Published: Wednesday, 19th May, 2010 5:00pm

Creating a more caring environment

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Cavan County Council is setting a headline in terms of improving access for the disabled to its wide range of services and the conferral of the national 02 Ability Award (non private sector) is timely recognition of the fine work that the council is doing in that regard.

It is a tremendous honour for the local authority led by Cavan County Manager, Jack Keyes, who has a passionate commitment to improving services for the disabled and indeed for enhancing still further all of the services that the council provides to the public.

Social inclusion is very much top of Jack Keyes' agenda and he makes the valid point that "by catering for people with disabilities in a holistic way one finds oneself catering for all citizens in a more effective manner".

How we care for the disabled and the efforts that we make to enable them live as full lives as possible is a hallmark of us as a society. Since 2003, Cavan County Council has implemented a worthy raft of initiatives such as the installation of special hydraulic lifts at the swimming pool to help disabled users as well as the provision of improved access at the motor tax office such as facilities for the hard of hearing and for those with impaired vision. The new Johnston Central Library and Farnham Centre is a model in terms of user accessibility and is already the recipient of the Mary Finch Accessibility Award.

The council with its important role in the planning process is in a position to influence society as a whole. In that regard it does decide where we build and the type of buildings we construct. Ensuring that all buildings used by the public have specially designed access facilities to accommodate the disabled is a priority for the council planners and thankfully those access facilities are now a feature of modern developments used by the public.

The 02 Ability Awards are the brainchild of the disability organisation, Kanchi. Thirty eight organisations employing almost 50,000 people were shortlisted for this year's awards. They underwent a four month in-depth assessment by disability management consultants and Kanchi's assessment partner, Pricewaterhouse Coopers. The fact that Cavan County Council received the top national award in the non private sector is a very significant achievement for a body that provides an extensive range of services across a large number of sites and over many different fields of activity affecting the wider populace.

Kanchi's story began when its founder, Caroline Casey, a visually impaired social entrepreneur trekked 1000km across India on an elephant called Kanchi. The aim of the journey was to positively change the way people think about disability. Kanchi, the disability organisation, (named after Caroline's elephant) believes that disability is society's elephant in the room - the thing we don't want to talk about due to misunderstanding and fear.

Cavan County Council have been making commendable strides in creating a better public understanding of how we treat people with disabilities. It is an important example for society as a whole and Jack Keyes and the council as a whole are to be congratulated on their award and on their good work to create a better and more caring world for us all.