A response to a report on Work Capability Assessment suggested to me that I should read from a Facebook friend.

It is an excellent report describing the problems disabled people are having with Work Capability Assessment. It is interesting that no one seems to be coming forward to test the rights of claimants under the Human Rights Act. It doesn't actually say what we should be doing just criticising as a single issue political view Work Capability Assessment. Fair enough.

At no point does the report say that society has a right to know about the sick and disabled people it gives money to i.e. assess them and that the people receiving the money have a right to be assessed in the light of what they can expect from society and offer to it. In other words Work Capability Assessment and societies response to disabled people which is quite begrudging is not dealt with. The only sane response in my view from society is to provide work for all and tailor that work for those who cannot do normal work. This is also my religious (Bahai) view as well "all must work no matter how handicapped". That is true inclusivity!

What I find most interesting from a parent's perspective is that I have come across many parents over the last 20 years who have special needs children who do not have their needs met by the education system which is particularly begrudging of resources to children who need them. Work Capability Assessment in my view is just being in many respects as hard on adults as society has been on disabled and special needs children for as long as I can remember which just goes to show that the underlying problem is that we as a society just do not know how to include disabled children or adults into our society: in other words we are pretty disunified when we should have a unity between the handicapped, ill and normal people .

In many respects Gaz the whole issue is getting wrapped up with party politics and human rights which is a big mistake because it really is about a legal contract which has to exist between a disabled person and society which is immune to the various party political ups and downs, withdrawals of benefits/offering to people the benefits in order to get votes.

No government seems to wish to enter into that legal contract with a disabled child or adult in the same way that government does not wish to enter into a legal contract with a citizen that he/she will always be given work. To me that is the bedrock of any civilised society but to most people I know there is no interest whatsoever in trying to establish that foundation.  In other words what I've just mentioned has to be put on the same basis as the police , army and the general government infrastructure. Nobody is talking about that because there is party political gain or loss in appealing to or not appealing to disabled adults and children.

Just out of interest, and I say this as somebody who totally shafted Darlington Borough Council in terms of their illegal behaviour towards homeschooled children i.e. I forced them to comply with the law, it would be worth trying to find out those disabled people who do take on the Work Capability Assessment regime and when and how they actually did it. In other words it is quite likely that some people in letters and contacting a lot of other people including using any various complaints Procedures just as I did with Darlington Borough Council are getting what they want. This will be entirely consistent with a system whereby if you are rich, influential or just totally frightening in your approach to those who are trying to get you to comply to a system that does not work for you, you get what you want whether it is right or not. In other words the UK civil system bullies but individuals can bully back and get what they want. I essentially did this with Darlington Borough Council and they backed off a long way and not only that I was informed by one Chief Executive that an employee who sent an abusive e-mail to me had been "removed from the councils employment". It is all a matter of just pressing the right buttons and of course having a completely just and honest case which I did! I don't like bullies mentally or physically and I have taken on both over 50 years that I have been physically handicapped.

I would say to anybody involved with advocating for a person in Work Capability Assessment procedures or fighting it themselves: take the advice of some of the Jewish scholars in the Warsaw Ghetto in World War II: record everything. That in itself is very intimidating to people in the system so much so that some employees may claim a legal right not to talk to you particularly when you are recording what they are saying. They are quite likely not doing their job properly according to their work contract. It's nasty but then again unfortunately governments get very unreasonable and nasty with their citizens particularly local governments who just quite simply not only break the letter of the law but the spirit was well.

Work Capability Assessment  was brought in by the previous government , New Labour Gaz, it isn't a party political issue. You are fairly new to the lets shaft a cripple culture I've experienced since I was 6 . The problem isn't really to do with us disabled its mostly to do with millions of normal people who are effectively disabled by an over reliance on the market economy by tories and socialists to provide work for all when it can't and they face a very duff and uncertain future. When work is provided for all it will be pretty obvious who can and can't do it and I believe most will be able to.  The problem is to provide  work for all not assessing who can or can't work then taking benifits  away because there is a slim chance more disabled people could get work . Most normals support  Work Capability Assessment in my view because a lot of them have a pretty hard life themselves in attempting to get what they think is their right and due a normal standard of living and then struggling to get it and keep it.

Work for all : thats the way forward. Defending not wanting to work because a disabled person doesn't fit some or all of the work categories is bad for me as a cripple and bad for society. I need a job tailored around my needs not a benefit package tailored around my disabilty!