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Minister for Disabled People, Anne McGuire, announced on Wednesday 3 September the reappointment of Marie Martin and Professor Peter Cooke as trustees for the Independent Living Fund.

Marie Martin was appointed as trustee in September 2003. She has been reappointed as a trustee for a further five-year term until August 2013.

Professor Peter Cooke was appointed in October 2003 and will be reappointed as a trustee for a further five-year term until September 2013. He has been Vice Chairman of trustees since April 2006 and will continue in this role.

The Independent Living Fund (2006) is an executive non departmental public body, sponsored by the Department for Work and Pensions (DWP). It is wholly funded by the DWP and the Department for Social Development in Northern Ireland (DSD) and provides financial support to severely disabled people who wish to live independently in the community rather than in residential or nursing care.

Help is provided through cash payments to individuals which they can use to buy personal care and/or domestic assistance, providing greater opportunities for choice and control in their individual care arrangements. The fund works in partnership with local authorities to devise joint care packages for its customers.

Although the fund, which is a discretionary trust, is funded by the DWP and the DSD, it operates at arms length from the Government. It is financed by cash limited 'grants-in-aid' and managed by a board of trustees appointed by the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions. Under the rules of the trust, the trustees have discretion about who they help. Their 2008/2009 budget for the UK is £343 million to help around 21,000 customers.