Steve McCabe MP is backing the Secret Life of Us campaign, led by a coalition of over 35 children’s charities called the Disabled Children’s Partnership.
The campaign, Secret Life of Us, is responding to an alarming survey which revealed that 97% of parents with a disabled child say the public do not understand the challenges they face.
A further survey shows that:
- More than 4 in 5 parents of a disabled child face problems accessing the services they need. 56% believe this have a negative impact on their child’s health and well-being and their ability to make friends (51%).
- 3 in 4 parents with a disabled child have experienced mental health issues, compared to 1 in 5 incidence in the general population.
- More than 9 in 10 parents believe the needs of their disabled child wouldn’t be met if they could no longer care for them.
- Just 10% of families believe that the health and social care services in their area meet the needs of their disabled child.
Responding to these statistics and the launch of the campaign, Steve said:
“I am pleased to add my support to the Disabled Children’s Partnership campaign, Secret Life of US, to shine a light on and share the stories, challenges, hopes and opportunities of disabled children and their families.”
“I am extremely concerned that 97% of parents with a disabled child say the public do not understand the challenges they face. The Secret Life of Us campaign provides an opportunity to help address this by showing the day-to-day lives of disabled children, young people and their families, the similarities they share with everyone in the things they love and enjoy, but importantly, the unacceptable struggles they face on a daily basis. It will reveal parts of their lives that most people simply do not see.”
“I am committed to supporting the campaign to raise awareness of the challenges that disabled children, young people and their families face but also to find solutions to them.”
Steve is urging those interested in the campaign to sign up for updates here and to tweet their support using #SecretLifeofUs and to follow @DCPCampaign
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