UNISON welcomes the aims of this Bill and the recognition of the challenges that many disabled young people face as they transition into adult life. In particular, we support the moves to ensure a senior member of the government is accountable for implementation.
The aim of the bill is “to ensure that each disabled child and young person receives appropriate care and support before, and during, the transition to adulthood.” We are concerned that this will not be achieved without substantial extra resources to both enable the development of high-quality plans and more fundamentally to enable the plans to be realised. Cuts to budgets, in particular local government budgets, mean that many of the services that should provide this support are under enormous pressure. Therefore, without substantial funding for services little may change.