Maryam Zonouzi: Coalition for Independent Living
What is the Coalition for Independent Living (CIL) all about?
Coalition for Independent Living (CIL) CIC is the national leader in peer-to-peer brokerage training and services for independent living. We train and accredit disabled and older people to be professional peer brokers to help others like themselves to plan, find and manage their healthcare and support services funded either through state or personal finances. We do this through a social franchise model to achieve national scale and sound financial returns, underpinned by our own innovative technology.
What is the social impact?
Our social impact is easily measured by the numbers of disabled people who move from welfare to work and the number of disabled and older people who move from organisations managing their lives to be self managing and self determining. To date 25% of people we train become self employed brokers and 100% self direct their support and care.
Who are the people involved?
Maryam is an academic and campaigner for the empowerment of disabled people. This led her into being CEO of a User led Organisation and into her doctoral research. This focuses on testing disruptive technology and service concepts to change the world for disabled people. She is also CEO of ethical software house iCitizen and a visiting fellow of Buckinghamshire University.
Sinead Brophy’s expertise is in the health and social care sector where she worked originally as a social worker, moving fast up the corporate ladder to director level in local authorities and the NHS before starting her own consultancy practice 12 years ago following her MBA. She now focuses on citizen facing technology and service innovation in health and social care and is also Executive Chair/Co-Founder of iCitizen
There is a strong, committed management team covering project management, training & education and citizen engagement expertise. Their level of commitment can be measured through the significant amount of ‘sweat equity’ they have contributed to the growth of CIL.
What are the future plans?
Our first targets in our growth plan are User Led Organisations as franchisees as they have national coverage with one in every local authority area are in the market for new businesses as grant culture no longer sustainable. By 2014 we aim to have 20 franchises, projected gross profit margins 40%; 100 FTE working brokers; 3000 older and disabled people help to self manage per annum.
www.c-i-l.org.uk based in London