A consortium of community partners is embarking on an outreach tour to raise awareness of the Registered Disability Savings Plan.

An organization called PLAN – the Planned Lifetime Advocacy Network – which helps individuals with disabilities achieve a secure and positive future, has teamed up with community partners and the Government of Canada to launch the tour.

The outreach initiative, called ‘RDSP for the Future,’ is designed to offer financial support to people who live with disabilities. Sessions will be held in more 40 local communities throughout Alberta and B.C.

The RDSP is a savings program that was launched by the government in 2008. It allows eligible individuals to grow their savings in a tax-deferred account, and provides matching federal contributions of up to 300% annually.

The RDSP has already helped 14,000 people across Canada, according to PLAN. More than 500,000 Canadians are potentially eligible.

“The biggest challenge we face is getting the word out about the RDSP,” said Kathy Bromley, who is the mother of a daughter with a disability, and involved in the initiative. “The ‘RDSP for the Future’ outreach initiative was designed to help inform families and individuals that could benefit the most from the RDSP. There are still so many people in need, who have no idea that something like this even exists.”

IE