Ms Gillian Kearns:

I just want to raise a point one of our members raised. The work and access programme is proving very difficult, particularly for neurodivergent disabled people. It is a long process that can be extremely difficult. The result is that people disengage. It is not that people do not want to participate, but the processes are so long and complicated that they are extremely difficult for an awful lot of disabled people. As was mentioned regarding the other responsibilities and factors that impact us, there is no reflection of the dynamic nature of a lot of our disabilities. A lot of these supports, in and of themselves, can be very difficult for people to access because the processes are so long and quite complicated. If you have an intellectual disability or if you are dyslexic, there are a lot of reasons and barriers in people's way. The process should be more streamlined. The only way that is going to happen is if people actually listen to disabled people who are meant to be using these processes and start adapting and adjusting them, so they are not so onerous and difficult for the people they are meant to be supporting.