Sheffield Voices

Who we are

Sheffield Voices is a learning disability self-advocacy group who normally meet at the Circle in Sheffield.

Due to the Corona Virus, we have been running our meetings on ZOOM. We are currently meeting twice a week, on Tuesdays and Thursdays between 11 and 12pm. We talk about things that affect our lives and we have a lot of fun.

If you want to join our online meetings, please contact Kathryn or Andrew on 01142536750 or email me at kathryn.littlewood@disabilitysheffield.org.uk for how to get onto the online meetings.

The Sheffield Voices group is led by people with a learning disability themselves.

We are committed to learning how to get better at self-advocacy and give other people a chance to get involved. We want to look forward to a time when we don’t have jargon for describing an activity that most people take for granted.

For more information click on the heading:

• About the Coronavirus
• Getting involved with the Sheffield Voices group
• Group meeting for your Diary
• Things that the group have done
• What we did this month
• What is self-advocacy?
• History of Sheffield Voices
• Aims for Our Group:*
• Our Hopes for the Future:

• About the Coronavirus

  About the Coronavirus

  How serious is the coronavirus? COVID-19 is a new illness. Lots of people call it Coronavirus. It can affect your lungs and your airways. Most people who get Coronaviruswill not be very ill. Some older people or people who already have health problems may become more ill. You may feel worried about Coronavirus. This is normal. Talk about how you feel with people you can trust. Please download some easy read Information about coronavirus below (PDFs)

   

  About Coronavirus

   

  About the lockdown

    

  Self isolation

    

  Healthy Minds Leaflet for Parents  

    

• Getting involved with the Sheffield Voices group

  If you are interested in knowing more about us, want to learn about advocacy or you have some skills that you want to share, please get in touch with us:

  Disability Sheffield: 0114 2536750

  Due to the Corona Virus, we have been running our meetings on ZOOM. We are currently meeting twice a week, on Tuesdays and Thursdays between 11 and 12pm. We talk about things that affect our lives and we have a lot of fun.

  If you want to join our online meetings, please contact Kathryn or Andrew on 01142536750 or email me at kathryn.littlewood@disabilitysheffield.org.uk for how to get onto the online meetings

• Group meeting for your Diary

  All Sheffield Voices group meetings will be online until further notice.

• Things that the group have done

  • Arts and Crafts
  • Social events
  • Welfare Changes ( Benefits )
  • Lobbying ( had meeting with Nick Clegg )
  • Host Hate Crime Awareness at conferences

  Talks and discussions on….
  
  • Access to the Countryside
  • Crime and Punishment
  • Jobs and Voluntary Work
  • Choosing where and how to live
  • Healthy Eating
  • Health Care
  • Housing Plan
  • Bullying and Hate Crime
  • Transport
  • Family and Relationships
  • Being Safe Out and About
  • First Aid

• What we did this month

  

  We have been awarded a SPEAK UP grant from Healthwatch to talk to residents who live in care homes to reseacrh what they know about self advocacy and how they would like to have a voice.

  Sheffield Voices have been named in a bid with Sheffield University for the Wellcome Trust as part of a research project we want to do working with our partners all over the country to make health and social care services more human for people with learning disabilities.

  We have been part of the #Right2Home campaign and we have made a video. You can view our video here https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=d1VATqmgmTU&t=8s

  We have been working with Speak Up on the Priortise Me campaign. This is a campaign to help people with a learnign disability and carers understand more about how to save money with household bills. We have been doing some quizzes and work in oour online meetings about this.
  https://www.speakup.org.uk/prioritiseme

  We are currently working on making our Hate Crime Training online.

• What is self-advocacy?

  Being able to support and speak up for people in a friendly way. Having your say and getting your voice heard. Having choices, having control in your lives. Being listened to.

• History of Sheffield Voices

  

  Sheffield Voices started in 1997 and at that time was called SUFA.

  The first steering group met at Voluntary Action Sheffield with the idea of starting a self-advocacy group for people with a learning disability and independent of Social Services and Sheffield Health.

  We went round to various groups to see what people wanted, then got funding for a support worker. After that we joined with Sheffield Citizen Advocacy (SCA).

  1999 Our Vision, Our Future –came to Sheffield about being a self-advocacy group.
  1999 – a development worker was recruited.

  Our contract ran until 2010 with Sheffield Council, when we decided not to go through the tendering process. Since then we have formed our own self advocacy group under the umbrella of Disability Sheffield.

• Aims for Our Group:*

  • Connect with people who have a learning disability
  • Learn New Skills, open our eyes to new things
  • Produce Easy Read material
  • Support each other to solve our problems
  • Social activities and go out for meals
  • Challenge stigma and discrimination
  • Learn about your human rights
  • Speak up about what is not working for us
  • Promote Advocacy
  • Work with partners across the country
  • Run campaigns on different issues
  • Research things that affect us to create change
  • Share Ideas
  • Have fun!

• Our Hopes for the Future:

  To reach out to more people with a learning disability to get more members.

  To work with other organisations to make sure the voices of people with learning disabilities are heard.

  Develop our plans to go for funding.

  Labels are for Jars Not for People

  You can view our Disability Hate Crime video here.

  For information on Advocacy Services please click here