ListenUp. What s. Issue 6 Autumn Learning Together 4 Fun at the Next Steps Family Learning Festival. Advocacy story from Lincolnshire

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1 Issue 6 Autumn 2008 Learning Together 4 Fun at the Next Steps Family Learning Festival What s inside New Head of Business Development Spotlight on IMCA Advocacy story from Lincolnshire What does Speaking Up do?

2 now Come and celebrate with Speaking Up! The Speaking Up Celebration of Achievements and AGM 2008 will be held on the 3rd of December, at the Kaetsu Cultural and Education Centre in Cambridgeshire, from 5 7pm. The event will be an opportunity for anyone who has supported Speaking Up this year, or who has an interest in our work to come along and meet some of our staff and the people who use our services. This year has been an exciting one for Speaking Up. We have expanded our young people s projects, begun providing advocacy in new locations and taken on many new staff. We will be celebrating these developments, as well as the ways our projects and services have touched people s lives. We look forward to seeing you there on the 3rd! If you are interested in attending, please contact Karen.Jefferson@speakingup.org Top image: Lil Middleton with Speaking Up s Community Care Award at last year s AGM MANAGEMENT BULLETIN My name is Paul Morrish and I m Speaking Up s new Director of Business Development. Speaking Up is a special organisation and I am very happy to have joined such a great team of people. My job is to build on the work of Clare Wilson, my predecessor, and that of my outstanding team. Together with colleagues, members and service users across Speaking Up, our job is to raise Speaking Up s profile wherever we can, to raise much needed funds for some of our most pioneering work, and to extend the work we do with statutory and private partners. Sometimes people feel that growth is a bad thing, and that we should try and keep small. At Speaking Up we don t agree. As a small social enterprise and charity we know we make a huge difference to people s lives and we want to support as many people to speak up for themselves as we can as much Voice, Action and Change as possible. Our challenge is to help the organisation grow, but without losing the unique character that everyone seems to value and love so much. It s a challenge I think Speaking Up is really well placed to meet. Contact paul.morrish@speakingup.org If you have any questions about Listen Up, please contact the editor by rosie@speakingup.org or call

3 SpeakingUp Champions Awards double whammy for Young People s Next Steps in Cambridgeshire! Young People s Next Steps in Cambridgeshire have won a National Training Award for the East of England in the category of Providing Education and Training. Project Co-ordinator Ruth Brannan and YPNS member Nicola Heeley picked up the award from Olympic athlete Colin Jackson at a glittering ceremony in Cambridgeshire on the 25th of September. For more information about Young People s Next Steps go to Youth Pathfinder projects up and running roll on January! Speaking Up s DCSF funded young people s projects in Lincolnshire, South Yorkshire, Nottinghamshire and East Anglia are now getting ready for action. Young people have been consulted and the teams are now working on the launch of the projects in January. Here s a brief update on what we are doing in each area: All areas will be replicating Speaking Up s award winning Active Voices projects Young People Speaking Up, Young People s Next Steps and Speaking Up s Youth Parliament. East of England: Speaking Up s Youth Projects began in Cambridge.The team there is working on expanding current projects. Nottinghamshire: Working with young people with learning difficulties, the Nottinghamshire team have attended a number of workshops and events to speak to young people and local groups in Nottinghamshire. Lincolnshire: Speaking Up in Lincolnshire is piloting work with a new client group youth offenders and those at risk of offending. South Yorkshire: Working with young people with learning difficulties and mental health issues, the team in South Yorkshire are also consulting with young people and local organisations to prepare for the launch of their projects. Go to for more information 3

4 Spotlight on IMCA FACTFILE IMCA is a type of statutory advocacy introduced by the Mental Capacity Act The Act gives some people who lack capacity a right to receive support from an IMCA (Independent Mental Capacity Advocate) Speaking Up has been providing IMCA advocacy services since our successful IMCA pilot project in Cambridgeshire in 2006, and are now providing IMCA in the following locations Sheffield, Rotherham, Doncaster and Barnsley Nottinghamshire Cambridgeshire and Peterborough Lincolnshire Thurrock Redbridge (North East London) Sue Lee Contact: Sue.Lee@speakingup.org What difference can an IMCA make? If I ever have the misfortune to lose capacity and major decisions are being made on my behalf I very much hope that I will receive the support and representation of an IMCA. If I still have the power of speech I will be shouting from my hospital bed or care home chair GET ME AN IMCA! What difference can an IMCA make to somebody who through illness, disability or accident does not have the capacity to make important decisions? Many people who are in this situation are extremely vulnerable and in the past may not have had the opportunity to participate in life changing decisions. Having an IMCA on your side can make a huge difference. IMCAs are skilled in communication, have detailed knowledge about health & social care systems, people s legal and welfare rights and the Mental Capacity Act. I know that I would want someone to find out what s really important to me, who would fiercely protect my rights and ensure that my views are considered. An articulate, confident, assertive, compassionate person. Wouldn t you? Sue Lee is the Senior Service Manager for IMCA in Cambridge and Peterborough, and has worked with the government to produce Making Decisions: The Independent Mental Capacity Advocate Service, a guide to IMCA. You can find this guide at The IMCA Referral Line The IMCA referral line number is There will be a dedicated referral line worker in the office from 9am 5pm to take your call. For more information on Speaking Up s IMCA services, go to 4

