The Sun

Give It Back

2022

The Sun’s campaign ‘Give It Back’ was sparked by the shocking statistic that only 4% of families with disabled children reported getting the support they needed. The Sun partnered with the Disabled Children’s Partnership, highlighting the £573m funding gap for disabled children and urging Government to address this. The campaign sought to give a voice to unheard parents who were battling to get their children the support they needed.

The cross-team campaign from features, news, and political teams, was backed by high-profile parents with disabled children including Katie Price, Ed Davey and Carol Vorderman.

The Sun ran a feature “Disabled and Abandoned” which laid bare the true cost of Covid. Their persistent campaigning saw councils receiving an extra £30m to create 10,000 additional respite places for children with disabilities.

Will Quince, the then Children’s Minister, hailed the long-running campaign. He said: “The Sun’s Give it Back campaign has made a massive difference, raising awareness and highlighting that sometimes not every child gets the support they need.”

When the Department of Education proposed to change the current system, The Sun arranged for a meeting between Mr Quince and parents of disabled children.

Earlier this year, as part of their commitment to a future for disabled young people, The Sun hosted and sponsored the first Disability and Journalism forum, encouraging young disabled people to consider journalism as a career and amplifying the benefits for employers of a diverse workplace. In a survey conducted by News UK in 2021, respondents with disabilities reported that they felt more represented by The Sun than the average publiciation.