A dedicated webpage has information on where staff and students can get support, resources for finding out more about disabilities and full details of the events being hosted. These include the Staff Inclusivity Group’s television series discussion group, the Disability Support Network’s quiz night and LU Arts’ Random Kindness, Radical Stitch sewing workshops.
Members of staff from the University have shared their personal experiences of having a disability in a new video:
Pro Vice-Chancellor (Equity, Diversity and Inclusion), Professor Charlotte Croffie said: “Loughborough University is proud to be supporting Disability History Month. I believe this is an opportunity to platform and showcase the invaluable contributions made by people with visible and invisible disabilities.
“As we continue to move towards becoming a vibrant and inclusive community, Disability History Month provides the opportunity to pause, listen and learn more about the different types of disability. Engaging with this agenda enables us to play an active part in creating and sustaining an inclusive environment where we value and respect people for who they are and not be defined by the restrictions all too often placed on them. In doing so, we can celebrate our colleagues and students and their achievements too.”
Emma Nadin, Chair of the Staff Inclusivity group added: “We are pleased to be supporting Disability History Month. We encourage everyone to get involved with the planned events and look forward to seeing some new faces who want to learn more about how they can be an ally for their disabled colleagues and students.”
The Disability Support Network has also launched its #DontDisMyAbility campaign which aims to celebrate the experiences of students through videos and blog posts. You can contribute to this campaign by getting in touch with Disability Officer, Erin Johnston: erinjohnston@lsu.co.uk.
Erin commented: “As the Disability Officer I am really passionate about the impact of living with a disability on mental health, particularly in an ableist society. Ableism can have such a negative impact on our community, making easy day-to-day activities for the “abled” impossible for our community, resulting in feelings of loneliness, isolation and irrelevancy.
“This is also a time for individuals and organisations to reflect on what they do to help make the world an accessible place. A lot of the time easy changes can make a world of difference to a disabled individual and make them feel heard. If you listen to people and are open to adapting your approach to ensure they can be involved that is the best thing that you can do.”
Erin will also join the Let’s Talk Loughborough podcast, alongside Spencer Graydon, Chief Executive of Imago Venues, for a special episode all about Disability History Month and the theme for this year – Disability, Health and Wellbeing. This will be released later in the month.
We will also be putting a spotlight on some of our Para Sport athletes and the Para Sport Exec Committee, who aim to make Loughborough a place where all who want to are able to play sport.
Keep an eye on the Disability History Month microsite as it will be updated throughout the month.