Loneliness in people with intellectual disability
Loneliness can be described as a lack of social relationships and an emotional reaction to an unmet need for social connection. Despite societal changes taking place over the past decades which enabled a shift from large institutional residential settings to increasingly customised community-based support, research has shown that feelings of loneliness are considerably more common in people with a learning disability in comparison to the general population, with some studies reporting it to be as high as 73 %. It is also commonly known that there are multiple negative mental and physical health outcomes associated with loneliness, such as depression, cardiovascular disease, and chronic health conditions. At the heart of the problem is that social relationships are generally considered to be an important prerequisite for well-being and quality of life. As such, it is an issue that merits specific attention from policymakers and service providers. As organisations in the disability sector, we need to continuously ask ourselves whether we are doing enough to support people to form and maintain meaningful connections. At Positive Support Group Limited (PSG), an organisation providing a range of services related to improving the quality of life and wellbeing for people with learning disabilities, we are conscious that social relationships are intimately connected to quality of life and wellbeing for the people we support. Moreover, we believe that supporting people in this aspect of their lives is crucial from a human rights perspective. The perception of having a meaningful life itself has been shown to help people maintain social connections and promote participation in social activities. At PSG, one of our most important tasks is to get to know our clients to understand what their hopes, dreams and aspirations are, which helps us further customise our support. This may for example involve assisting them to maintain close contact with existing networks, such as family members and friends. In our experience, there are particular times in life when focussed support in this area may be particularly relevant. For example, we need to be extra vigilant during times of important life transitions, such as when a person moves from their family home into a supported living residential setting, as this sometimes leads to discontinuity of regular contact with family members. It is therefore crucial that we as service providers are prepared for this so that, if necessary, we can act as intermediaries, facilitating routines and encouraging contact from both sides. For service providers it is also important to remember that as long as people with learning disability attend school, daily interactions with friends are often a natural part of life. However, when school ends, this opportunity for contact often also ends abruptly. Many people may therefore need support to maintain regular contact with the friends they met at school. This is especially important because the friends made at such a formative age can often be people to which we form a particularly strong bond and with whom we may remain close to throughout life. Finally, we need to be continuously aware of our duty to do everything that we can to ensure that the people we support are afforded the same rights to full participation in society, with equal opportunities to meet connections such as friends, colleagues and romantic partners, as people without disabilities. We, therefore, support clients with customised employment, offer specific support relating to dating, and friendship groups, and facilitate regular participation in activities and hobbies according to our clients’ wishes and preferences. Ultimately, we must never forget that forming loving and lasting bonds with others is a basic human need and human right, one which we at PSG feel privileged to play a role, together with the people we support and the rest of society, to protect. For more information, please visit https://positivesupportgroup.com/ Subscribe to Ucan2 Magazine and never miss an update.
Bring People Home from Psychiatric Hospital Manifesto published
Bring People Home from Psychiatric Hospital Manifesto published during Learning Disability week For the first time, people with learning difficulties and autistic people with lived experience of psychiatric hospital detention have come together to set out our demands to the political parties wanting to form the next Government. Free Our People Now – Inclusion London has launched Manifesto Asks – Bring People Home from Psychiatric Hospital – Inclusion London. We are calling for urgent action to stop, once and for all, the scandal of 2000 people with learning difficulties and autistic people being locked up in hospital We call on all political parties and prospective parliamentary candidates to pledge their support for our manifesto demands and to do what is needed to end this scandal by stopping locking us up and moving us from hospitals to living in the community and having fulfilled lives. We are demanding: · A powerful say on how to keep us out of psychiatric hospitals · Our rights to live decent lives in our communities. · To be treated with respect and protected from abuse everywhere. “There is no reason why any future Government should continue to fail to meet its targets and make a commitment to move people from hospitals into their own homes.” “£534 million, which is currently spent to keep us locked up, could be used instead to invest in a national plan to move everyone into their own homes rather than locking us up and throwing away the key. It’s a national scandal that must end once and for all.” Says Simone Aspis,mFree Our People Now Manager. For more information about Free Our People Now and how to contact Simone Aspis get in touch: Telephone number 0203-327-0333 / Office number 0207-237-3181 Ucan2 magazine is dedicated to bringing you the latest news, information and advice on disabled living. Make sure to subscribe for free today and never miss an update.