5 SpeakingUp In Focus Creating positive change through having a voice Jonathan Douglass, Lead Mental Health Advocate, Lincolnshire Jane is a mother of four, who has mental health issues. Three of Jane s children had been diagnosed with autism and she experienced a turbulent, and at times violent relationship with her eldest son Paul. Paul was slipping through the net. Jane was told that he was too young for adult services and registered at college, and too old for many children s services his only support at that time was a child psychologist. This put Jane in a difficult position. She needed to get her situation across to an assessment committee that could help her to access appropriate services for her and her family. housing finding a more adequately sized house for the family the advocate supported her but this time Jane only required a small amount of input, and felt much more confident in dealing with the issue and speaking up. Advocacy support is also now being arranged for Paul, so that he can voice his own concerns about the support he receives. Jane says that she now feels much more confident and that the committee now has a much better understanding of her family s needs. As a result, her family situation is now improving. Jane needed support in getting her complicated family situation across to the committee. The Speaking Up advocate began to work with Jane on supporting her to write an action plan of her thoughts, concerns and complaints that she could present to the committee. The advocate also signposted services to Jane that she and her family would find helpful. With this support in place, Jane began to feel more confident in expressing her views in meetings and the committee gained a much better understanding of Paul s needs. When a new issue came up regarding Jane and her family s

6 SpeakingUp Speaks Out Youth Speaking Up Speaks Out On Road Safety Mark Ravenhill, 24, from Barnsley is campaigning for a safe pelican crossing on a busy road in Barnsley. His campaign has been ongoing for nearly two years and despite a great deal of public support he has so far been unsuccessful. Towards the end of last year Barnsley Metropolitan Borough Council took some action in lowering the pavement and adding a warning sign, which although welcomed at the time has proved to be ineffective this has made it more difficult for him to cross the road and he is unable to do so without assistance. This takes away his independence and makes him feel stupid. The crossing was not installed last year despite Mark getting over 600 signatures on his petition and appearing in the local press. Mark is currently campaigning to get his story heard on local television. He is desperate for a result which will make the road safer for him and the community that he is a part of. Mark is being supported in his campaign by Lucy Morley, a Young People s Project Worker from Speaking Up in South Yorkshire. If you would like more information about Mark s campaign or about the Young People s projects in South Yorkshire contact Lucy Morley@speakingup.org Speaking Out about Promote The Vote in Denmark! Speaking Up s Promote The Vote project will be featured in a report currently being written by the Equal Opportunities Centre for Disabled People in Denmark. The project is being presented as an example of how knowledge about democracy, election processes and politics can be made accessible to people with learning difficulties. The report is part of a wider project about elections and election accessibility. The Promote The Vote team will also be giving a presentation on 5th December to Cambridgeshire County Councillors at Shire Hall about the barriers faced by people with learning difficulties when it comes to elections, and what the project is doing to improve this. For more information about Promote The Vote contact Imogen.Ridler@speakingup.org 6

7 Go to Learning Together 4 Fun! The Cambridgeshire Next Steps Family Learning Festival was held on the 29th October, and brought together people with learning difficulties and their families in the spirit of learning and fun. The day, which was funded by the Cambridgeshire County Council and Awards For All (A lottery grant scheme) offered accessible workshops that will inform people of the educational and arts based opportunities available to them in the community. People who attended had the opportunity to get involved in drama workshops, have their portrait drawn, get creative with some ceramic tile painting, play giant jenga and Wii bowling. The members of the Next Steps project are people with learning difficulties, who have been involved in every stage of planning the festival, from publicity and logos to the themes for the day itself. They came up with the slogan Learning Together 4 Fun, which became the theme for the day. Lots of people came along, and the members who had organised it were pleased with how it went Carly: I was really nervous about planning it, but I was looking forward to it! Rod: That was good fun, it was. We should do it again! 7

8 What Does Speaking Up Do? Speaking Up has grown a lot since our grass roots beginnings in a community centre in Cambridgeshire. We are delighted that we are now able to support thousands more people across the country to find their voices, take action and create positive change. Here is a beginners guide to how we are currently making a difference Advocacy Our advocacy services support adults and young people to speak up for themselves, or our advocates can speak on their behalf if they are unable to do so. We are currently working in over 30 locations across the country with people with learning difficulties, physical disabilities, mental health issues and other disabilities. We provide advocacy in the community, in secure hospitals and in schools. Consultancy, Training and Resources We have developed a series of resources a range of publications, and services provided in person to enable other professionals to achieve empowerment through their work. Speaking Up s team of trainers with learning difficulties has produced a range of accessible self-help guides for other people with learning difficulties. Active Voices Our Active Voices projects support adults and young people with learning difficulties, and in Lincolnshire they support young people who are youth offenders. These projects offer a range of options from supporting people to be more involved with the decisions affecting their lives, to gaining valuable life skills and confidence or making choices and learning to speak up for themselves. Running through everything that we do is our mission: Voice Action Change we support people to find their voice, take action and create positive change. Want to know more? Take a look on our website: or give us a call on CONTACT SPEAKING UP: call us: us: info@speakingup.org visit the website: Head Office is open from 9.00am till 5.00pm Independent Mental Capacity Advocacy Hotline: Donate Speaking Up needs your support to continue helping people with learning difficulties and mental health problems to speak up for themselves and achieve greater confidence and happier lives through our projects and services. If you would like to make a donation to Speaking Up, please call Gemma or Tom on , or visit our website: