Ten projects across the UK have received between £35,000 and £40,000 each to explore how disabled people can live as full citizens in our society and what changes and support will make that happen in practice.
Nearly £400,000 worth of funding has been granted as the first part of the DRILL (Disability Research on Independent Living and Learning) programme, a £5 million research scheme led by disabled people and funded by Big Lottery Fund.
Each research or pilot project will be led by disabled people or people with long term health conditions; they will be developing approaches and questions, working alongside academics and policy makers. Disabled people who often struggle to have their voices heard will be shaping research – including people living with dementia, learning disabilities and mental health issues.
Grants were approved by the DRILL Central Research Committee, which is chaired by Professor Tom Shakespeare. He said:
“Historically, research led by disabled people has been instrumental in influencing policy and practice, from the first Disability Discrimination laws 20 years ago to policies to give disabled people more choice and control over our own support.
“We are delighted to announce 10 new research projects led by disabled people, on topics ranging from how best people with learning difficulties can be supported to take decisions – rather than have those decisions taken out of their hands – to what would better support Asian disabled women to lead full lives. We sometimes find the questions posed by disabled people are different from those posed by non-disabled academics, and so this research has the potential to answer questions of most concern to disabled people.
“The programme will involve sharing knowledge, research and skills through genuine co-production between disabled people and academics and should leave a legacy of greater skills for all involved.”
The 10 successful projects will be led by:
England
Centre for Welfare Reform
University of Lincoln
Asian People’s Disability Alliance
Inclusion Barnet
Vision Sense
Northern Ireland
Queen’s University Belfast – School of Sociology, Social Policy and Social Work
Scotland
Voices of Experience
People First Scotland
Wales
C.A.R.P Collaborations
All Wales People First
Launched in 2015, the DRILL programme is fully funded by Big Lottery Fund and delivered by Disability Rights UK, Disability Action Northern Ireland, Inclusion Scotland and Disability Wales. DRILL is expecting to fund up to 40 research pilots and projects over a five-year period, all led by disabled people. Around £600,000 will be allocated in the next round of applications, which are currently being assessed. An announcement is due in February 2017. Further calls for potential projects will be made between 2017 and 2019.
For further information visit www.drilluk.org.uk
-Ends-
For further media enquiries:
UK wide or England: Ben Furner on 07946 355795 or Ben@furnercommunications.co.uk
Northern Ireland: Rachael Harriot on 07886 036782 or Rachael@harriottcommunications.com
Scotland: Donna McSwiggan on 07429 199617 or Donnam@inclusionscotland.org
Wales: William Sullivan on 029 2088 7325 or William.Sullivan@disabilitywales.org
Notes to editors:
The ten DRILL funding recipients
View more information about the projects
Scotland
|
Lead Partner |
Project |
Value |
|
Voices of Experience
|
Increasing Participation in Civic and Public Life: Coproducing Solutions |
£40,000 |
|
People First Scotland |
Does it Matter? Decision making by people with learning difficulties |
£39,350 |
Wales
|
Lead Partner |
Project |
Value |
|
C.A.R.P Collaborations
|
Young people and friendships – what matters to us? |
£39,985 |
|
All Wales People First
|
Evaluating for improvement: developing a tool kit that self - advocates can use to check if projects deliver what they promise |
£39,968.89 |
England
|
Lead Partner |
Project |
Value |
|
Centre for Welfare Reform |
Chronic illness and citizenship – mobilising a collective voice for social change |
£39,999 |
|
University of Lincoln |
Co-producing an inclusively designed exhibition with partially sighted, blind and elderly participants |
£36,396.82 |
|
Asian People’s Disability Alliance
|
Humare Avaaz (Our Voice) – exploring the experiences and barriers faced by disabled Asian women |
£39,550 |
|
Inclusion Barnet
|
Peer support in progress: What works best to make peer support projects successful?
|
£39,961 |
|
Vision Sense |
Tacking violence and abuse against women and girls in coproduction with mental health, social care and housing services |
£39,959.46 |
Northern Ireland
|
Lead Partner |
Project |
Value |
|
QUB, School of Sociology, Social Policy and Social Work
|
A translational case study of empowerment in practice: An evaluation of the Dementia NI Service |
£37,765 |
More notes to editors below:
The DRILL programme is being delivered by Disability Rights UK, Disability Action Northern Ireland, Disability Wales and Inclusion Scotland.
Each country has a National Advisory Group, including disabled people, academics and policy makers, who provide advice, scrutinise research proposals, make recommendations and help promote and disseminate the findings. A Central Research Committee, made up of disabled people, academics and policy influencers from across the UK makes the final decision on which research proposals receive funding.
Professor Tom Shakespeare is senior lecturer in medical sociology, Norwich Medical School at the University of East Anglia.
The Big Lottery Fund is the largest funder of community activity in the UK. It puts people in the lead to improve their lives and communities, often through small, local projects.
It is responsible for giving out 40% of the money raised by National Lottery players for good causes. Every year it invests over £650 million and awards around 12,000 grants across the UK for health, education, environment and charitable purposes.
Since June 2004 it has awarded over £8 billion to projects that change the lives of millions of people.
