Official website of the President of Russia

The 2021 Russian Federation National Award for Outstanding Achievements in Human Rights goes to Margarita URMANCHEYEVA.

Margarita Urmancheyeva was born in Leningrad on July 6, 1951. Since 1992, she has been the founder and head of the Municipal (now St Petersburg) Association of Civic Organisations for Parents of Disabled Children (GAOORDI). At present, the Association consists of 18 civic organisations uniting parents of children with disabilities, rare diseases and genetic disorders.

The Association consistently implements projects that help children be independent in open society, study, work and make friends.

In 2017, the Association opened the first assisted living home for adults with mental disorders. It opened a second home like this in 2019. A third assisted living home, complete with innovative social assistance technology, will open its doors on June 14, 2022.

Assisted living homes offer living arrangements for people with disabilities that take into account their personal needs and habits, and enable them to live like ordinary people.

At a meeting with President of Russia Vladimir Putin in Svetlogorsk on October 31, 2019, Ms Urmancheyeva shared her experience in organising assisted living and received approval to spread these practices.

At present, Russian experts are upgrading the system of living arrangements for disabled people. They are developing assisted living projects in many regions of Russia – in the republics of Sakha (Yakutia) and Bashkortostan and in the Pskov and Vladimir regions. In every region, the new model of living arrangements takes into account regional cultural and economic specifics.

Ms Urancheyeva is a member of the Public Council at the Ministry of Labour and Social Protection of the Russian Federation.