I make no apologies for the length of this Blog as so much seems to have been going on! I suppose December 3rd being the International Day of Disabled People might have contributed something to the flurry of stories. As chair of RADAR it was a busy week. We held our "Summit" entitled Future Proofing Equality which focussed on a number of key issues that affect disabled people for example Leadership, Finance, IT, Access and 2012 and Independent Living. The event attracted close on 150 people drawn from all sectors; business, public and 3rd. This was followed by our People of the Year Awards celebration. We had 600 people in attendance with Frank Gardener acting as host. I got home at 2:30 am and when I left people were still dancing! A brilliant evening with some amazing individuals and organisations picking up awards. Well done to all at RADAR for putting together such a fantastic day and evening. It was also the week when I'm pleased to say that the EHRC has decided to ...

Disabled people's access needs received a boost this week when RBS lost the argument over whether it should or should not improve access for a wheelchair using customer. Also in the news the EHRC is under fire yet again this time because of an apparent u-turn by the government. RBS loses loses appeal over ‘landmark’ access ruling A bank will have to install a lift at a city centre branch after a disabled customer won an appeal court victory in a landmark discrimination case. The Royal Bank of Scotland will have to carry out the building work - at an estimated cost of £200,000 – in order to make its Sheffield city centre branch accessible to wheelchair-users. The case was brought by teenager David Allen, an electric wheelchair-user, who could not access the branch because the entrance was at the top of four steps. Allen was forced to discuss personal details about his account in the street outside the branch. Lord Justice Wall, one of the three court of appeal judges, said there wer...

We have been concerned to hear of the departure from the Equality and Human Rights Commission (EHRC) of two major disability leaders, Jane Campbell and Bert Massie; and our members have raised queries and worries with us about difficulties at the Commission reported in the media. The Commission is vitally important to the 11 million people in Britain living with ill-health, injury or disability. Disabled people campaigned for decades for disability rights law and a Commission to promote and enforce it. The EHRC has the remit to achieve greater equality and human rights for disabled people - in a context of equality and human rights for people from all parts of British society. I urge the Commission to work with the disability sector over the next year and to show the steps it is taking to achieve greater equality and human rights for disabled people in practice. We are also asking our members to tell us what they most want the Commission to deliver, given its strategic objectives a...