We deliver advocacy for welfare benefits processes or employment difficulties when managing a neurological disability.
We are community partners with Teesside University to enable lived experience seminars as a learning tool for the NHS professional of the future.
To this, we are co-authors with a senior lecturer, Dr Stephanie Kilinc of a self-management framework (Published Disability and Rehabilitation 2021)and subsequent My Life Tool self-managment programme evaluated for NIHR.
We deliver pan-neuro and neurodiverse adults peer support and contribute to a range of regional networks and Forums to improve NHS and mental health service awareness and delivery.
We offer our 'Open Door' series of lived experience narratives as learning tools to students at Teesside, Sunderland and Durham Universities, published to the Integrated Care System Mental Health website whilst our Neurodevelopmental resource is used by the Virtual School for adoption and fostering services and the Criminal Justice network out of Bristol University.
Since inception in 2006, we have created a network of over 1,000 professionals, community members, beneficiaries to improve communication and knowledge. The neurological client group is one of the most marginalised NHS groups and there has been no tenable improvement to care pathways in over a decade. We have seen a 50% increase in demand since Covid lockdown, increased access to face-to-face and What's App peer support and are now an accredited Disabled People's Organisation. Owing to waiting lists and difficulties people experience, we are witnessing more people sliding into early disability but subject to pre-conceived assumptions in welfare benefit systems.
As core members of the NE Regional Stakeholder Network for Disability our collaborative methods enable cases of lived experience to be sent to to the Disability Unit under the auspices of Cabinet Office. We leave no stone unturned to improve outcomes for peopel with a neurological disability.
Pivotal to our work and governance is an acceptance that our values, centred on those for counselling including beneficience and non-maleficence
lead our approach and work delivery. Respect for individuals is our guarantee plus excellent listening skills that can translate requests into actions.
Owing to the constraints of managing current demand we are looking for help for two projects;
a) We are moving to brand everything to Neuro Key, having gained permission from the Charity Commission. We have registered the website but need help to adapt and add to our social media platforms. We have the www.neurokey.co.uk registered and are in the process of redirecting from www.na-tvdny.org.uk.
b) We would like to engage with a psychology and media/film student, likely 3rd year or graduate programme to design an interview with a beneficiary as a learning tool to be filmed and up-loaded to YouTube.
Lived experience has led our work since 2006, long before they became a buzz words.
We deliver participatory reasearch methods, we deliver learning tools in the spirit of shared commons, we deliver our impact from the ground floor up, not the other way round. Our sole focus is to improve the rights of the neuro-disabled community to live the best life that can be achieved.