As a leading disability and social care charity, Sense is committed to making sure no one, no matter how complex their disability, is left out, isolated or unable to fulfil their potential.
Never has a mission been so important yet so complex to deliver. As the leader of the Arts, Sport and Wellbeing team at Sense, I want to let you know what approach we are taking to support people during this incredibly challenging period.
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New Collaboration:
Sense Arts is pleased to announce a new ground breaking dance performance partnership with screen dance director Sima Gonsai and professional dancers from interACTION to create a trilogy of screen dance films performed by dancers with complex disabilities.
Our sport & physical activity programme started in 2014 and has been growing ever since. We have worked with Sport England over the last five years supporting more people with complex needs to be active. This recent funding has come about following our work to date and our ambition to reach more people with complex disabilities who currently aren’t able to access opportunities due to a number of limitations with provision, society, and perception to name a few.
Continue reading “Q&A with our National Sport Manager”
For some time now, as part of our Sporting Sense project, we have been developing all sorts of sport and physical activities for people with complex disabilities – everything from swimming and cycling to yoga and dance. These are great because individuals can do these at their own pace, in their own way, and experience how their body feels in a sensory way.
We’ve also built up good partnerships with local sports clubs and providers to deliver these activities and had a lot of positive interest.
Continue reading “Football for everyone”According to research carried out by Sport England, almost half (42%) of disabled people are classed as inactive, which means they do less than thirty minutes of exercise a week. This rises to over half (51%) among people with complex disabilities.
At Sense, we are familiar with the disparities that exist and are working towards ensuring that no one is left out of life. There are so many physical, mental and social benefits to being active but unfortunately there aren’t the same opportunities available to people with more complex disabilities.
That’s why we’re excited to be launching a new three-year project, ‘Sense, Active Together’ building on our foundations of supporting people who are deafblind or have complex disabilities to be active, and aiming to reach another 2,500 people.
Continue reading “‘Sense, Active Together’ – New funding to expand our Sense Sports Programme.”
Do you have any unwanted bric-a-brac taking up space? At Sense, we are taking those items that have been gathering dust and giving them a new lease of life by turning them into unique works of art.
We are very excited to once again, collaborate with RBSA on a mentoring programme connecting professional artists with the people we support. This brilliant new programme of activities is called Making Together, which is supported using funding by Arts Council England.
Making Together involves several different mentoring and art workshops between artists and Sense art-makers with complex disabilities. The aim of the mentoring and making workshops is to help Sense art-makers develop their own artwork for display.
Continue reading “Re-fuse, re-made into art with RE-STORE.”
We are delighted to be launching our new inclusive arts plan Space to be Different 2019- 2022. The plan sets out how we want to bring art and social care closer together and support disabled artists and art-makers to be leaders in their field. Space to be Different sets out our vision for creating a national arts programme with Sense TouchBase Pears in Birmingham as the centre of excellence in inclusive arts.
See below for the first steps towards making the plan a reality.
Continue reading “Space to be different: How we plan to make arts accessible to everyone, no matter how complex their disabilities”
In late 2018, Sense Arts were delighted to get funding from Arts Council of England to develop a strategic arts plan for the next phase of inclusive arts at TouchBase Pears.
They want the strategy to reference the ethos and practice that they’re passionate about and showcase to the fullest, the talents of those they’re nurturing through this programme.
Continue reading “Piloting inclusive arts consultation at Sense Arts.”
Children who have a disabled sibling may have to learn to put their own needs on hold to some extent – but the Sense Siblings Weekend was just for them.When the children and young people arrive for the siblings’ weekend some look a little wary and there are even a few tears; others give barely a backward glance and get stuck right in away, rushing over to the painting activity and making instant new friends in the way that only children can.
They have all come away for a weekend of fun, friendship and adventure at a PGL centre near Swindon – and what they have in common is that they all have a brother or sister who has a disability. Having a sibling with special needs can be a mixed role, and whilst Sense’s experience is that many will grow up to be particularly kind, thoughtful and mature people – and love their disabled sibling to bits – they can face challenges too.
I work as a Dance Practitioner at Step Change Studios, which is an inclusive dance company that provides opportunities for people with multiple disabilities to dance. Sense and Step Change Studios have been working together to support people of different ages and abilities to be active and explore their creative, communication and social skills through dance.
The benefits of dance are widely evidenced – not just in terms of physical health but also mental health and wellbeing. For the past few months I have been working with adults with complex disabilities in a Sense residential care home in Walthamstow, London, using music and movement to engage their senses, and promoting social interaction and physical activity through fun, play-based sessions.
Continue reading “Let’s Dance! Supporting people with complex disabilities to be active, develop communication skills and explore their creative sides”
