Plans to transform the lives of disabled people are announced

From the [UK] Guardian:

The British Office for Disability Issues has released its plans for giving people with disabilities more choice and control over the support they need and greater access to employment, transportation, health and housing opportunities.

Said Prime Minister Gordon Brown, “We are committed to a vision of equality for all disabled people by 2025. A vision for Britain where all citizens are respected and included as equal members, and where everyone has the opportunity to fulfill their potential.”

Called the Independent Living Strategy, the document brings together initiatives on employment, housing and social care to remove barriers and improve access to services.

According to the strategy, “independent living” means not necessarily doing things for oneself, but having choice over support and equipment, and equal access to public services and opportunities.
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Column by Richard J. Dalton Jr. in Newsday:

Adults with autism spectrum disorders are now achieving greater levels of independence than ever before, and with their increased autonomy come concerns about whether they can successfully manage their own financial affairs in a world they don’t completely understand.

Parents worry that these young people can be too naive and trusting to successfully engage in complex financial transactions, and that they may become easy targets for those seeking to take advantage of them. Parents are increasingly considering seeking legal guardianship for their adult children, which would give them the right to make medical or financial decisions on their adult child’s behalf.

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