Today, the Honourable Lisa Dempster, Minister of Children, Seniors and Social Development and Minister Responsible for the Status of Persons with Disabilities, released the highlights of the 2015-18 Action Plan for the Inclusion of Persons with Disabilities.

The Action Plan contained 43 action items, all of which are either completed or will remain living action items to continue advancing inclusion in Newfoundland and Labrador. Completed action items include:

• Partnering with the Canadian Hard of Hearing Association – Newfoundland and Labrador to design and promote a program to increase the use of visual alarms for persons who are Deaf or hard of hearing. Over the course of the Action Plan, 113 alarms were installed in homes throughout the province.
• Working with the Coalition of Persons with Disabilities – Newfoundland and Labrador to develop an accessibility audit tool to assist provincial park staff in reviewing their facilities for accessibility. The audit tool will be used to evaluate and identify accessible areas, barriers and opportunities to improve inclusion within provincial parks and ecological reserves.
• Developing an accessible taxi program to increase the number of accessible taxis from zero to having accessible taxis in 10 communities in the province. As well, developing an accessible vehicle program, which has resulted in 103 individuals receiving grants for accessible vehicles.
• Working with municipalities, emergency responders and the Coalition of Persons with Disabilities – Newfoundland and Labrador to develop tools and training to ensure emergency and evacuation plans have accessibility requirements.

A link to the Action Plan Highlight document can be found in the Learn more section below.

Government will continue to lead by example and will continue to use ‘Access. Inclusion. Equality.’ and the action plan as a policy framework as it develops inclusion legislation. Consultations and a symposium will be held later in 2018 to help inform the development of inclusion legislation.

These initiatives support commitments in The Way Forward deliver better services and better outcomes for residents. The Way Forward outlines all actions the Provincial Government is taking to achieve a strong, diversified province with a high standard of living, and can be viewed at thewayforward.gov.nl.ca .

Quotes
“Today is a significant day as we celebrate the completion of the 2015-18 Action Plan for the Inclusion of Persons with Disabilities. Through 43 actions, which are completed or remain living actions, we have made our society much more inclusive, and we see attitudes changing. Our province can only benefit by being fully accessible and inclusive.”
Honourable Lisa Dempster
Minister of Children, Seniors and Social Development

“The Provincial Strategy for the Inclusion of Persons with Disabilities in Newfoundland and Labrador and the Action Plan that followed were pivotal for the advancement of the rights of persons with disabilities in this province. Through the implementation of the Action Plan we have seen a lot of improvement in moving the rights of persons with disabilities forward in our province. From more inclusive voting processes, emergency planning protocols, the promotion and engagement of universal design in the built environment and inclusive procurement, we have seen a lot of progress, and these are just a few of the projects the Coalition of Persons with Disabilities – NL led through capacity funding. With all this great work there comes a momentum and an opportunity to seize the innovation that lies ahead. The Action Plan may have come to term but in order to learn from the work that was done, and that is yet to be completed, our government must lead the way forward in committing and investing in this work in a new iteration.”
Emily Christy
Coalition of Persons with Disabilities – NL

“The current and past members of the council have always been focused on the end goal – positive outcomes for persons with disabilities. We will continue to provide advice and guidance to the Government of Newfoundland and Labrador, as we work to facilitate creation of a culture of inclusion within government and more broadly across sectors and communities.”
Marie Ryan, Chair
Provincial Advisory Committee for the Status of Persons with Disabilities

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Learn more
2015-18 Action Plan Highlights – www.cssd.gov.nl.ca/disabilities/pdf/Action_Plan_Highlights.pdf 

2015-18 Inclusion Action Plan – www.cssd.gov.nl.ca/disabilities/isap.html 

Disability Policy Office – www.cssd.gov.nl.ca/disabilities 

Coalition of Persons with Disabilities – Newfoundland and Labrador – codnl.ca/ 

Provincial Advisory Council for the Inclusion of Persons with Disabilities – www.cssd.gov.nl.ca/disabilities/advisory_council.html

Follow us on Twitter: @GovNL and @CSSD_GovNL 

Media contact

Gina MacArthur
Children, Seniors and Social Development
709-729-3768, 730-2977
ginamacarthur@gov.nl.ca

Emily Christy
Coalition of Persons with Disabilities – NL
709-722-7011
ed@codnl.ca

Marie Ryan
Chair, Provincial Advisory Council for the Inclusion of Persons with Disabilities
709-754-2065 ext. 240, 725-0701