Can NAS tell us if they are represented on this forum and whether they think it will work.
There has been a lot of concern from disability activists that the Government's latest forum is too unwieldy, and will tend not to hear direct experiences of disabled people, but rather from able people representing the disabled.
The Fulfilling Potential Forum is yet another scheme coming out of Disability Confident, Disability Alliance stable. It is supposed to bring together a range of organisations and idividuals to meet ministers, and will be co-chaired by Mike Penning (Minister of State for the Disabled), and by the Minister of State for Care and Support.
As with a lot of such high level talking shops it will depend a lot on who can attend to be represented. It will tend to be London based organisations. It will be hard for many organisations, with current funding constraints, to send representatives. So the danger is only the more moneyed groups get to participate, and autism could lose out.
Also it is going to discuss "strategic priorities" and "improving key outcomes" where the important stuff gets lost in an over-simplification.
It would be helpful to know how NAS will tackle this.