Learning Disability Week 14th -20th June 2021

Art and Creativity

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Learning Disability Week 2021 Learning Disability Week 2021 will take place online from 14 to 20 June. This year’s Theme is Art and Creativity. For many people with a learning disability and their families, getting creative has been a way to stay connected and positive through the challenges of last year.

We know that the challenges learning disable people face such as discrimination and bullying that may lead to lower self-confidence and social exclusion. Thus putting them at a higher risk of developing mental health issues.

Getting creative can help improve mental health and help all people with learning disabilities to express themselves through activities like art and music.

For people with learning disabilities, ADHD info and autism, art therapy offers an opportunity for self expression. Art can be a way to communicate for people who find it hard to express their thoughts and feelings verbally.

Remembering Kevin Chettel who died in 2020

As a man with learning disabilities Kevin overcame many hurdles. As a child he had been put in Balderston Hospital; he was there for 20 years – on his ‘escape’ he became active in the a movement promoting the involvement of service users in the development of services that directly affected them. He became the co-director of one of the most influential service user –led organisations, Advocacy in Action, and was a involved as a trainer. He was driven to highlight the mistreatment of children at the hospital. He became well known as an artist, with his pictures describing his time in Balderston and subsequent release.