The Listen Up! Team had a packed and productive week last week!

Scott Watkin BEM (Head of Engagement) and Associates Summer Dickens, Tamika Wright and Kayleigh Lewis, along with support from Kim Errington and Marie Shaw, travelled to Birmingham for the LDE Conference. 

What is the LDE Conference?

The LDE Conference is a large-scale event, welcoming up to 300 attendees, including people with lived experience of a learning disability. The audience brings together representatives from advocacy groups, charities and organisations from across the country, making it a valuable opportunity for us to network and raise awareness of SeeAbility's work. 

Looking forward to new experiences

Summer shared her thoughts ahead of the event:

‘I was looking forward to it very much and have always wanted to go to a conference. I was nervous to stay in a hotel, but excited knowing where I was going.’

Tamika and Kayleigh were equally excited to take part in a new experience! 

Keynote speakers and powerful messages

The first speaker on the agenda was Simon Bottery, Senior Fellow for Social Care at The King’s Fund, who spoke about the current state of social care. He covered key policy changes, the Casey Review, and the need for providers to be better funded to support investment in social care. 

This was followed by Lord Paul Scriven, Liberal Democrat Life Peer, who spoke about accountability and shared the story of his nephew, Myles. He highlighted the urgent changes needed following the LeDeR (Learning from Lives and Deaths – people with a learning disability and autistic people) programme, criticised the government for failing to act to prevent avoidable deaths, and set out what needs to happen next. 

An urgent call for change

Reflecting on Lord Scriven’s speech, Summer said:

‘Lord Scriven’s keynote speech was very sad. So many people with learning disabilities are dying too soon. It was very upsetting for me. This must not continue. I would like to campaign for basic care for people so that they don’t die early and unnecessarily. 

We already speak with student learning disability nurses, but I would like to go into hospitals and speak to doctors and nurses about how to listen to our needs.’

The future of LDE

Gary Bourlet, Co-Founder of Learning Disability England, talked about LDE’s 10th anniversary and the Good Lives Framework – an action plan which is designed to ensure that people with learning disabilities can thrive in their own homes and communities. He also spoke about what the future could look like for LDE. 

Stories through music and media

Paul, a musician, spoke about the power of music, his dreams of becoming a musician, and what he has achieved through playing and studying music. 

George Webster was also in attendance. He shared more about his journey to becoming a CBeebies presenter and appearing on Strictly Come Dancing. He also read excerpts from some of the books he has written. 

Workshops and making connections

During the event, workshops were taking place in different forms, and both Tamika and Kayleigh attended separate sessions. Tamika took part in the ‘Being well, connected, and having friends’ workshop, which was hosted by Dimensions. She commented:

‘I learned a secret handshake and how to make new friends.’

Learning, networking, and new opportunities

Kayleigh added that meeting new people was the best part of the experience! Summer also shared her thoughts on the event, saying:

‘I learned about housing for people with learning disabilities. Unfortunately for some, if they want to change their provider they may have to change where they live too. 

There were some people there that I now know from other organisations, with ‘Speak Out’ being one of them. A great networking meeting, and I have already signed up to receive newsletters from all sorts of organisations.’

Tamika added:

‘Making new friends is easier than I thought.’