It has been a year of change and reflection here at Disability Wales as we worked to develop our new Strategic Plan.
We were delighted to launch the plan at our recent AGM and to receive such a positive response to our refreshed mission and vision, which will guide our work in the years ahead.
We’ll be bringing the full strategy to our website soon, but before then, let’s take a moment to reflect on the activities and achievements that shaped the 2024/25 financial year.
Here, our Chief Executive, Rhian Davies, shares her report
Chief Executive’s Report
During another challenging year for disabled people where the ongoing cost-of-living crisis exacerbated long-term poverty and inequality, at DW we continued to pursue our aim of influencing policy and decision makers at all levels on behalf of members.
We vehemently opposed Welsh Government’s shocking proposals to increase weekly maximum care charges from £100 to £125 per week. From our own Barely Surviving Report (2023), we knew that social care recipients were already struggling to pay their charges alongside essential bills for eating and heating.
Through a membership survey and focus groups, we built a strong case against the proposals. This included challenging the myth that only well-off disabled people are charged the maximum when in fact recipients who solely rely on benefits pay the full amount.
Armed with this evidence, we met with Ministers, Senedd Members and took to the media. The campaign paid off: recognising the dire impact of raising charges, Ministers dropped their proposals. Moreover, they acknowledged the inconsistency in charging practice across Wales and announced their intention to undertake a national review.
The power of the voice of lived experience was evident and DW was glad to play its role in ensuring this was heard at the highest level.
DW remained actively involved in the Disability Rights Taskforce including membership of several working groups.
Having delivered Social Model training to all Taskforce participants, we were proud to present two sessions to Cabinet members, including the First Minister.
Believed to be the first time any such training has been delivered in the UK, it provided an unrivalled opportunity to discuss directly with Ministers the significance of the Social Model of Disability in the history of disabled people’s campaign for rights and why tackling barriers in society must be the priority of government.
While concerned at the delay in publishing the draft Disabled People’s Rights Plan, we welcomed news of the proposed establishment of an External Advisory Board.
Having lobbied for such a Board, to provide vital scrutiny and accountability for the Plan once published, we were delighted that the Cabinet Secretary for Social Justice Jane Hutt MS announced the proposal at our AGM.
Despite the challenging context, we continued to actively contribute towards DW’s aim to develop and support the work of Disabled People’s Organisations (DPOs). This included delivering a range of initiatives that develop the skills and confidence of disabled people, many of whom play an active role in DPOs.
The successful, award-winning Equal Power Equal Voice Mentoring Programme ended with an inspiring celebration of mentees achievements.
Delivered in partnership with WEN Wales, EYST and Stonewall, it enabled many mentees including from DW’s cohorts to secure Board positions, gain elected office or progress other personal goals. We were delighted that further funding from the National Lottery Community Fund and Welsh Government was secured by the partnership to run a second programme.
Building on the success of the pilot Access to Elected Office Fund, DW was awarded funding from Welsh Government to set up the Access to Politics Grassroots Network Project.
Launched at a lively event on the International Day of Disabled People by the Cabinet Secretary for Local Government and Housing Jayne Bryant MS, it provides networking opportunities for disabled people interested in politics including standing for elected office.
Moreover, it seeks to make politics more inclusive and accessible through development of resources such as an Access to Politics Charter and a Toolkit for disabled candidates. With Senedd and Local Government elections on the horizon, we look forward to disabled people featuring prominently among candidates standing across Wales.
Communicating effectively with members and stakeholders remains an important aspect of our influencing work and support for DPOs.
Our website contains a range of information and resources, including the popular Social Model Toolkit launched during the year.
We were pleased to see a significant increase in traffic with an additional 100K views compared to the previous year.
Daily posts across DW’s range of social media platformsfeaturing news, opportunities and updates, attracted more than 800 new followers, taking us to over 21K followers and achieving a total reach of 367,400.
The cost-of-living crisis brought its own challenges for DW and following cuts in our funding, it required us to undertake a change programme to redesign and redevelop the organisation. To meet our aim of leading and developing an effective and sustainable organisation has required some hard decisions and difficult times.
We embarked on a strategic review and appreciate the number of members who responded to our survey which greatly helped inform the process. We look forward to sharing the outcome of the review which has also involved staff and directors with valuable expertise from Cranfield Trust.
In seeking to secure a financially sustainable future for DW, support from funders Moondance Foundation and Wales and West Housing Association has been invaluable, and we are deeply touched by the legacy left to us by our dear friend and member Mike Jones.
As ever, my thanks go to our dedicated Directors for their wise advice and counsel and to our fantastic staff for their unstinting hard work and enthusiasm whatever the challenges.
Rhian Davies
