Learning Disability Today
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DanceSyndrome, an inclusive dance charity based in Lancashire, and NHS England have partnered up to launch a new film series encouraging people to consider a career in learning disability nursing.
The film series, released during Inclusion Week (Monday 23 – Sunday 29 September 2024) aims to show people how fulfilling and rewarding it can be to work as a learning disability nurse.
The films feature Health Visitor Lauretta Ofulue, who recently co-chaired our annual conference. Lauretta’s own experience as a parent of a person with a learning disability highlighted to her what barriers and challenges people encounter and what a valuable role learning disability nurses can play in overcoming those difficulties.
Her experiences led Lauretta to take the decision to change her career and she talks about the skills needed and the support available to enable people to re-train and become a learning disability nurse, including how you can earn while you learn.
Another video shows Adele Hargreaves, who is a student Learning Disability Nurse at Edge Hill University. In this video she talks about the structure of the course and work placements, as well as how it’s an ideal choice for mature students or those looking for a change in career.
Adele highlights how varied the role of a learning disability nurse is and why it is so special. Adele firmly believes that it’s a career where you can make a significant difference in peoples’ lives by giving them a voice and supporting them to live their own life and make their own choices.
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DanceSyndrome Managing Director Julie Nicholson said “When NHS England came to us with this project, we were really excited to get involved. One of the most important parts of our mission is to change the way that people think about people with learning disabilities and what they can achieve with the right support. We know how important it is to get that support right in all aspects of a person’s life, so we truly value the role of learning disability nurses and the significant impact that they can have through their career.
“We hope that the films highlight the importance of supporting people with learning disabilities and why it’s important that we work towards a society that is truly inclusive and accessible. We are proud of the films because you can clearly see what good care looks like, how passionate people in the profession are and you can truly understand why we need more people to become learning disability nurses.”
A third video features Jim Blair, Independent Consultant Nurse for people with Learning Disabilities, who talks about the five key elements of learning disability nursing:
- Ensuring that people can look beyond the learning disability to see the person at the centre
- Understanding barriers to healthcare for people with learning disabilities
- Consistently engaging people with learning disabilities, their families and carers
- How to model good practice for other people in the healthcare sector
- Understanding the law around the Mental Capacity Act, Equality Act and Human Rights Act.
Ellie Gordon, Senior Nurse for Learning Disability and Mental Health in the national Workforce, Training and Education Directorate, said, “I do hope these films will support people with learning disabilities by inspiring people to think about a career working with people with learning disabilities and highlight why it is so important that we create a truly inclusive society.
“DanceSyndrome takes a unique and totally different approach to co-production where people who don’t have a learning disability lead the work and involve those with a learning disability. The videos that have been created speak not only to people with learning disabilities but also to learning disability nurses.”
