Press Release

Every Vote Counts! - New resource helps people with learning disabilities to become politically engaged

30th January 2009

With European Parliamentary elections this June and a UK general election just around the corner, United Response, the national disability charity, is launching a new resource today to make the democratic process more accessible to the thousands of people with learning disabilities in England.

Research carried out by United Response, as part of the project, revealed that while 80% of people with learning disabilities supported by the charity are registered to vote, only 16% participated in the last general election. This compares with 61% turnout across the nation as a whole.

Funded by the Electoral Commission, Every Vote Counts!, is an easy to use, free-of-charge, multimedia tool aimed at making politics directly relevant to the lives of the people with learning disabilities. United Response worked with the people it supports and support workers to develop the easy to understand CD-Rom, booklet and website.

The resource helps support workers better engage people with learning disabilities and covers everything from why politics is important, to how to support someone to lobby their MP or to join a local action group. The resource also addresses key practice issues facing support workers such as assessing capacity to vote and supporting people in an unbiased way.

Lizzie, who has a learning disability and is supported by United Response in London, said:

"Politics affects us in the newspapers. Politics affects us on public transport. Politics affects us through everyday life.

"It is important for making decisions. When politicians sit round the table they have to make the best decision for us."

Su Sayer, chief executive of United Response said:

"Politics is about everyone. By engaging people with learning disabilities in the democratic process we are involving them in the decisions that affect their everyday lives. But our research shows that the complexity of the democratic system and a lack of easy to understand information means that at the moment far too many people with learning disabilities are not being given the opportunity to participate and have their say.

"We hope that by providing people with learning disabilities with the information they need and in a format that is accessible to them, the Every Vote Counts! resource will open up politics to a group of people who are among the most disenfranchised in society."

The Every Vote Counts! resource forms part of a three year campaign funded by the Electoral Commission and launched by United Response to help people with learning disabilities become better engaged.

To register for a free copy of the Every Vote Counts! resource and to find out more about the project go to www.everyvotecounts.org.uk or email everyvotecounts@unitedresponse.org.uk