Nearly half of disabled people feel forgotten by political parties
With just one week to go until the General Election, political parties appear to be fighting for every vote, but according to new research* by the national disability charity Sense, many disabled people feel they have been forgotten by our politicians. In a poll of 1,000 people with complex disabilities** in the UK, nearly half (47 per cent) said disabled people and the issues they face were not important to political parties. The same number claim politicians don’t do enough to engage disabled people to secure their vote. Perhaps unsurprisingly, as many as one in four (26 per cent) said they were not optimistic that life would improve for disabled people under a new UK government. A third (33 per cent) believe their vote won’t make a difference to disabled people’s lives, which puts disabled people off voting. Despite this, more than three quarters (76 per cent) of disabled people say they still plan to vote, even though nearly a quarter of those (21 per cent) are yet to decide who to vote for. There are 16.1 million disabled people in the UK, making up 24 per cent of the UK population, and a disproportionate number live on a low income or in poverty. Disabled people experience long waiting periods for benefits eligibility decisions and are more likely to use resources such as food banks. The national disability charity Sense is calling for disabled people to be prioritised by the next UK government. They have produced a manifesto for political candidates, called ‘A Plan for Change’, outlining how the next government can improve the lives of disabled people, focusing on seven key recommendations: 1. Make sure disabled people can afford the essentials. 2. Fund social care so no disabled adult goes without support. 3. End the postcode lottery of social care for disabled children. 4. Give every disabled child equal access to education. 5. Make the benefits system work for disabled people. 6. Tackle barriers to work. 7. Always have a senior Minister for Disabled People. Sense Chief Executive, Richard Kramer, said: “It’s a disgrace that disabled people, and the societal inequalities they face, have received so little attention by politicians during the election campaign. “It’s unsurprising, then, that so few disabled people believe that life will improve under a new UK government. “But it must improve. The pandemic and the subsequent cost-of-living crisis has exacerbated many of the problems that disabled people and their families already faced. “Disabled people are struggling to pay for essentials like food and energy. The social care sector, which so many depend on, is in crisis, and the welfare system is in urgent need of reform. “Whoever forms the next UK government must show disabled people that they do matter to them.” Case study: Mohammed Azeem, 39, from Smethwick, West Midlands, is visually impaired. He first voted in the 2005 general election, as soon as he was old enough, and has voted in every election since. A former party member, he says that political parties aren’t listening to disabled people, and for the first time is considering not voting. Mohammed said: “I’ve been voting for so many years and it hasn’t made any difference or brought any change. Even if I do vote, it won’t make a difference. “Political parties are doing their thing but when it comes to us or listening to our views, nothing gets done. “Disabled people need to be part of manifestos. At the moment, we’re not being heard, and change isn’t happening.” More than ten thousand people have now signed Sense’s ‘Plan for Change’, which the charity is taking to political candidates. For more information visit: www.sense.org.uk/ Subscribe to Ucan2 Magazine to stay updated.
Social Care Provider Donate Care Packages to Homelessness Charity
Adult social care provider National Care Group and individuals supported by its Affinity Supporting People services in the northwest recently undertook a meaningful initiative to create and distribute care packages to vulnerable people. Colleagues and supported people donated essential items such as water bottles, tissues, deodorants, toothbrushes, toothpaste, and food items for the care packages. These were donated to the Accrington charity Maundy Relief, which supports the needs of people in the local community. National Care Group empowers people to achieve their full potential and be active in their local community. The initiative to help vulnerable people and support a local charity was the idea of Affinity Supporting People support worker, Siana Rawcliffe. Siana said: “As part of our community engagement, we thought it would be a good gesture to support those less fortunate than us. Maundy Relief is a local charity near our services. “We were truly blown away with the donations received from colleagues. Three supported people attended the charity’s community lunch to distribute the care packages with support from our team. They have all stated it was an ‘eye-opener’ and ‘heartbreaking’ to hear some of the stories from the individuals they met.” Maundy Relief said: “Maundy Relief is very grateful for National Care Group’s help to support people in need in Hyndburn with these super care packages. “We provide a community lunch for approximately 40 people every day and these people are often without the essentials in life – food, water or a hot drink, shelter, and basic toiletries. “It means so much when our community pulls together to help those less fortunate, and we thank National Care Group for their compassion and humanity.” National Care Group is a social care provider supporting more than 1,300 adults with learning disabilities, autism, mental health diagnoses, brain injuries, and complex needs across England and Wales, employing more than 2,800 colleagues. For more information on the services it provides, visit https://nationalcaregroup.com/. Find out about Maundy Relief https://maundyrelief.org.uk/ Subscribe to Ucan2 Magazine for free today!
