GOVERNMENT BOOSTS DISABILITY FUND TO $25 MILLION

BURNABY – More people with disabilities will have access to the supports they need to participate in the workplace thanks to a $5-million boost to the $20-million Disability Supports for Employment Fund, announced Employment and Income Assistance Minister Claude Richmond today.

“There are many talented and skilled British Columbians with disabilities who want to work and many B.C. employers who are looking for good qualified employees,” said Richmond. “That’s why this government is investing an additional $5 million into the Disability Supports for Employment Fund to ensure the best supports are in place so more people can take advantage of B.C.’s strong economy.”

Richmond made the announcement at a Minister’s Council on Employment for People with Disabilities event that took place at the Neil Squire Society. The event celebrated the work being accomplished through the fund by profiling the society’s Assistive Technology Centre for Employment.

“I am proud of the leadership role the Minister’s Council has taken by establishing the Disability Supports for Employment Fund,” said Vancouver Mayor Sam Sullivan, co-chair of the Minister’s Council. “It’s in working together with community partners such as the Vancouver Foundation that we succeed in creating a province where all people with disabilities can reach their highest potential.”

The $20-million Disability Supports for Employment Fund was established by the Minister’s Council in 2003. The fund, which is managed by the Vancouver Foundation, disburses grants to non-profit, registered charitable community organizations and post-secondary institutions to provide employment supports for people with disabilities in the workplace.

“I’m very pleased with what this fund has accomplished in communities across the province,” said Faye Wightman, president and CEO of the Vancouver Foundation. “In partnership with the provincial government, we have supported more than 40 organizations to undertake innovative projects that have increased employment opportunities for persons with disabilities.”

To date, 45 grants, totalling more than $2 million, have been awarded through the fund. These grants have supported projects run by Neil Squire Society, the BC Paraplegic Association, the Kamloops Brain Injury Society and many other non-profit community organizations throughout B.C.

“As a grant recipient, the financial support we have received has been invaluable,” said Neil Squire Society executive director Gary Birch. “It has gone directly towards the development of our Assistive Technology for Employment Centre that is specially designed to meet the unique needs of those with disabilities.”

In addition to creating the Disability Supports for Employment Fund, the government has invested $92 million in specialized disability employment programs since June 2001 to assist over 13,000 persons with disabilities to work or volunteer as they are able.

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1 backgrounder(s) attached.
Media contact:	Richard Chambers Communications Director Ministry of Employment and Income Assistance 250 387-6489	John Morton Director, Marketing & Communications Vancouver Foundation 604 688-2204

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