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September 2025 newsletter
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Welcome to the September edition of the Inclusion Barnet member newsletter!
It's full of info on consultations, online resources, community events, access tips and ways to be heard. You'll also find some of the top local and national news affecting Disabled people including those with mental health issues and long-term conditions.
To find out more about each article, just click on its title.
Inclusion Barnet news
Over the summer we’ve had the pleasure of visiting local community services and connecting with the people that make them thrive. In this issue, read about how our Touchpoint team got to throw some shapes with the Middlesex Association for the Blind and find out more about how the team are also championing the cause on the housing crisis and its impact on Disabled people in Barnet.
Turning to our Campaign for Disability Justice, as the Government returns to Parliament following the summer break we are preparing for things to get a lot busier. The Government has announced that the autumn budget will be presented on 26 November and the final Mayfield employment review report is also due out this autumn. We’ll be reporting on both of these events over on our campaign social media channels and website so do give us a follow there.
Meanwhile we continue to attend meetings with the Minister for Social Security and Disability and DWP officials to press them to ensure the Personal Independent Payment (PIP) review should have a majority of Disabled members and that one of the two co-chairs should be Disabled.
Thank you, as always, for your valued support.
Claire Fisher
Head of Communications and Engagement
Touchpoint reaching out to Barnet’s Disabled people
Our fantastic Touchpoint team are always looking to learn more about and build relationships with local voluntary organisations that support Disabled people in Barnet, and Rezwana, our Peer Welfare Benefits Caseworker recently visited the Barnet VIP Social Club hosted by the Middlesex Association for the Blind (MAB) to learn more about their services and take part in circle dancing and other games. The Club comes highly recommended, and to find out more visit the Barnet VIP Social Club web page or contact the Borough Coordinator, Bina Padia on 07594 625 215.
In other news, our Peer Workers Nina and Colette have been invited by Inclusion London to be interviewed about their experiences as professionals around how the housing crisis affects Disabled people. The poor availability of accessible social housing is something the Touchpoint team are passionate about making a thing of the past.
Please also note our Benefit Advice Service remains closed to all new referrals and enquiries until further notice whilst we are recruiting for a Triaging Caseworker. We recommend contacting alternative advice services, such as Barnet Citizens Advice Bureau or Boost, during this period. Updates on our reopening shall be on our social media and website. Touchpoint Peer Support is open as usual.
Grange Big Local (GBL) closing celebrations and café
A reminder about GBL's excellent closing celebrations. Please come along to the Fun Palace Community Festival on Saturday 6 September! FREE music, food and soft drinks, performances and activities for all ages. It is taking place at:
Tarling Road Community Centre, Tarling Road, 20 Fallows Close N2 8LG.
12 – 4pm.
For questions and accessibility requirements:
Call: 07902900639
Email: info@grangebiglocal.org
And remember, the Community café at Tarling Road Community Centre is still running every Thursday morning from 10:30am-12:30pm. Free hot drinks and Wi-Fi – all are welcome. Email info@grangebiglocal.org to join the café’s WhatsApp group.
No starters or leavers this month.
Opportunities to create change
Visit our consultations and campaigns page on the Inclusion Barnet website for all the latest opportunities to have your say on local and national issues that impact Disabled people in Barnet.
Did you know? Some local consultations receive as few as 14 online responses*. With just 15 members like you we can sway decisions on accessibility, support, and resources in Barnet.
Here's some of the top opportunities to get involved in this month:
Barnet Council survey on Homecare, complete by 12 September
Barnet Council wants to hear from you about their Homecare service.
If you use Homecare, getting help from a care worker in your home, or support someone who does, Barnet Council would like your views on it to shape a new service which will start in August 2026.
Let’s make sure the new service fully meets the needs of all who access it.
There is a short anonymous survey for you to complete which will be open until 12 September.
If you require this survey in an alternative format, please contact engage.adults@barnet.gov.uk.
As the above survey is anonymous, if you have questions or concerns about your own care, please contact Social Care Direct on 0208 359 5000 or socialcaredirect@barnet.gov.uk.
Barnet Council's public consultation on the draft Sustainable Design and Development Guidance
Give your feedback to help shape how future development in Barnet supports high-quality, sustainable urban design.