Artist with Down Syndrome offers painting to Princess of Wales
An artist with Down Syndrome, who met Princess Diana and the young Princes William and Harry as a schoolgirl, is hoping the Princess of Wales will accept her offer of a painting to illustrate how people are thinking of her as she goes through her cancer treatment. Fiona Stevenson, an abstract artist whose work has been exhibited in London, New York, Manchester and Cambridge, says that thinking about Kate triggered memories of the happy times she enjoyed when Princess Diana twice visited her special school, Pield Heath House, in Uxbridge in the 1990s. In a letter Fiona wrote to the Prince of Wales with help from her mother Mari she says: “One of the other girls at the school had written to your mother, asking if she could come and visit and, amazingly, she did! It was such a special day. Her kindness reminds me of Princess Kate and I want to do something to give her a little joy every day. “Princess Diana enjoyed her day so much that she returned soon afterwards to join us for Christmas lunch, bringing you and Prince Harry, who both queued up with us to be served our meal. “Even though it was more than 30 years ago I still think often about Princess Diana’s visit and how much it meant to me and to my friends. “I wanted to offer a gift of a painting to the new Princess of Wales to help lift her spirits as she goes through a very difficult time.” Fiona’s bold energetic paintings have been praised by master printer Kip Gresham who has collaborated with Terry Frost and Elizabeth Frink. And visual artist and associate lecturer at Central St Martins, Susan Aldworth describes Fiona as ‘a maker of beautiful marks.’ See some of Fiona Stevenson’s work, and view her virtual galleries, here: https://www.fionastevenson.co.uk View our digital magazines here.
Not all about NHS waiting lists
Not all about NHS waiting lists. Regardless of who wins the race to 10 Downing Street, there are some clear priorities that, as a leading health and social charity care provider, we at AFG believe these need to be addressed as soon as the die is cast in early July. Although there is no doubt that those awaiting necessary treatment need to be seen as soon as possible, the NHS waiting lists and backlog rhetoric masks the real tsunami that is hitting the NHS – the mental health crisis. We know that public mental health resilience has declined rapidly in the past five years – the charity MIND estimates that one in four people will now experience a mental health problem of some kind each year in England. That has increased from one in six in 2014 according to the Mental Health and Wellbeing in England survey undertaken by the government. Or – put in real terms – an 8.5% increase or a staggering 14 million people today suffering from a mental health condition. And the vector is only going in one direction. The new government needs to prioritise mental health services in the NHS, and fast. It needs to implement clear and quick reform of the Mental Health Act, invest more in mental health funding at both a community and in patient services level and increase the capacity of provision to meet demand. How to fund elderly care has become the campaigning conversation, yet there is a forgotten, but just as important, group in society, unseen – the 1.8m adults who are registered with a learning disability and the millions of others who need special care and support to live normal lives. For far too long they have been treated as second class citizens, neglected in funding and prioritisation within social care. If the party who gains power has one clear focus, it needs to bring greater public awareness of adult disability, equity in its funding and fair policies in place that puts those adults needing social care, whatever their age, front and centre of the political agenda. For far too long adult social care has been driven by cost, rather than being person-centred resulting in those being supported having limited choices about how they can live their lives. Finally, as the Chief Executive of an organisation whose aim is to enable those we support to achieve independence, thrive and flourish, we have a duty to ensure those with a mental health or a learning disability have a voice and a vote in this election. We still have a society that is massively swayed towards the able, that is prejudice against those who need care, where those with disabilities are still lower down the priority list and where their lives are compromised by lack of awareness, fairness and equality. View our digital magazines here.
