Scotland Launches E-news on Disability & Education: Skill Scotland E-news October 2004

First edition

Welcome to the first edition of Skill Scotland E-news!

Skill Scotland E-news provides news and info on issues around disability and post-school education for disabled people across Scotland.

Skill Scotland E-news will also feature the experiences and perspectives of disabled students. What has been your best or worst experience? What sort of support have you received? How have you found staff or other students' attitudes towards disability?

If you would like to put an article in Skill Scotland E-news or if you have any ideas or comments, do get in touch at admin@skillscotland.org.uk We would love to hear from you!

Do you have any friends who might like to receive Skill Scotland E-News? If so, do email this link to them: http://www.skill.org.uk/scotland/enews.asp

The Skill Scotland E-News conforms to the Text Email Newsletter (TEN) Standards, Version 1.1 to make sure that it is as accessible as possible for all readers. For details see Website: http://www.headstar.com/ten.

MSPs ask for input from disabled learners

MSPs are going to examine the barriers for disabled people at college and university.

The MSPs on the Equal Opportunities Committee have started a year long inquiry into disability, particularly looking at further and higher education, arts and leisure, and access to work for disabled people.

The MSPs want to get the views of disabled people directly. Skill Scotland E-news will have up-to-date info about how to get involved as the inquiry progresses. And you can read the MSPs discussions online at: http://www.scottish.parliament.uk/equal/index.htm.

Get help with your rent

The law has changed so that some students will now be able to get housing benefit to pay for college or university owned flats or halls.

Only certain people can claim Housing Benefit whilst they are a student. You can claim if you qualify for the Disability Premium or if you get Disabled Students Allowance because of deafness, amongst others. But if you are eligible to get housing benefit, you can now live in accommodation owned by your college or university and still get this benefit.

Marion Blain, a welfare adviser at Stirling University, said: "This change to the benefits rules is an important step forward for disabled students, giving them the choice to live in the type of accommodation that best suits them. I encourage anyone who might be eligible for this benefit to get in touch with a welfare adviser to check out if they can claim."

For more information on welfare benefits for students, contact the Skill Information Service on Freephone: 0800 328 5050 or contact your local Citizens Advice Bureau.

Being a fresher!

The BBC Ouch online magazine on disability is following four students in their first month of university.

The students are Armina, Bobbie, Darren and Kirsty. You can read about their experiences at: http://www.bbc.co.uk/ouch/lifefiles/student/

What were your experiences of being a new student at college or university? Want to write about it for Skill Scotland E-news or website? Then contact Skill Scotland on Tel: 0131 475 2348 or email: admin@skillscotland.org.uk

New rights from 1 Oct 2004

From 1 October this year, the law has changed so that organisations that govern professions are not allowed to discriminate against disabled people. This means that organisations like the General Medical Council (GMC), or the Law Society, or Corgi Gas Fitters or many others will be covered by the Disability Discrimination Act (DDA).

It is now unlawful for these bodies to treat a disabled person worse than a non-disabled person, or to fail to make the adjustments that a disabled person needs. These changes mean that professional bodies now need to consider allowing changes to courses and exams so that disabled people can access them.

For example, a student who uses a wheelchair lost a case against the GMC in 2003 because the court ruled that the GMC were not covered by the DDA. This meant that the GMC didn't need to make adjustments to the course in medicine so that the student could train to be a doctor. Now that the law has changed, this cannot happen again!

If you would like to know more about these changes, contact the Skill Scotland Information Service on Freephone: 0800 328 5050

Free 2 Pee

On October 1st, Scope encouraged disabled people and their friends to have a day/night out & check out access for disabled people at pubs, cinemas and other leisure venues. Scope says:

'Imagine a typical night out with your friends - you have a few drinks, a few laughs and then you all go home because the venue doesn't have any toilets. Sound familiar? Well maybe not for everyone, but for millions of disabled people in the UK, the lack of accessible loos puts a major dampener on any night out.'

You can read about the campaigners' experiences at: http://www.free2pee.org.uk/.

No more medical tests for teachers. Did you know that up until now every person in Scotland who wants to train as a teacher has had to go through a medical exam? They did, but this is about to change. From October this year, noone in Scotland has to go through a medical exam to train or work as a teacher.

This is good news for many disabled people. In the past, the medical exam has been an extra hurdle for many disabled people who have wanted to pursue their ambition to be a teacher. For example, Deaf people often had to prove that they could hear a class making noise when their back was turned. Now the emphasis should be firmly on making whatever adjustments are possible to ensure that a disabled person can access a career in teaching.

Skill publishes a guide titled 'Into Teaching' for disabled people thinking about entering the teaching profession. The guide includes loads of advice about how to go about applying, as well as profiles written by disabled people about their teacher training. See the Skill website for details: http://www.skill.org.uk

Money matters

Direct Payments in a nutshell. Skill Scotland interviewed Shona Black from Direct Payments Scotland to find out more about what Direct Payments might mean for disabled students.

