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Independent Living Fund (ILF) closes its doors

3 months into the financial year 2010/2011, and the Independent Living Fund (ILF) is closing its doors to new applications whilst the future of Social Care is hanging on the edge of collapse.

The ILF provides discretionary cash payments directly to people with disabilities so they can buy care from an agency or pay the wages of a privately employed assistant. Without this grant, people with learning disabilities will have to go without the support that helps them to mange their daily lives.

That is support for personal care and domestic assistance.

The Learning Disability Coalition calls on the new government ahead of the emergency budget to ensure that funding for social care support is sufficient for both current and future needs. 

Social care is already under a massive strain from the frontline, and back door cuts or restrictions such as ILF closing the door will only exacerbate the issue.

Social Care for people with disabilities must not be seen as an easy target for both central government and local authorities to start the process of cost savings and realignment of funds. We need to protect front-line for people with learning disabilities.

For further press information please Xanthe Breen on 0845-230-0372 xanthe.breen@downs-syndrome.org.uk.

--ENDS-- Notes to editors

The Learning Disability Coalition’s members are: Mencap, National Autistic Society, Down’s Syndrome Association, British Institute of Learning Disabilities, Association for Real Change, Foundation for People with Learning Disabilities, People First, Real Life Options, Sense, The National Forum for People with Learning Difficulties, National Valuing Families Forum, National Family Carer Network, Turning Point, United Response and Voyage.

There are no accurate statistics on the number of people with a learning disability but it is generally thought that there about 1.5 million people.

The Learning Disability Coalition was set up just over three years ago to make sure that there is better funding for people with a learning disability. Its co-chairs are Mark Goldring, Chief Executive of Mencap, and Andrew Lee, Director of People First.