Thatcham disability charity announced as partner for award-winning charity event
A Thatcham disability charity has been announced as a partner for the multi-award-winning charity event Parallel Windsor. Swings & Smiles in Thatcham will partner with Parallel to support its annual fully-accessible event on 7th July – designed to be a ‘Festival of Inclusivity’ for people of all ages and abilities to challenge themselves and get active. Swings & Smiles provides accessible play spaces for local disabled children as well as respite care and support for their families. As a charity partner, Swings & Smiles will be setting up a sensory space with accessible play equipment to engage children, helping them explore their senses through play in a safe environment. Parallel is an innovative social enterprise with a mission to support D/deaf, disabled and neurodivergent communities to live life to the full in mainstream society. CEO of Swings & Smiles Rhonda Nicklin said: “We’re incredibly proud to be an event partner for Parallel Windsor. It’s a charity which aligns with our own values and mission to create a fully inclusive society where people of all abilities can thrive and flourish.” Andrew Douglass, Founder of Parallel said: “I could not be happier to welcome Swings & Smiles and their families to Parallel Windsor. “I have so much admiration for the way this incredible team combines its love and passion for all the children it supports with so many innovative campaigns that generate such a positive force within the communities they serve.” One of Parallel’s other key initiatives is its ‘Purple Sock Day Campaign’, encouraging as many people as possible to purchase a pair of their purple socks to wear on the International Day of Persons with Disabilities on 3rd December. Proceeds are then used to support disability charities and projects that support budding disabled entrepreneurs. Want to keep up to date with all the latest news, information and advice on independent living? Subscribe to Ucan2 Magazine today for free!
The Motability Scheme’s free Big Event makes pit stop in Exeter
The Motability Scheme’s Big Event is returning to Westpoint in Exeter, and this time for a two-day motoring show on Friday 28 and Saturday 29 June 2024. With a new focus on electric motoring, The Big Event, Exeter gives visitors a chance to see a range of electric vehicles, speak to manufacturers and Scheme experts and try out the latest accessible innovations. The automotive industry is changing and Motability Operations, the company behind the Motability Scheme, is committed to educating its customers about the switch to electric. The Scheme has already helped to change the lives of over 12,000 customers in Devon, providing them with access to a vehicle, scooter or powered wheelchair, and the organisation wants to ensure that customers are not left behind as the country transitions to electric vehicles (EVs). To equip customers with as much knowledge, information and choice as possible, the event will feature a dedicated EV Information Hub where Scheme experts will answer customer questions, demonstrate products and discuss the benefits of switching to an EV. Visitors can also look forward to test driving a range of vehicles, including EVs and vehicles fitted with the most popular driving adaptations available on the Scheme. Alongside Scheme cars, the event features an indoor scooter test drive area for customers to try out different products in a safe space. Katie Clare, The Big Event Manager, said: “We’re excited to return to Westpoint this summer to host the Big Event. For the first time we’ll be there for two days, meaning we can welcome even more visitors through the doors! “As we all prepare for the changes in the motoring industry, we’re giving the Big Event an electric focus, so visitors can find out everything they need to know about going electric and have the chance to try out an EV for themselves.” Doors for The Big Event open from 9am until 4pm and everyone is welcome to attend. There’s no need to pre-book tickets, and free accessible parking will be available on site. For more information about The Big Event Exeter including the test drive terms and conditions, visit motabilitythebigevent.co.uk/exeter/. Stay up-to-date with Ucan2 Magazine, subscribe today for free!
Without Walls announces outdoor programme for 2024
Without Walls announces outdoor programme for 2024, touring to leading festival partners around the country Featuring captivating and innovative productions, Without Walls has announced this year’s programme of 13 artists commissioned by the network. Touring across England this summer, Without Walls continues its vital commitment to making work in public spaces accessible for audiences, with a programme of events from some of the UK’s most highly regarded outdoor arts and performance specialists. The artists included in the programme will tour this summer to Without Walls festival partners Brighton Festival, Hat Fair (Winchester), Norfolk & Norwich Festival, Stockton International Riverside Festival, Timber Festival (Staffordshire), Certain Blacks – Ensemble Festival (London) and Just So Festival (Cheshire) and Greenwich+Docklands International Festival. Ralph Kennedy, Director of Without Walls, comments, “Without Walls is pleased to announce the 2024 programme, which celebrates the incredible diversity of creative practice in outdoor arts in England. The shows explore important themes for the times we live in today and reflect the power and value of the arts to captivate, inspire, and connect us all.