National Disabled Peoples Summit

Saturday's 'National Disabled Peoples Summit' was a great success. Around 135 disabled people met at the NEU building in Mabledon Place, Euston on Saturday 4 November.

We held 14 workshops across morning and afternoon sessions. These workshops discussed disability related issues ranging from employment to education and from social care and support to transport.

Each workshop produced campaigning ideas which will now be collated and put together into a comprehensive report covering all the workshops. This report will go out to the attendees of Saturday's Summit as well as interested groups and individuals.

Once we have had time to examine the ideas and responses within the Report we can then prepare the next stage of our campaign, or indeed campaigns.

I would like personally to thank Mandy Hudson, who came up with the idea and followed it through to the end. A big thank you to Ellen Clifford of Inclusion London and DPAC and Ellen Morrison of Unite Community and Inclusion London.

I'd also like to thank Bob Williams-Findlay for his excellent presentation that gave us an historic and political overview of the struggles of the disability movement over the past half-a-century.

Ellen Clifford also needs congratulating on not only helping to set the Summit up, but for also making an important contribution with her contribution that explained how disabled people were currently fighting off some of the most vicious social policies ever introduced.

Thanks to John McDonnell for his message of solidarity made over a video link. John, as ever, gave a matter-of-fact presentation of how and why austerity wasn't working and how things could be very different under a Labour government.

On the day there were a number of support workers, and I would like to thank the BSL interpreters, the palantypists, PAs, registration staff, Sabina and Tracey, and NEU staff for making the event accessible to all. I'd also like to thank the NEU and their caterers for supplying both the venue and feeding and watering us splendidly.

A number of unions made financial contributions. These contributions will pay the support workers and staff we engaged for the event as well as some of the incidental costs associated with a venture of this kind. So, I'd like to thank those unions and we will be sending you written conformation of receipt of the donations along with our thanks.

Finally, I would like to thank those scores of disabled people, some who travelled great distances, for attending and helping to make this first National Disabled Peoples Summit a success.

Seàn McGovern