Don’t forget families with disabled children in Covid inquiry, says DCP

2 mins read

Thursday 7 April 2022

Tags: covid, disabled children's partnership, covid inquiry

The experiences of disabled children and their families must be a focus of the government’s independent public inquiry into the Covid-19 pandemic, the Disabled Children’s Partnership has said in its submission to the consultation on the inquiry’s terms of reference.

The DCP, a coalition of over 100 organisations chaired by Contact’s CEO Amanda Batten, calls for:

  • Disabled children and young people, and the impact of the pandemic on existing inqualities faced by this group, to be considered by the inquiry distinctly from the experiences of disabled adults and children who are not disabled.
  • The inquiry to look into the ongoing and longer-term impact of the pandemic, as well as the short-term impact, noting that many disabled children are still going without social support services or are absent from school.
  • A human rights-based approach for the UK inquiry as adopted for the inquiry into the handling of the pandemic in Scotland.

Read the DCP’s submission in full.

Today, 7 April 2022, is the last day to submit views about the inquiry’s terms of references – you can do so online.

The UK Covid-19 Inquiry has been set up to examine the UK’s preparedness and response to the Covid-19 pandemic, and to learn lessons for the future.