 0877 n MANCHESTER Trafford Centre. Tel 0161 747 2684 n MANCHESTERArndale Centre. Tel 0161 839 4060 n NELSON. Tel 01282 692 502 n NORTHWICH, Vale Royal Tel 01606 288820 n OSWESTRY. Tel 01691 656882 n PENRITH. Tel 01768 895 438 n PRESTON. Tel 01772 204 667 n RHYL. Tel 01745 350665 n ROCHDALE. Tel 01706 865 986 n RUNCORN, Halton Lea Tel 01928 710144 n SHREWSBURY. Tel 01743 236900 SKELMERSDALE. Tel 01695 550066 n ST HELENS. Tel 01744 613 388 n STOCKPORT. Tel 0161 666 1100 n WARRINGTON. Tel 01925 240064 n WARRINGTON. Birchwood Tel 01925 822 411 WIDNES: 0151 511 8833 n WIGAN. Tel 01942 776 070 n WINSFORD Tel 01606 557550 n WREXHAM. Tel 01978 312390

MIDLANDS

n BIRMINGHAM. Snow Hill Railway Station. Tel 0121 236 8980. Level 2, Centre Car Park, Bullring. Tel 0121 616 2942 n STAFFORD. Tel 01785 619456 n STOKE ON TRENT. Tel 01782 233333 n SUTTON COLDFIELD. Tel 0121 355 1112 n TAMWORTH. Tel, 01827

Jane and daughter, Faith

Days out just got easier

Thesefamilies needabreak

THREE in four families caring for disabled adults felt forgotten about during the lockdown – and received no warning that support and care were being reduced.

And a third of families are still waiting for the support to be reinstated, a survey by national disability charity Sense found.

More than half of families had to take on additional caring responsibilities, and many were denied access to vital community services such as medical treatment, day centres, and support at home.

Faith Tasker, 20, from Liverpool, has complex disabilities, which include being autistic, blind and hearing impaired. When the lockdown begun, the day service and respite support she receives stopped and she was left in the care of her family 24/7. Seven months later, and the support is still to be reinstated.

“Providing care with no respite is tough” , says Faith’s mother, 60-year-old Jane, “but the hardest thing is the lack of information about when the support will be reinstated, or even what the plan is.

“You feel like you’re chasing people for updates, and then getting fobbed off. ”

The charity’s chief executive, Richard Kramer, said: “Everyone has had their life affected by this pandemic, but few have had a harder time than the families looking after disabled adults over the last five months.

“Many haven’t had a break from caring and feel isolated and forgotten. Disabled people’s needs have largely been forgotten.

“Government must take action to reinstate the care and support that families need such as short breaks.

“We need to see clear and increased communication with disabled people and their families, and sufficient funding, support and resources to local authorities to flexibly deliver care and support. ”

Sense is asking supporters to sign their letter, calling on the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, Matt Hancock, to take action to secure and reinstate community services and support, such as short breaks for disabled adults and their families. n www.sense.org.uk

THE new online edition of The Rough Guide toAccessible Britain (accessibleguide.co.uk) is packed with over 200 comprehensive reviews.

Through collaboration with Carers Trust and the National Autistic Society, this edition features more information relevant to carers and those with hidden disabilities.

Twenty-five exciting new venue reviews are featured, including outdoor attractions such as Belfast Zoo, Kew Gardens, Legoland, Trebah Gardens, and Powis Castle

According to research, half of people with a disability, or their carers, spend between two and five hours planning a day out and one in 10 spend more than a day researching.

Emma West, reviewer and foreword author of the Guide, said: “The Guide is such a valuable resource for simplifying that process. ”

In the can!

THE three winners of our recent competition to win a Miracle Watering Can are: Suzanne Ford, Norley Drive, Eccleston, St Helens;A Kilshaw, PloverAvenue, Winsford, Cheshire; and Katherine Comer, Dingwall Drive, Wirral.

n For the full range of Miracle

Can products, go to www.miraclewateringcans.co. uk

HELP AT THE END OF A PHONE

n ANGLESEY: TARAN

Tel 01407 721933 n BLACKPOOL Disability

Information and Support.

