BRISTOL WELCOMES NEW FUNDING TO BECOME THE BEST PLACE FOR PEOPLE WITH A LEARNING DISABILITY!
Funding from Mencap aims to help our community become an even better place for people with a learning disability to live happy and healthy lives Thanks to local organisations SENDaWelcome and Step and Stone, Bristol is now one of nine communities across England, Wales and Northern Ireland that will benefit from funding received by Mencap from the Covid-19 Support Fund to help support some of the people hardest hit by the Covid-19 crisis.
Jess and Alice want to find out what ‘community’ means to you, what you think is great about your community, what you might like to change or make better, and how you may be able to contribute and make a difference. If you’d like to find out more or are interested in getting involved in the SENDaWelcome and Step and Stone were project, they will be out and about in the local set up by north Bristol parent carers of young area to chat to, hosting pop up Community people with learning disabilities. They work Conversations or you can contact them at towards full inclusion of people with a learning mycommunity.bristol@mencap.org.uk disability in all aspects of our community and celebrate the enrichment this brings to all our Ciara Lawrence, who has a learning lives. disability and is the Big Plan Engagement Lead at Mencap, said: Mencap’s vision is for the UK to be the best place in the world for people with a learning “This funding from the Covid-19 Support disability to live happy and healthy lives. This Fund is really great news! It will help people project aims to put people with a learning with a learning disability, like me, be seen disability at the heart of Covid recovery and heard in their local communities. planning and help develop new ways of working. “Many people with a learning disability have been forgotten during the pandemic. Newly appointed ‘Community Partners’, Jess Mencap’s new community programme means Garbett and Alice Cranston, will be working they can take their place in society once across Ashley, Horfield, Lockleaze, again. It will also help communities to be Bishopston and Ashley Down wards and more inclusive. supporting local people with a learning disability to work with local communities to “It is great that people with a learning lead social change. Community members disability will carry out this programme with and without a learning disability will be because they know what changes they involved in co-designing, developing, and want to see to make their community the implementing change initiatives that make best place to live. It is about them and their their community a better place to live. voices.” 18
