The Climate Crisis Whatever your views on climate change and what is being described as the ‘climate crisis’, no one can be under any illusion that we all share some responsibility to help protect the natural environment around us, and the wider environment on the planet we all share. But what if the very responsibility you feel for the environment …
Putting the voice of disabled people at the centre of our democracy
Representatives from the main political parties were grilled by disabled people and families at a ‘hustings’ style Q&A event organised by 10 leading disability charities, including the Scottish Commission for Learning Disability (SCLD). More than 100 disabled people and their families, carers and professionals attended the national hustings event which took place on Thursday 5th December at Augustine United Church, …
Self-Directed Support, Human Rights and People with Learning Disabilities
The ‘Self-Directed Support, Human Rights and People with Learning Disabilities’ event took place as part of The Health and Social Care Alliance Scotland’s Self-Directed Support Masterclass Series, which aims to break down barriers to accessing Self-Directed Support (SDS) and look at the ways it can help people who have a disability or who are living with a long-term health condition, …
Guest Blog: SallyAnn Kelly on the Rights of Children and Young People with Learning Disabilities in Scotland
To celebrate World Children’s Day and the 30th anniversary of The United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child, SCLD asked SallyAnn Kelly CEO of Aberlour to reflect on the rights of children in Scotland and what needs to be done to ensure children and young people with learning disabilities can realise their rights… This week marks the 30th …
RSA Fellows with learning disabilities are celebrated at film premiere
The Scottish Commission for people with Learning Disabilities (SCLD) hosted a film premiere on Friday 20th September, to celebrate the inspiring achievements of seven people with learning disabilities who are lifetime Fellows of the Royal Society of Arts, Manufactures and Commerce (RSA). The seven individuals were granted the first RSA fellowships to people with learning disabilities in 2016. The premiere …
Scottish Learning Disability Week 2020
It’s that time of year again (almost)! Time to start making plans for Scottish Learning Disability Week 2020. Scottish Learning Disability Week 2020 will take place from Monday 18th – Sunday 24th May. The team at the Scottish Commission for people with Learning Disabilities (SCLD) are busily working away making preparations at present. The theme for Learning Disability Week 2020 …
A home of my own… Adrian’s story
Hello, I’m Adrian*, and I live in my own home in Motherwell. I moved here in 2015, although I had dreamed of having my own home for a much longer time. I moved to Motherwell to be closer to family, before that I lived in different places, in hospitals and care homes, all over the country. I was born in …
A home of my own… Marie’s story
Choosing where, how and with who you live is a basic right that is often hard won by people with a learning disability in Scotland. In the run up to Scottish Housing Day on Wednesday 18th September 2019, SCLD is publishing a series of blogs to raise awareness of the challenges people with learning disabilities face when it comes to …
Housing as a human right for people with learning disabilities
A generation of people with learning disabilities have grown up since Scotland’s largest long-stay hospital finally closed its doors in 2002. Lennox Castle Hospital, on the outskirts of Glasgow, housed almost 1700 people with learning disabilities at its peak in the 1970s. It was one of many such institutions across Scotland. This policy of institutionalisation marginalised people with learning disabilities, …
Getting the UNCRC Right for Children and Young People with Learning Disabilities
Over this summer, The Scottish Government has consulted on the Incorporation of the United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child (UNCRC) into Scottish domestic law. The Scottish Commission for Learning Disability (SCLD) believes this is a long-awaited and critical development, which aims to make sure that all children’s UNCRC rights are met in Scotland to the highest possible …