Kirkleatham Hall School
"Unlocking Potential"
Reshaping Advocacy Conference
On the first day of a two day conference William took part in some discussion workshops where he talked about his experiences of self advocacy and how he has supported others to speak up. He also talked about how important it is for support workers, teachers and other professionals to support him and his peers to speak up about things that are important to them.
On day 2 William and his friend Kate started the day off with a 15 minute presentation about the project they had taken part in at 25K called Advocacy is not an Avocado. They spoke about the drama sessions, group discussions, and filming that they had experienced which had helped them to understand what advocacy means. During the presentation William dressed up as Avocado Man which is the advocacy superhero that William designed to help him and his peers understand advocacy. The presentation was really well received and lots of people came up to William and Kate during the rest of the day to congratulate them and ask them more about their project. In addition William took part in some more discussions with professionals looking at the future of advocacy.
William was a great ambassador for the project. He really enjoyed his time away and was able to build his confidence over the two days. On the evening of day 1 those staying over were treated to some live music and William was able to sing on stage with the musician which impressed everyone.
We are hoping to be able to continue working with the young people and have already been asked to do another presentation at an NHS conference in October.
