19th January 2012

Disability Attitudes survey should be a wakeup call to Government – Inclusion Ireland

• People with disabilities feel more socially isolated;
• Attitudes towards people with an intellectual disability more negative;

Inclusion Ireland says the results of the National Disability Authority’s (NDA) Attitudes Survey published today (Thursday), should be a wakeup call to Government that action must be taken to stop people with an intellectual disability slipping further away from mainstream society. The survey shows people with a disability feel more socially isolated and public attitudes towards people with an intellectual disability are growing more negative.

One in five people surveyed say they would object if children with intellectual disabilities or autism were in the same class as their child and nearly half (49%) believe people with an intellectual disability do not have the same right to sexual relationships as everyone else.

The survey also shows that people with a disability are twice as likely to feel socially isolated (18% of respondents with a disability, versus 9% without a disability) and also feel they are restricted in participating in their community – 34% of people with a disability say they have been restricted in socialising as a result of their disability and 22% say they feel their opportunity for ‘living with dignity’ was restricted.

Inclusion Ireland CEO Deirdre Carroll says:

“Inclusion Ireland celebrated its 50th birthday in 2011, and while we’ve come a long way since 1961, we need to look at whether we’re moving forward as a society or we’re regressing further back to the days where children with an intellectual disability didn’t attend their local schools and mix with other children, and adults were pushed into institutions at the edges of communities. Since the last NDA survey in 2006, the number of people who say they know someone with a disability has fallen from 71% to 64%. The survey should be a wake-up call that cutbacks are affecting people participating in their communities and creating a less inclusive society. Ireland still has over 4,000 people with an intellectual disability living in institutions and we still operate under a law that calls some people with an intellectual disability ‘lunatics’. Changing attitudes needs to be led by Government and until Government tackles the many issues marginalising people with an intellectual disability, people will continue to feel isolated and societal attitudes will grow more negative.”

ENDS