Tel 01253 472 202.

Textphone 01253 476 450 n CHESHIRE CIL

Tel 01606 331853 n CHESTER Dial House

Tel 01244 345655 n DENBIGHSHIRE

Tel 01745 354445 n ELLESMERE PORT DICE Tel 0151 355 1420 n HALTON Disability Service Tel 01928 717222 n KNOWSLEY DISABILITY CONCERN. 0151 480 4090 n LANCASTER DISC

Tel 01524 34411 n LIVERPOOLAssociation of Disabled People. 0151 2638366.Text0151260 4076. n ACSIL(Amputeesand Carers),Tel,01512611166 n THE BRAIN CHARITY

Tel 0151 298 2999 n MANCHESTER (GTR)

Coalition of Disabled People Tel 0161-273 5154 n MOLD Flintshire Disability

Tel 01352 755546 n NELSON: Pendle Pakistan Welfare Association.

Tel 01282 603 616 n PRESTON DISC:

Tel 01772 558 863.

Text 01772 204 787 n RHYLTel 01745 350665 n STOCKPORT: Disability

Stockport. 0161 480 7248 n WARRINGTON Disability

Partnership. 01925 240064 n WIRRAL WIRED

Tel 0151 670 1500 n WEST LANCS HELPLINE

Freefone 0800 220676 n ST HELENS DASH

Tel 01744 453053

MIDLANDS

n BIRMINGHAM Disability Resource Centre Tel 0121 789 7365 n Disabled People’s Network Solihull Tel 0121 788 1544 n STOKE: Disability Solutions Tel 01782 683800 n WOLVERHAMPTON Elder and Disabled Group Tel 01902 448552 n WEST MIDSAmputee Group. 07891 794733; 07585 958322; 07557 228154

Time to start drawing plans for a better future

YOURSAYONHOUSINGYOURSAYONHOUSING

HERE’S your chance to have a say on how houses should be built to be more accessible for everyone.

The Government want to hear from as many people as possible on whether it should introduce higher accessibility standards for new housing in England.

The consultation paper, Raising Accessibility Standards for New Homes, comes more than 15 months after Theresa May promised a consultation on introducing compulsory higher standards, in one of her last acts before resigning as prime minister.

The existing minimum standard for accessible housing has four main criteria: level access to the main entrance, a flush threshold, sufficiently wide doorways and circulation space, and a toilet at entrance level. This is required of all new-build homes.

The consultation is seeking views on how to raise standards further, including the option to raise the minimum standard for all new homes.

Ahigher minimum standard would require additional features including having a living area at entrance level and stepfree access to all entrance level rooms and facilities, wider doorways and corridors as well as clear access routes to reach windows.

It would also include further features to make homes more easily adaptable over time to a wide range of occupants, including older people, those with reduced mobility and some wheelchair users. Examples include bathrooms that can be easily adapted for installing grab rails, and stairs designed to allow easy fit of a stair lift.

Housing secretary Robert Jenrick says the consultation addresses the issue of inaccessible housing head on and that it considers bold options to ensure more homes are built to higher accessibility standards.

InAugust, the Government was accused of showing contempt for disabled people after publishing an 84-page white paper on the future of the planning system, without including a single mention of disabled people, disability or accessible housing.

The Planning for the Future document makes repeated references to the need for “beautiful new homes” while ignoring the accessible housing crisis.

