Hardest Hit campaign is back this October

The Hardest Hit campaign brings together disabled people and carers, and the organisations and groups who represent them, to send a message to Government - you are hitting disabled people and their families the hardest.

It's organised jointly by the Disability Benefits Consortium (DBC) and the UK Disabled People’s Council.

Save the date

The campaign is returning from 20 – 28 October, with events taking place up and down the country.

We’ll be keeping you up to date through this blog, on Twitter, Facebook and the Campaigns Network between now and October with more information about what is happening and how to get involved.

We say - fight back!

Many thousands of people got involved with the Hardest Hit campaign last year – over 8000 disabled people protested in London on 11 May, including a big, bright and visible contingent of MS Society campaigners!

In October, we brought the campaign to a city near you. And finally, in December, over 23,000 people signed a giant Christmas card to David Cameron and Nick Clegg calling for a fair benefits system.

The campaign has helped to raise the profile of disability benefits issues, and helped us pile the pressure on Parliamentarians to make important changes to the Welfare Reform Bill, including saving mobility benefits for people living in residential care homes.

Still time to make changes

Now is a really important time. The Government is finalising plans for the new benefit Personal Independence Payment (PIP – the benefit replacing DLA), and crucial decisions on PIP and wider benefit changes through the new Universal Credit will be debated in Parliament in November.

The Government has been stalling on implementing a funding solution for social care in England, and we still face the threat of more cuts, with the last spending review announcing a potential £10 billion more cuts from the welfare budget by 2016.

We need to make sure that all MPs are prepared to make the government get it right for disabled people.

Take action

On Saturday 20 October The Hardest Hit will be joining the Trades Union Congress (TUC) A Future That Works march and rally in London and Glasgow; then throughout the following week events and campaign action will be taking place around the country.

Hold your own event

If you want to get involved with holding an event or taking a campaign action in your area (for example, visiting your local MPs surgery with a group affected by changes to disability benefits) or if you want more information about the campaign please get in touch – campaigns@mssociety.org.uk.

You can get tips for taking local campaign actions in our Campaigns Toolkit and keep up to date with the campaign on the Hardest Hit website and Facebook page.