MAKING CONNECTIONS THROUGH A VIRTUAL DRAMA PROJECT

PUTTING People with LEARNING DISABILITIES AT THE CENTRE OF CARE PROVISION.

Support healthcare and education students to work with pupils from Dysart special needs school and their families on a H2H virtual drama project.

Our Story

‘The unknown is the place to learn’ is just the start of the amazing work Heritage 2 Health (H2H) have carried out and we want to continue. Join us on this magical journey.

Following the success of the Heritage 2 Health virtual drama project last year, we are back and more determined than ever to connect pupils with learning disabilities to healthcare and education students. The ongoing Covid-19 pandemic has proved exceptionally challenging, especially for those with learning disabilities who may be at risk of isolation and lack of contact with friends and family. Therefore, we created a successful virtual drama project last year to focus on improving healthcare experiences for those with complex disabilities. The project was an absolute success which is why we are back this year, reaching out to you for support. We aim to create another successful project, using feedback to enhance the experience and work between student nurses from multiple universities.

By creating this project and working together, we aim to empower both pupils with learning disabilities and future healthcare professionals to understand the importance of being listened to, being actively involved in care planning and delivering patient centered care throughout hospital settings.

Our Plan

We plan to run a virtual drama project to bring together healthcare and education students, pupils and their families. We will run ten virtual drama workshops to explore a story, created last year, about Ubuntu the lion with a long, long mane; who hates to roar and hates the rain! The story focuses on several key concepts when thinking about nursing including courage, choice, acceptance and loss. We aim to promote recognition of everyone as individuals who all have unique skills they can bring to the project.

Following on from the acting workshops, we hope to create a sensory trail linked to the Ubuntu story that can be used to enjoy nature and be an ongoing project for the young people to take part in and explore the outdoors! The nature trail will take part at Ham House, a local National Trust site.

Our project offers:

A creative and fun learning experience of working with people with learning disabilities
Builds self-esteem and confidence
Development of leadership, management and communication skills
Deeper understanding of reflective learning and how art can be used as a form of self-expression

Due to the Covid-19 pandemic, all social distancing and personal protective equipment guidelines will be followed where appropriate. The virtual sessions were formulated to accommodate the pandemic, however going forward the outdoor sessions would follow all guidelines that are in place for the project dates.

Our Vision

We need to raise £10,000 to cover the costs of creating another virtual drama project. The money raised will help facilitate the project by funding the contributors; StoryAid and a contemporary artist as well as fund writing up an evaluation after the project. Money will also be used to create sensory trail resource packs to all the young people involved in the project to enhance the experience for those taking part.

This year, the project has expanded to include students from City University and University of East Anglia as well as Kingston University. The aim is by collaborating with multiple universities we can spread the word to a much larger audience and continue to improve the healthcare outcomes for those with learning disabilities across the UK!

Our Community

After running a successful project last year, we gathered some feedback from both the student nurses and the pupils who took part which we have worked upon to begin to develop the second drama project. Feedback from parents included ‘We looked forward to it every week’ and ‘You slotted into our world, rather than we slotted into yours’ which just shows how inclusive and valuable the pupils and parents felt taking part in the project. The feedback from students was just as positive saying, ‘I now feel proud and more skilled’ and ‘Being creative is just another way of expressing yourself’ which shows that the project helped the students to feel empowered and part of the team! Young people teach us how to be better nurses.

Our Support

Given the current pandemic, we are reaching out across social media and other virtual platforms to you for support. Please share our page with your friends, family and colleagues to spread the word of the amazing work H2H continue to provide. Thank you so much for reading and supporting our cause. Please follow us to keep up to date with our fundraising journey!

Facebook: Heritage2Health

Twitter: @h2hbuddies

Instagram: @heritage2health