TRUST MD HITS OUT AT TORIES FOR ADDING TO IB STIGMA

Tim Cooper, Managing Director of the UK's largest third sector provider of employment services for disabled and disadvantaged people has hit out at the Conservatives for sensationalising benefit figures.

He was responding to an announcement by the Conservatives that incapacity benefit claims for drug and alcohol dependency had more than doubled under Labour.

Tim Cooper accused Conservatives of making the announcement for purely political purposes and has called for a solution based approach to the problem:

"The fact is, it doesn't matter why someone ends up on incapacity benefit. The focus should be on how they will be supported to get off of it.

"The implication that individuals should be singled out for blame is outdated and unhelpful. We need all politicians to support solutions that are based on individual's circumstances.

"What these figures don't tell you of is the toll that drug and alcohol dependency has taken on the lives of the individuals and the families affected. Highlighting claims in this way is stigmatising and will just deter people from seeking the support they need to get their lives back on track," he said.

Shaw Trust clients helped to turn their lives around include a reformed alcoholic who had reached rock bottom but with the charity's help is now a successful Bridgend businessman employing other recovering alcoholics and drug users.

Tim stressed: "The Government must take its share of responsibility too. Specialised support must be adequately funded and available throughout the country so that everyone can be supported into suitable and fulfilling employment."

Research carried out by Government shows that for every £1 they spend on programmes like NDDP to get people back to work they save between £2 - £5, and Shaw Trust is calling for politicians on all sides of the debate to commit to making the investment required to employment programmes so that more people can be supported into work and at the same time, to deliver best value for the tax payer.

** Tim Cooper is available for interview

NOTES TO EDITORS

1. For further details, please contact Shaw Trust Public Affairs Manager Carli Harper-Penman on 07725 307 988 or you can email: crucialpr@shaw-trust.org.uk

2. Shaw Trust is a national charity, formed in 1982, which helps people with disability or disadvantage to find work and achieve independence. We do this not only by delivering government programmes, but also through our own self-funded initiatives, and by campaigning to change attitudes at all levels.

3. Across the UK more than 1,200 staff now oversee a diverse range of more than 200 projects.

4. Shaw Trust believes tackling the stigma surrounding mental ill health is crucial, which is why we are launching a free website to give guidance and advice to managers on how to support employees with mental ill health. To register to be sent a link to this free website when it launches, please visit www.shaw-trust.org.uk/mentalhealth