6 March 2006 - Fresh wealth of experience boosts work of disability committee
A fresh wealth of experience has been recruited to the Department for Work and Pensions Advisory Committee which provides advice on employment barriers faced by disabled people and how to tackle them.
Six new and eight existing members have been appointed to the Disability Employment Advisory Committee (DEAC) to take forward its work during its second term.
Minister for Disabled People, Anne McGuire, welcomes the appointments:
‘’I am grateful to DEAC for their continuing support and advice as the Government tackles the employment barriers to work many disabled people face. The Committee has advised us on a number of groundbreaking work initiatives, including Pathways to Work and our cross government strategy to end the inequalities faced by disabled people within a generation.
‘’As we build on this progress and take forward the Welfare Reform Green Paper, DEAC will have an important role to play. I welcome the new committee and look forward to working with Members to take this ambitious programme forward.”
DEAC Chair, Sally Witcher, welcomed the new members who join as the Committee begins its second three-year term of office:
“With disability employment now top of the welfare to work agenda, this is an exciting time to be joining DEAC. I am delighted to welcome our new members who will add to the diversity of perspectives, expertise and experience that the Committee can contribute to the development of disability employment policy.”
Notes for editors
- The Disability Employment Advisory Committee was established three years ago. It offers Ministers and officials strategic advice on the employment of disabled people; the labour market barriers across Great Britain that disabled people face; develops recommendations on the support required to overcome these barriers; and provides advice in confidence on the effectiveness of labour market policies including specialist and mainstream programmes, retention and rehabilitation measures, and employment advice for disabled people.
- DEAC reports directly to the Minister for Disabled People on disability/impairment employment issues.
- The Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, John Hutton recently thanked DEAC for their advice at the first meeting of the Committee’s second three year term.
- The appointment of six new members of DEAC will be for a period of three
years. The posts are voluntary but an amount for loss of earnings is paid,
where appropriate, along with all reasonable and proper expenses. The new members
are:
- Tim Cooper, Managing Director of Shaw Trust’s Work and Independence Division, Shaw Trust;
- Cheryl Cullen, Employment Training Skills Manager for the Royal National Institute for Deaf People (RNID).
- Catherine Graham, the Chair of the Scottish Union for Supported Employment (SUSE).
- Asif Iqbal is the Project Manager for Parentline Plus.
- Christine Jess, Equal Access to Employment Strategy Manager across the Public and Private sectors in Glasgow.
- Dr Rachel Perkins has a Doctorate in Psychology and is the Director of Quality Assurance and User Carer experience at the St George’s NHS Mental Health NHS Trust.
- The eight reappointed Members are:
- Steven Alexander – Chief Executive of the Pre-School Learning Alliance.
- Mark Deal – Manager of Employment Training at Enham.
- Lorraine Gradwell – Chief Executive of Breakthrough UK Ltd.
- Rosie Hallam – Freelance Consultant on health, social welfare and community development with a particular interest in mental health.
- Diana Holland OBE - National Organiser for the Transport and General Workers Union, Women, Race and Equalities Sector.
- Marylin Howard – Independent Social Policy Analyst – also carries out work for the Disability Rights Commission.
- Eddie Lynch – Chief Executive of Bromley MENCAP.
- Stephen Parr MBE – Chief Executive Sabre Employment Ltd.
- The new appointments bring the external membership to fifteen, including Chair, Sally Witcher OBE.
- Sally Witcher OBE continues to be Chair of DEAC. She has valuable experience within the fields of poverty, social security benefits and social policy-making processes. Former positions held include Director of the Child Poverty Action Group and Campaign Worker for Disability Alliance. She is a freelance equality consultant, researcher, trainer and lecturer, and member of research advisory committees including the Centre for Analysis of Social Exclusion at the London School of Economics.
Media enquiries: Contact Sharon Kean, Department for Work and Pensions National Press Office
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www.deac.org.uk