For Bexley Mencap member Geoffrey, turning 80 was always going to be a special milestone. But after it was discovered he shared his birthday with the national Mencap, it became part of something much bigger.
To celebrate their ‘birthday twin’, Sidcup-based Geoffrey was invited to Mencap’s anniversary celebrations last week where he met patron, the Duchess of Edinburgh.
He was also featured on Channel 4 News as part of coverage highlighting the health inequalities which exist for people with learning disabilities.
For Geoffrey, being featured was a moment he will never forget.
“I could not believe it; I knew it was a possibility but I am so happy and I hope I made everyone proud and I hope I have made changes with this video and my ongoing work with Bexley Mencap,” he said.
Geoffrey’s relationship with Bexley Mencap goes back a long way.
He first found out he had a mild learning disability when he was about 12-13 years old. His mum told him about his diagnosis and said “this is nothing to worry about, let’s keep going and see how it comes out later on in your life.”
He has been part of Respect in Bexley since the group first began, 32 years ago. Respect is a self-advocacy group facilitated by Bexley Mencap, where members come together every week to share their ideas, experiences and views and work to influence positive change.
He has played a significant role in that work over the years. He was the first co-chair of the Bexley Learning Disability Partnership Board, bringing together people with learning disabilities, carers, the council, health and voluntary sector organisations. He has also been chair of Respect in Bexley and a trustee of Bexley Mencap.
As he enters his ninth decade, Geoffrey remains part of Respect and continues to contribute his experience and ideas.
Respect members give their time freely because they are passionate about improving things for people with learning disabilities. Over the years, the group has worked with local and national partners on issues ranging from healthcare and accessibility to community safety and education.
Recent examples include training more than 150 members of the surgery team at Queen Elizabeth Hospital to better support people with a learning disability, working with King’s College Hospital to create easy read information and improve accessibility, delivering hate crime training to local police, and helping train nurses at the University of Greenwich.
The group has also campaigned locally for a Pool Pod to make a local swimming pool more accessible and has received a Civic Recognition Award for its work to improve things for local people.
For Geoffrey, helping other people has always been central to his involvement with Bexley Mencap. He has described his voluntary work as his career and has spoken about wanting to make things better for others.
“I would like to do more work to make things and life better for other people.”
He has used his own experiences to represent other people, raise issues with decision-makers and encourage people to speak up when something isn’t working for them.
He sees his role as helping ensure that “everyone is heard.”
We’re really proud to have had such a long relationship with Geoffrey. You can watch the Channel 4 News video featuring Geoffrey here.
Photos: Mencap