“ The 2024 programme explores multiple themes and genres, including accessibility and inclusivity, sustainability, music, circus, dance, street theatre and installations. With a passion for the environment at its heart, Mechanimal brings its wildly playful, tragicomic performance Crap at Animals. Blending clowning, physical theatre and creative technologies, performer Tom Bailey attempts to embody 48,000 currently extinct and endangered species. In between Crap at Animals’ performance in Norwich & Norfolk Festival and at Passage Festival in Denmark, Bailey will undertake a radical 2-month long ‘green arts touring’ journey across Scotland, Norway and Denmark, by foot and by sea. This production is co-commissioned by Norfolk & Norwich Festival, and will be performed at Norfolk & Norwich Festival and Greenwich+Docklands International Festival. Hear the true story of a family who lost their amusement arcade to coastal erosion in ISLAND STORM from Baileys Original Seaside Imaginarium as stunt clowns dazzle and delight audiences while encouraging them to engage with some of the biggest issues we face today. This production is co-commissioned by Stockton International Riverside Festival and Brighton Festival, and will be performed at Brighton Festival, Norfolk & Norwich Festival, Hat Fair, Stockton International Riverside Festival and Certain Blacks – Ensemble Festival. A visual sound installation/performance, experience Mark Anderson’s Warning Notes as part of this year’s Without Walls programme. Creating a sanctuary for audiences to think about the bigger climate and conflict issues facing us, it is a powerful and immersive sonic experience of suspense and shifting sounds, sounding the alarm ecologically, socially and politically. This production is co-commissioned by Timber Festival, and will be performed at Timber Festival and Stockton International Riverside Festival. BAMBOO is a high-skills and high-stakes performance about our relationship to the environment. A partnership between NoFit State, Imagineer and Orit Azaz, and directed by Mish Weaver, a delicate playground is built with circus and bamboo, complimenting the company’s self-sustaining approach to touring. This production is co-commissioned by Stockton International Riverside Festival, Norfolk & Norwich Festival, Hat Fair and Timber Festival, and will be performed at Norfolk & Norwich Festival, Timber Festival, Hat Fair, Stockton International Riverside Festival and Certain Blacks – Ensemble Festival. Tit for Tat Circus return to Without Walls with Now I am Become Deaf (Destroyer of Words), an autobiographical piece about degenerative hearing loss and how it infiltrates into everyday life. Fusing traditional clowning with modern elements, this captivating production follows an unassuming clown as he manoeuvres being hard of hearing whilst simply wanting to connect with his audience. This production is co-commissioned by Just So Festival and Hat Fair, and will be performed at Norfolk & Norwich Festival, Timber Festival, Hat Fair and Just So Festival. The electric Head Over Wheels bring Anchored in Air, reevaluating traditional circus while incorporating accessibility. Celebrating individuality with performers at the top of their game, this large-scale performance fuses aerial, dance, live music, theatrical and integrated audio description. This production is co-commissioned by Brighton Festival and Certain Blacks, and will be performed at Brighton Festival and Certain Blacks – Ensemble Festival. Inspirate encourage audiences to think big with Ancient Giants, as the dramatic tale of Hanuman and Ravana is brought to life with 12-foot puppets, built by Mr Cleaver’s Monsters and choreographed by Chirag Lukha, with dance, martial arts and storytelling. This multigenerational South Asian epic interacts with audiences and takes them on a journey through Shanti’s imagination to bring to life this ancient story. This production is co- commissioned by Brighton Festival and Just So Festival, and will be performed at Brighton Festival and Just So Festival. Explore what happens when two unwritten languages meet in Patois, the brand-new piece from British-Caribbean choreographer Jeanefer Jean-Charles MBE (London 2012 Olympic Opening Ceremony, the Queen’s Platinum Jubilee Pageant). Blending traditional Caribbean choreography with contemporary dance and an original music score, this mesmerising piece touches on universal experiences of identity, reawakening cultures, stories and generations of the past. This production is co-commissioned by FESTIVAL.ORG for Greenwich+Docklands International Festival, Norfolk & Norwich Festival and Brighton Festival, and will be performed at Brighton Festival, Norfolk & Norwich Festival, Hat Fair and Greenwich+Docklands International Festival. Showcasing and celebrating Yiddish language, music and culture, The Great Yiddish Parade from JW3 brings together a Klezmer big band, singers, street theatre and public participation against a backdrop of the immigrant social protests of the Victorian East End, in one huge marching, musical creation. This production is co-commissioned by Certain Blacks, and will be performed at Certain Blacks – Ensemble Festival and Stockton International Riverside Festival. Bespoke to each location it is performed at, Perhaps Contraption will delight audiences with The Journey. Featuring a nine-piece brass band and visual vernacular performer Zoe McWhinney (RED, Polka Theatre; Everyday, New Diorama), this accessible promenade performance’s three act structure allows audiences to be transported by a completely new score, as they form a community coming together to travel and explore. This production is co- commissioned by Stockton International Riverside Festival, Timber Festival and Brighton Festival, and