A national online survey focusing on the topics of wellbeing and social inclusion was officially launched on Monday by Minister for Children, Equality, Disability, Integration and Youth, Roderic O’Gorman TD on behalf of the National Disability Authority (NDA). It aims to find out how included people from all sectors of Irish society feel, as well as their thoughts and opinions on social inclusion in Ireland today.
The survey entitled ‘How’s It Going?’, which is open to everyone living in Ireland over the age of eighteen, will be available to complete in English, Irish, Irish Sign Language, Polish and Romanian and will be open for a 6-week period. Alternative formats will be available on request.
The survey, which takes just 10 to 15 minutes to complete, will provide a benchmark measurement of the wellbeing and social inclusion of different groups in Ireland. The aim is to find out if people feel like they belong and feel valued and respected in their communities. It will also determine how people participate in society and how they interact with others in the community.
The survey data will highlight groups that believe they are enjoying high levels of wellbeing and social inclusion and groups that are finding the going tough and are not fully participating in Irish society.
The data will provide evidence that can be used to guide improvements to public services and policies to make Ireland a more inclusive and better place to live. It will be possible to compare results from this survey to future similar surveys.
Launching the survey Minister for Children, Equality Disability, Integration and Youth, Roderic O’Gorman, TD commented: “I am delighted to launch this National Survey on Wellbeing and Social Inclusion which will enable us to pinpoint the groups in Ireland that are experiencing low levels of wellbeing and social inclusion and to ensure supports are directed where they are most needed.
“Data generated by the survey will contribute to the whole of Government programme to promote social inclusion as set out in the Roadmap for Social Inclusion 2020-2025 and the Equality Data Strategy. This data will also support work under Ireland’s Well-being Framework, which seeks to understand quality of life and our progress as a country, with an emphasis on sustainability and equality.”
SOCIAL ISOLATION
Aideen Hartney, Director of the NDA, welcomed the launch of the survey.
“This survey will help us identify not only the groups in our society that experience social isolation but also the interlinkages between those groups. For example, we know that some people with a disability are more socially isolated than those without a disability, but we don’t really have the data to know if a person with a disability who is older or who is a migrant is more isolated than a person with a disability who is younger or white Irish. Approaches to improve wellbeing and social inclusion can therefore be more targeted if we have this data.”
For further information or to complete the survey log onto www.howsitgoing.ie