Cllr Pam Thomas, a wheelchair-user and a prominent Labour member of Liverpool City Council, said: “I think the failure to even mention accessible housing shows contempt for, and marginalisation of, disabled people. ”

Government launch new consultation

n The consultation closes on

December 1. Have your say at: www.gov.uk/government/consultations/ raising-accessibility-standards-for-newhomes

n You can also email your views at:

accessiblehomes@communities.gov.uk

HELP AT THE END OF A

VISUAL PROBLEMS

n ACCRINGTON

Tel 01254 233332 n BARROW Tel 01229 820698 n BIRMINGHAMAction for

Blind Tel 0121 665 4200 n BLACKBURN

Tel 0125 554143 n BLACKPOOL: N-Vision

Tel 01253 362696 n BURY Tel 0161 763 7014 n BURNLEY

Tel 01282 438507 n CARLISLE:Action for Blind People Tel 01228 595121 n CHESHIRE & N WALES:

Vision Support. Tel 01244 381515 n CUMBRIA(West)

Tel 01946 592474 n CUMBRIA(Sth Lakeland)

Tel 01539 726613 n GUIDE DOGS

Tel 0118 983 5555 n HENSHAW’S 0161872 234 or 0151 708 7055 n LIVERPOOL: Bradbury

Fields.Tel 0151 221 0888:

Action for Bind

Tel 0151 298 3222 n MANCHESTER:Action for

Blind Tel 0161 787 9252 n PRESTON:Action for Blind People Tel 01772 320550 n OLDHAM Tel 0161682 8019 n ROSSENDALE

Tel 01706 873256 n SIGHTLINE (North West)

Tel 0800 587 2252 n WIGAN Tel 01942 242891 n WIRRALTel 0151 652 8877

HEARING ISSUES

n BIRMINGHAM Institute for

Deaf Tel 0121 246 6101 n CHESHIRE Deaf Society

Tel 01606 47831 n CUMBRIADeaf Society

Tel 01228 606434 n LANCASHIRE (EAST)

Deaf Society

Tel 01282 839180 n MANCHESTER Deaf Centre. Tel 0161 273 3415

Genie Networks.

Tel 0161 941 4549.

Text 18001 0161 941 4549 n MERSEYSIDE Society for

Deaf Tel 0151 228 0888 n SOUTHPORT Centre for the Deaf Tel 01704 537001 n ST HELENS: Deafness

Resource Centre

Tel 01744 23887 n WOLVERHAMPTON Centre for Deaf Tel 01902

CARERS’ CENTRES

n ACCRINGTON Tel 01254 387 444 n BLACKBURN with DARWEN Tel 01254 688 www.bwdcarers.org n BLACKPOOL Blackpool Borough Council, Tel 01253 477 716 nCUMBRIA Carlisle. Tel 01228 542 156 Penrith. Tel 01768 890 280 Barrow-in-Furness. Tel 01229 822 822 Kendal. Tel 01539 732 927 Whitehaven, Tel 01946 592 223 n CHESHIRE & WARRINGTON Helpline:0300 102 0008 n KNOWSLEY Tel 0151 549 1412 n LANCASTER Tel 01524 66475 nLIVERPOOL Tel 0151 705 2307 n MANCHESTER Tel 0161 835 2995 n MORECAMBE Tel 01524 833456 n PRESTON Tel 01772 200173 n RUNCORN Tel 01928 580182 n WIDNES Tel 0151 257 9673 n SALFORD Tel 0161 833 0217 n SEFTON Tel 0151 288 6060 n ST HELENS Tel 01744 675 615 n STOCKPORT Tel 0161 442 0442 n WARRINGTON (WIRED) Tel 01925 633 492 n WEST LANCS Tel 01695 711243 n WIGAN & LEIGH Tel 01942 705959 / 486923

MIDLANDS

n BIRMINGHAM Tel 0121 675 8000 n SOLIHULL Tel 0121 788 1143 n WALSALL Tel 01922 610 810

NORTH WALES

n ANGLESEY Tel 01248 722828 n BANGOR Tel 01248 370 797 n CONWY Tel 01492 533714 n DENBIGHSHIRE: NEWCIS, Tel: 0845 603 3187 nDOLGELLAU Tel 01341 421167 n FLINTSHIRE: NEWCIS, Tel: 01352 751436 n WREXHAM CARERS SERVICE