Let's make sure Disabled people's voices supporting health, accessibility and wellbeing are fed into the consultation, which is available until 24 September
Access to Work survey from Disability Poverty Campaign Group
The Disability Poverty Campaign Group (DPCG) are collecting evidence about people’s experiences of Access to Work.
If you have used, tried to use or are waiting to use the service please take the survey to help build up a picture of what is currently happening in this service.
Hearing from people far and wide that their awards are being cut or refused, despite no change in their personal circumstances. Any supporting evidence will help to compel the DWP to address these issues.
More ways to get involved
- Find all of Barnet Council's consultations on the Engage Barnet website.
- Visit our consultations and campaigns page on the Inclusion Barnet website.
*For example: Barnet Council's proposed Fees and Charges 2024-25 for services, which got 14 online responses.
Local and London news and events
Age UK Barnet Memory Matters course
Starts Monday 8 September for 4 weeks.
For people who are noticing memory changes or have had a recent dementia diagnosis, offering strategies to support and strengthen memory. Takes place at Chipping Barnet Library, Stapylton Road, EN5 4QT.
Accessiblity: step free access, accessible toilet.
To book your free place, email: Memory.Matters@ageukbarnet.org.uk or call Yianni on 020 8129 7624.
Activities in Barnet for Disabled people from Better leisure centres
Better leisure centres in Barnet offer activities for Disabled people including wheelchair basketball, sensory tennis and the Barnet Mencap Fit2gether project which gives lots of chances to try new sports and physical activities.
Online and national resources
Recovery College Online courses
Recovery College online offer a range of co-created, online educational courses and resources to people who might be struggling with their mental health, families, friends, mental health workers and anyone else who might be interested.
The Disability and...Podcast (from Disability Arts Online)
This podcast covers arts, culture and beyond including interviews with Disabled artists.
National news - local impact
Hundreds sign letter calling for ‘urgent’ action to stop Access to Work burn-outs and breakdowns (from Disability News Service)
Board game raises awareness about disability (from the BBC)
Disabled families use foil blankets to keep warm as energy bills keep surging: 'We have to keep going' (from the Big Issue)
'Welfare reforms are being designed about us, not with us - this must change' (from Disability Rights UK)
Access Tips
Warning: This section includes mentions of suicide.
British Transport Police 61016 texting service
A non-emergency texting service for contacting the British Transport Police discreetly. You can text 61016 when:
- You want to tell BTP about an incident that has already happened
- You want to tell BTP about issues affecting your rail journey or your local station
- You have a general police enquiry
Suicide Prevention Stay Alive App
The Stay Alive app is a pocket suicide prevention resource, with information for those at risk of suicide and people worried about someone. It includes: strategies for staying safe, how to help a person thinking about suicide, and access to Barnet services and support.
Support with technology from Jewish Care
Jewish Care Explore offers support with technology to all adults within the Jewish community. Learn more about Jewish Care Explore's technology support.
Register for 999 text services
999 offers a text reporting service for members of the public who may be unable to call in an emergency. Text 'register' to 999, and then confirm 'yes' when you receive a response. Once this is complete, you will be able to text 999 in an emergency situation and the police will respond.
Be an inclusion champion
Learn more about diversity and inclusion in National Inclusion Week, 15 - 21 September
An opportunity to engage with all aspects of diversity and inclusion, National Inclusion Week is an annual event by Inclusive Employers that seeks to raise awareness of the importance of inclusion in the workplace
This year's theme is 'Now is the time', emphasising the importance of diversity, inclusion, urgency, resilience and the need to push forward.
This National Inclusion Week, why not learn from free on demand webinars about diversity and inclusion or attend this live webinar on 17 September.
Join us
Share YOUR lived experience:
become a member of Inclusion Barnet
Individual membership is FREE and is for Disabled people, which may include long term conditions or mental health issues, and/or carers. Find out how being a member and sharing your lived experience can lead to positive change on our website.
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About Us
Inclusion Barnet is a Deaf and Disabled People’s Organisation (DDPO), based in Barnet, North-West London. This means that all of our Trustees and most of our staff have lived experience of disability. Learning to use lived experience for social change is a skill. We use this understanding to design and deliver higher quality, more person-centred services.
Support our national campaign:
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We're calling on the Government to work with organisations led by Disabled people to make workplaces easier to access and to improve social security so that everyone can live a decent life, whether they’re in work or not.
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