This project is about enabling and supporting brain injury survivors and their carers to actively participate in learning, education, heritage, and culture. It also includes close working with Sharing a Story CIC to create ‘life stories’ with individuals to find out more about themselves and others.
This project includes visits to various departments and buildings within Edinburgh University to learn more about them; to meet people, share experiences and awareness of brain injury. It seeks to improve members’ health & wellbeing levels by reducing social isolation and loneliness and increasing their social participation within local communities.
Departmental links made include: St Cecilia's Music Museum, Scottish Archive Centre, Royal Botanic Gardens Edinburgh, Anatomical Museum, Edinburgh Castle, Holyrood Palace, John Muir Birthplace Museum and John Gray Centre.
What’s the impact?
“We have built relationships with Edinburgh University Museums team and Be Green Community Windpower. We have also received funding from them for the project, covering transport and expenses. We use heritage boxes provided by Prescribe Culture (Edinburgh Uni) to create different activity sessions based on the places we are going to visit. Service users feed into these sessions – and, in one case in particular, lead them!
"Those who are participating have reported reduced feelings of social isolation and loneliness on our annual survey, as well as an improved feeling of confidence and self-esteem, and an improved knowledge of their own community.
"Similarly, the people we meet can develop a greater understanding of acquired brain injury and the inequalities that people with disabilities face on a daily basis.
"On our last visit, to the Palace of Holyrood House in Edinburgh, we learned about the history of Holyrood Abbey. This was arranged through connecting with the Royal Collection Trust Community Engagement Team, our members have built this relationship and others over zoom sessions over the past 2 years. This has brought greater diversity and experience of working directly with people with acquired brain injuries and long-term conditions to the University.
"This project has highlighted some of the many societal inequalities faced by our community and hopefully made public and private bodies more aware of how they can make their organisations and structures accessible.
We have completed our work with Sharing a Story CIC and our group have created their own life stories in the form of individual poetry. Most of them would never have believed they could create poetry, and the reactions when they got their stories back - all lovely and in glorious colour - was amazing. They also created a digital story that we can share on our social media channels. Pride all around.”
(Joyce Cattanach, Development Officer Headway East Lothian)
“Brain Injury survivors have built their confidence and skill levels, many going from a 'I can't do that anymore' attitude to 'I'm amazed I created that'.”
You can find out more about Headway East Lothian on their website.
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