UK People First: History of Learning Disability & Self-Advocacy in England
Explore the rich history of UK People First, focusing on learning disabilities in England and the self-advocacy movement. Discover the journey, challenges, and triumphs of individuals advocating for themselves and their rights. This enlightening narrative sheds light on the evolution of support and empowerment for those with learning disabilities in England.
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Presentation Transcript
The History of UK People First, Learning Disability England and Self-Advocacy
About me Membership and engagement lead at Learning disability England (LDE) Co-founded of People First in England Civil rights campaigner 35+ years as a self-advocate Vast experience working with the media e.g. Channel 4 and the guardian
Self-advocacy is all about Speaking up for yourself Deciding what YOU want to do now or in the future Understanding your strengths and weaknesses Developing personal goals Standing up for yourself Making decisions
Origins of People First UK The first People First group founded in England was in 1984. I helped co-found this first group at the Kings Fund Centre in Camden I was the chair of these first meetings there was many things we had on the agenda and we often didn t get through half of the points. I used my own money to buy envelopes and stamps to send 400+ handwritten letters to promote people first and self- advocacy I wanted to follow the American model of self-advocacy, they were ahead of us. They treated self-advocacy as a subject of politics. They were doing demonstrations and rallies. I had big aspirations, but I was faced with many barriers
Continued There was resentment from providers and families they weren t used to people with learning disabilities speaking up. People with learning disabilities themselves were not used to the idea they didn t have the confidence. We just had to keep spreading the word and holding conferences. In 1988, was our first international conference in the UK. In 1990, we held a national conference with people from the UK. Officially in 1992 we were able to form our own charities and raise our own funds! From here People first and self-advocacy has kept growing!
The start of LDE In 2016, me and Alicia Wood launched learning disability England at the house of lords. We saw a need for an organisation that brings together self-advocates, providers and families. It was very exciting everyone was enthusiastic. But it was hard to get our demands heard and for people to recognise that people with learning disabilities and autism have rights and values. Through hard work, networking, promotion at conferences and in the media we eventually got our voice across. Our organisation itself has now grown and restructured, we now have 200+ members, trustees, a representative body, 6 members of staff going on 7!
Why self-advocacy is important At LDE one of the many things we do is share what a difference self-advocacy makes. It builds confidence, assertiveness, team-building skills and friendships. Enhances skills and knowledge about peoples rights and the world Self-advocacy has brought with it: Paid work Volunteering Experts by Experience, Quality Checkers, CTRs Inclusive research From testimonials we know that self-advocacy really does make a difference to peoples lives.
Thank you for listening Contact LDE at: Email: info@ldengland.org.uk Website: https://www.learningdisabilityengland.org.uk Twitter: @LDEselfadvocate Facebook: Learning Disability England
