Tag Archives: Learning Disability

Meeting with Chris Evans MP

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We recently met with Chris Evans, MP for Islwyn since 2010, and the Shadow Minster for Defence since 2021.  We talked in detail about the proposed changes to the Human Rights Act (1998) and the lack of consideration given to people with learning disabilities when documents are produced.  Chris Evans has agreed to write to Deputy Prime Mister Dominic Raab to stress the importance of easy read documents, and the concerns people with learning disabilities have over the proposed changes to the Human Rights Act.  We would like to thank Chris Evans and his secretary for taking the time to visit us and hear our thoughts.

Tackling Isolation and Loneliness

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This week we held a coffee afternoon at Libanus Lifestyle Centre, as part of our project to tackle isolation and loneliness, funded by the Caerphilly Cares Team.  We were delighted to be joined by new faces, as well as some people we already know.  The group had a great discussion on the effects the pandemic has had on our mental wellbeing.  Some people talked about having to shield because of underlying health conditions, which made them feel extremely lonely, especially over the Christmas period.  The group also talked about the lack of support for people during lockdown.  A couple who attended said it was their first time being out with a group in a social setting for over two years.  The event was also attended by regular Caerphilly People First members, who talked about their anxiety when using public transport for the first time in years.  The next meeting of this group will be held on Monday 28th at March, again at Libanus Lifestyle Centre in Blackwood, and all are welcome to attend.

Fundraising for Ukraine

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We’d like to say a massive thank you to everyone who attended this week’s coffee morning held to raise money for Ukraine. Thanks to the generosity of our supporters we have raised over £200 so far, and this will be donated to the British Red Cross Ukraine Humanitarian appeal. If anyone would like to donate directly to them, the link is:

https://donate.redcross.org.uk/appeal/ukraine-crisis-appeal

Alternatively, there is still time to donate through Caerphilly People First, and if you’d like to do this you can contact Ffion Poole on 07488 350518.

Medical Students Training

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At the beginning of March, Ffion Poole and Natalie King worked alongside Cardiff People First to train medical students on how to communicate with people with learning disabilities. The training involved going into a breakout room and holding a number of interviews with students, where the conversations included what Caerphilly People First does and people’s lives and hobbies. We really enjoyed this and hope we can be involved again in the future.

Winter Wellbeing Week 4

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For the final week of our Winter Wellbeing project (funded by All Wales People First) the group took part in a mindfulness session, where they sat in a quiet room, and for 30 minutes listened to a recording to help us relax.  After the session the group felt less stressed and said they will continue to practice meditation in the future as they found it so helpful.

As it was St. David’s Day, the group took part in a quiz about Wales, and they also celebrated Shrove Tuesday with some pancakes and fresh strawberries and bananas.

Human Rights Act Reform

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Ffion and Natalie recently attended a workshop run by the British Institute of Human Rights where people discussed the changes the UK government has proposed making to the Human Rights Act.  They want to change the laws that were in place in the UK when we were part of the European Union.  Caerphilly People First is one of the many organisations concerned by this because we believe that it will lead to people in the United Kingdom having their rights weakened.  The UK government have opened a consultation to get the views of people on the proposed changes, but unfortunately this isn’t available in an easy-read format.  This consultation is available until 8th March at:

https://www.gov.uk/government/consultations/human-rights-act-reform-a-modern-bill-of-rights

Our Chairperson Ffion says: We are worried about this as we have not had a say or had any easy read documents explaining why and how they are going to change things.  We feel like we are invisible as people with learning disabilities.

Winter Wellbeing Week 3

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For week 3 of our Winter Wellbeing course, the Tuesday Focus Group discussed the benefits of Vitamin C and Vitamin D, and compared foods to see which foods contain the most sugar and fat, and which healthier foods you can replace the unhealthy ones with.  After this discussion, the group took part in a healthy eating quiz prepared by Carmarthenshire People First, following which the group made healthy carrot and coriander soup.

Cardiff People First Winter Wellbeing Project

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As part of Cardiff People First’s Winter Wellbeing programme, they held a period party event at the Grange Pavilion in Cardiff, which was attended by Caerphilly People First members, Ffion Poole, Natalie King and Hannah Thomas. They also invited the Cheeky Pants company to attend via Zoom, to answer any questions people had about their products, and also to advise them on how to make their information accessible for people with Learning Disabilities. There were lots of brilliant ideas and questions during this discussion. It was great to see everyone face- face after a very long, challenging time, and we’d like to thank Cardiff People First for the invite.