Image caption Joan Valens said she expects a reduction in the cost of living in the future. Article information
People with disabilities and neurodevelopmental disorders and their families said they want more help from politicians when it comes to finding housing, paying bills and finding work.
They questioned the candidates at a campaign event at Dudley Civic Hall, focusing specifically on their issues.
Joan Valens, who has autism and a learning disability, told the BBC she wanted to move into her own home to live more independently.
But she said a lack of real estate and rising household costs were barriers.
“Everything is so difficult right now because of the high cost of living. Everything is going up, even food prices are going up. Paying bills is a nightmare,” Valens added.
Relatives of people with disabilities shared their experiences of the challenges of caring for their loved ones.
Amanda Waterfield cares for her disabled brother, who is in his 60s.
“Even before the pandemic, there were services, like transportation, for example,” she said.
“Now the day centre has closed and there is very little support from social workers. I would like to see more funding put into social care services.”
Image caption: Diane Baker said she hopes the next administration will improve employment support.
Elaine Deeming runs a support group for parents of children with disabilities.
She said her teenage son experienced the challenge of transitioning from the help offered to children to services available to adults as he grew older.
“People with learning disabilities feel excluded and don’t feel they have enough support to access communities and services in the same way as others,” she said.
“It’s important that politicians prioritise learning disabilities.”
Diane Baker has a learning disability and said she would like to get employment but has so far been unable to secure one.
“When I go for job interviews my CV gets pushed down the line because I have a learning disability – it’s ridiculous,” she says.
Baker said he also doubted whether whoever forms the next government would live up to the promises they made in their manifesto.
She added: “Are they going to do what they say they’re going to do?”
The full list of candidates nominated for constituencies across the Black Country can be found here.
What do political parties say about supporting people with disabilities and neurodevelopmental disorders?
“Our goal is to make this country the most accessible place in the world for disabled people to live, work and thrive,” the Conservatives said.
“We are implementing the Disability Action Plan to transform the everyday lives of people with disabilities.”
On health, he added: “We continue to modernise our autism and learning disability services.”
Labour said it would help disabled people get into work by improving access to support and “reasonable accommodations”.
“We will also tackle delayed work access, ensuring people can try out work without fear of having their benefits reassessed immediately if the job doesn’t work out.”
The only time autism was mentioned was when discussing plans for mental health, and there was also mention of the introduction of full equal pay rights for disabled people.
The Liberal Democrats said they would provide “additional support and advice to employers on neurodiversity in the workplace” and develop a “cross-government strategy to tackle all aspects of discrimination faced by neurodiverse children and adults”.
The ministry said it would tackle the disability employment gap “by implementing targeted strategies to support people with disabilities into work through specialised disability employment support”.
This includes “requiring large employers to monitor and publish data” on disability employment levels, pay gaps and promotions, as well as publishing ambitious five-year diversity targets.
The Green Party said it plans to spend an extra £20 billion to tackle the crisis in adult social care.
The only time neurodiversity was mentioned was in relation to support for children.
But the committee said: “Green MPs will push for pay gap protections to be extended to all protected characteristics, including ethnicity, disability and sexual orientation.”
Reform UK makes no mention of neurodiversity or autism, and the party’s main initiative for adult social care in England is to set up a Royal Commission within 100 days of the new government to develop a national plan for a sustainable system of supporting older people and disabled people in the community.
On work, it said: “Reforms to support and training payments will help people return to work, with a particular focus on 16-34 year olds. Employment is essential to improving mental health.”