Varied ability
Over the last seven years, the Varied Ability Arts programme has developed through numerous working partnerships with disability groups and organisations across Walsall, as well as Walsall Social Services and the Arts Council England. Projects have gone from strength to strength, tackling issues ranging from access and transport to bullying and stereotyping.
The driving force behind projects is the promotion of positive identity of people with disabilities.
The programme of development work has included setting up Varied Ability Arts forums, club nights and technology training,, and has involved working with leading national, regional and local specialist arts workers.
Social Care and Supported Housing works with the Team to maximise both the use of resources and opportunities for participants and staff. Without this mutually agreed partnership, the work with people of varied ability would be very difficult to deliver.
For the first two years of the work, two experienced care workers from adult day centres were on part time secondment to the Team to support the arts programme.
They gained experience of developing and co-ordinating creative arts projects, and inspired by their new knowledge could take those skills and new ways of working back into Social Services.
Likewise, Community Arts workers gained invaluable knowledge of how to make projects work in Social Services settings, and experience in understanding how important the whole care package is when working with groups and individuals who have diverse needs.
The latest project is in partnership with Walsall Council Social Services Integrated Learning Disability Team.
Funded by Walsall Supporting People Division and Walsall Council Reprovision Team, the plan is to develop an accessible DVD exploring issues around tenancy.
Nomad Media are working with 10 people with a learning disability who have personal experience of tenancy and supported living, using script-writing, animation and role-play.
The DVD aims to ensure that adult tenants with a learning disability have a greater awareness of both their rights and responsibilities.
Walsall Varied Ability Arts Steering Together Group (VAAST) worked with Walsall Council Creative Development Team to develop an issue based performance using theatre technology, searching the heart of disability issues.
The group’s conclusion is that whilst issues of physical access/transport/benefits etc. are of utmost importance to people with various disabilities, it is still attitudes that create most barriers.
Members of VAAST and other participants worked with leading British integrated dance company Blue Eyed Soul and digital designer Jonathan Tritton on a hi-tech dance and digital imaging project.
The performance was taken into local schools as a catalyst for discussion around bullying issues, particularly how being ‘different’ can lead to bullying.
Barriers performance
The Barriers project enabled members of the Barriers group to visit The European Parliament in Brussels and present their project and issues to Members of The European Parliament and European advisors at The European Office West Midlands.
The Barriers project was supported by the Walsall Council Community Arts Team, Equal Black Country Learning Kitchen and The Black Country Knowledge Society.
This page was last updated on 12 May 2008