We want Wales to be the best country in the world for people with a learning disability to live, learn, love and work.
We play a unique role in making this happen – through our own services, working in partnership with other organisations, and influencing policy.
Deliver a stronger well-informed voice of people with a learning disability and their families by providing an accessible and bilingual information service.
Creating a skilled and knowledgeable workforce by providing a comprehensive training and events programme.
Ensuring new or better service models are introduced for people with a learning disability.
Ensuring that the voices of people with a learning disability are heard and responded to.
“We want Wales to be the best country in the world for people with a learning disability to live, learn and work”
In 2019, Learning Disability Wales launched its 5-year strategic plan (PDF). This was based on the values adopted back in 2010 in our ‘Statement of Key Rights and Values’ (PDF) for children, young people and adults with a learning disability, which was shaped by the views of our members. All our members are expected to support the statement and our values.
We believe that as a child, young person or adult with a learning disability you have a right to:
These values are underpinned by the UN Convention and Declaration on the Rights of the Child, the UN Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities and the European Convention on Human Rights.
Our aims support our vision of Wales becoming the best country in the world for people with a learning disability to live, learn and work:
We receive funding from various sources to run a number of projects to improve the lives of children, young people and adults with a learning disability.
Learning Disability Wales is a charity (registration number 1062858) and a company limited by guarantee (registration number 02326324).
We are governed by the rules laid out in our memorandum and articles of association. These rules include the structure of our Board of Trustees and how trustees are elected.
We are governed by our Board of Trustees, which is responsible for the management of Learning Disability Wales and sets our strategic direction.
We continually strive to achieve a diverse board of trustees that includes our members, people with a learning disability and the wider society in general with an interest in our work, to manage Learning Disability Wales and to help us achieve our mission.
The structure of our board of trustees consists of two main categories:
To help us create a balanced board, trustees have the power to co-opt Advisors who bring their knowledge and expertise.
Our trustees are elected by our full members at our Annual General Meeting and serve for three years.
The board of trustees meets four times a year. Meetings are a mix of face-to-face meetings and video conferences. Papers are prepared in plain English and meetings are conducted in an accessible way that allows all our trustees to fully participate.
Trustees delegate financial and employment matters to the Finance Sub Group that oversees our finances and and our Human Resources Sub Group that monitors our HR performance and ensures compliancy. Both sub groups report to and make recommendations to the board of trustees.
Trustees delegate the day-to-day running of Learning Disability Wales to its paid staff team. The distinction between the responsibility of paid staff and trustees is laid out in our schedule of delegated authority that trustees review annually.
For more information about how we are run and our board of trustees contact Joanne Moore: phone 029 20681168, email joanne.moore@ldw.org.uk.
Learning Disability Wales promotes the right of people with a learning disability to experience a full, stimulating and varied independent life and to enjoy all the advantages and responsibilities of being a citizen. We work to ensure that the voice of children, young people and adults with a learning disability is heard and listened to.
We have acted as advocate, guardian, innovator, networker, persuader, and watchdog since our creation in 1983, as the Standing Conference of Voluntary Organisations for people with a mental handicap in Wales (SCOVO).
We were created at the same time as the revolutionary All Wales Strategy (PDF) was being written. In 1983, a combination of very limited access to education, a series of abuse scandals in long stay hospitals and an almost complete absence of any community based services to support people with a learning disability and their carers convinced civil servants in the Welsh Office that radical action was necessary.
Working with a small group of dedicated campaigners, the Welsh Secretary of State announced an all-Wales Strategy.
The Strategy required massive changes that were to have a revolutionary impact unequalled in Europe. Three simple principles were introduced.
People with a learning disability have the right to:
The small group of campaigners who were influential in pressing the case for a strategy recognised the need to develop a vibrant third sector that had a strong voice at national level. Their judgement was that it would act as a catalyst for change and ensure that the strategy principles were translated into action.
We believe that the third sector has an important contribution to make. It can play a vital role in helping people with a learning disability speak up, in promoting the rights of family carers and in providing creative, innovative and responsive services.
After debate with our members, we changed our name in 1993 to Standing Conference of Voluntary Organisations for people with a learning disability in Wales (SCOVO).
We were then re-titled and re-branded as the more user friendly ‘Learning Disability Wales’ in 2005.
We have remained true to our original purpose and continue to act as a strong voice on behalf of our members.
If you wish to make a complaint or send us a compliment, you can read our Complaints and Compliments Policy here.
There is also an easy read guide to making a complaint or compliment available here.
You can also contact us to ask us for a copy of these documents and information about how to make a complaint.
We work in partnership with the following people and organisations:
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