Dates have been set for the next Anne Sullivan Centre (ASC) Advocacy Working Groups.
The Cork Advocacy Group will meet on Wednesday 21st November from 11am-1pm in Cork Deaf Association Offices on MacCurtain Street, Cork city.
The Dublin Advocacy Group will meet on Wednesday 12th December (Note: postponed until January) from 11am-1pm in the Anne Sullivan Centre on Brewery Road, Co Dublin.
The ASC facilitates Advocacy Working Groups in Dublin and Cork which each meet four times per year. The overall purpose of the working groups is to provide a platform to guide and co-ordinate our inputs in the design and implementation of strategies to increase resources for those in Ireland who are experiencing deafblindness.
The group exists primarily to:
- Ensure that the advocacy work undertaken by us is well-informed and in line with the real needs of people who are deafblind in Ireland.
- Identify and share information regarding existing services and supports for persons who are deafblind in Ireland
- Identify existing gaps in service provision and issues or challenges for persons who are deafblind
- Identify appropriate sources to fund and/or undertake tasks and activities
- Participate, where agreed, in advocacy activities of the Anne Sullivan Foundation
- Work collaboratively to have deafblindness recognised as a distinct disability
An Irish Sign Language (ISL) interpreter is provided at each meeting. Persons with combined hearing and vision loss are encouraged and supported to attend these meetings.