In a nutshell, what are direct payments? It is money given to you by the local authority so that you can arrange and purchase the help and services you require to meet your assessed needs, in the way you want. This increases the flexibility, choice and control you have over your life.

Can you get direct payments if you are a student? Yes, currently disabled people who have been assessed by their social work department as requiring services have the option of a direct payment.

What are the advantages to direct payments? Direct payments mean you can choose who provides your care and support and when and they do it. This can either be done by employing your own staff or by contracting directly with an agency. You can choose to have a direct payment as part of your care package along with local authority services.

If you have a fluctuating condition and require a greater amount of support at short notice, direct payments can allow flexibility to meet this need. Direct payments support independent living and can enable you to lead a fuller life in the community. For example, direct payments could be used to pay for support to go out during evenings or weekends when mainstream services are usually more difficult to get. They can also be used to help support you back into work or education, or to pursue your own interests.

Are there any disadvantages? Becoming an employer gives you the greatest level of control but also means you take on more responsibility. Some people find this daunting, but you can have as much support as you require to manage your direct payment (from family members, local support organisations , advocates etc) or some people choose to buy in their support from an agency.

Where can I get more info? If you'd like to find out more about direct payments, or for contact details of local user led support organisations, please contact the Direct Payments Scotland helpline on 0131 558 3450 or email info@dpscotland.org.uk, website: http://www.dpscotland.org.uk

Careers in focus

Deaf lawyers. A new website has been set up by a group of Deaf solicitors, barristers and law students. It aims to respond to access issues, publicise specialised information and raise awareness of issues Deaf people face within the legal system. The site also aims to bring Deaf lawyers together, and to reach out to others who may not be aware of their rights. You can access the website at: http://www.deaflawyers.org.uk

Telling it like it is!

Every edition of Skill Scotland E-News features articles by disabled students talking about their own experiences - telling it like it is! This edition, Chris MacLean has kindly contributed an article to tell us about his experience.

Experiences of being disabled and being a postgraduate student, by Chris MacLean.

The University that I attended is very good at helping disabled students in general, especially when you are applying for the Disabled Students Allowance (DSA). They helped me through the whole process of filling out the forms and suggested the size of the computer that I required in order to do my course, which was an MSc in Multimedia and Interactive Systems. Within 2 months of applying, I received a cheque for DSA and that meant I was able to do my course.

The downside of all this was that I was only told about DSA when I became a postgraduate, having done my undergraduate degree there also. But despite that, I was helped a great deal whilst doing my course.

Now that I am in my writing up stage of my Masters I have found that I am no longer entitled to DSA, as I am considered a self-funding student. So if I want to upgrade my laptop to the same specifications as the university's, I am going to have to pay for it myself.

These up's and down's of being a disabled student persuaded me to stand for election at the end of my postgraduate diploma. Becoming the Campaigns and Representation Sabbatical in 2001-02, increased my confidence as a disabled student and made a great difference to my life as I was no longer the quiet and shy student sitting in the corner. I became a student who stood up for his rights and other people's rights and consequently became the National Postgraduate Committee Scotland Chair in 2002-03 and was re-elected in 2003-04.

So my advice, to those of you reading this: take part in what your student unions are doing with regards to disabled students and fight your corner; stand up for what you believe in.

What's on?

The Scottish Graduate Fair. Information about graduate opportunities, internships and placements 19 October, 2pm-7pm 20 October 11am-4pm SECC, Glasgow

For more details of careers fairs taking place across Scottish universities in the Autumn 2004, see: http://www.agcasscotland.org.uk/events.html.

Skill Scotland is at a venue near you! Skill Scotland is holding events at colleges and universities across Scotland for disabled students, to talk about rights and access to education and employment. If you want to find out if there is an event near you, or if you would like to invite Skill Scotland to your college/university, get in touch at Tel: 0131 475 2348 or Email: admin@skillscotland.org.uk

Skill Scotland update. Skill Scotland has called on the Scottish Executive to include support for all disabled students in the wording of the draft bill on further and higher education in Scotland.

The bill says that colleges and universities must have regard to people with learning difficulties. Skill Scotland has highlighted that instead, it should require colleges and universities to provide the additional support that students need in order to learn.

If you would like a copy of the comments that Skill Scotland has made on the bill, email admin@skillscotland.org.uk.

There is more news about Skill Scotland's recent work at: http://www.skill.org.uk/scotland.

Skill Scotland E-news details.

Skill Scotland: National Bureau for Students with Disabilities exists to promote equality for people with all kinds of disabilities in post-16 education, training and employment.

For further information about any part of the Skill Scotland E-news, contact the Skill Information Service at Freephone/Text: 0800 328 5050 Monday-Thursday 1.30-4.30pm Mail to: admin@skillscotland.org.uk Website: http://www.skill.org.uk/scotland

If you would like to comment or contribute news items or articles to Skill Scotland E-news, do get in touch at admin@skillscotland.org.uk.

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