Stories

Stories of achievement, challenge or resistance from Citizen Network’s global membership

Story: 11.01.24 People Focused Group: “Keep Your Hands Off Peer Support” Peer support is an approach to mutual support led by people with lived experience.
Story: 08.12.23 Chorlton Community Co-Operative There are great things happening in Chorlton as people come together.
Story: 30.11.23 L30 Netherton: This Is Community Life The Netherton community in Liverpool is discovering the power of building community life.
Story: 24.11.23 Continuing Citizen Action In Frome Frome are leading the way in tackling loneliness and connecting up the whole community.
Story: 13.10.23 Kuza Nila: Meeting Your Purpose Eagle Wings works with young people in schools and communities in Kenya.
Story: 19.09.23 Astronauts Launch From Community Space Coalville CAN is a model of community development which is bringing new life to the town.
Story: 28.07.23 Street Connection: “Amazing Things Will Happen” Open Door Community Foundation are connecting people in Firs and Bromford in Birmingham
Story: 18.04.23 Arty Chats: Cultivating Community at The Forge Creating art is a great way to open up conversations and help people connect.
Story: 09.02.23 Precious Plastic East Create Community Connection Helping people to recycle plastics has been a pathway to growing community.
Story: 14.01.23 Public Speaking Tips Public Speaking is a fear many people have in common, Glyn Butcher loves it and shares his approach.
Story: 30.09.22 Growing Community Power through Community poo Instead of focusing on a problem as a problem convert it into an opportunity for community.
Story: 28.06.22 Jason's Story What do we hope for our children and could Yorkshire take back control of its own destiny?
Story: 07.03.22 Molly's Poem Everyone in life is dealt a different card. Some have life easy, some have it hard.
Story: 07.03.22 We Are Not Service Users People should not be defined by the services they use, services should not treat people as their property.
Story: 25.01.22 A Dark Childhood Claire Louise hopes her writing will help others reach out and get help.
Story: 10.06.21 Mother, Daughter and UBI A mother and a daughter, both living with disabilities, explain why they believe UBI would be transformational for…
Story: 10.12.20 A Self and Family Directed Adventure Fionn and Jonathan are a father and son team who are leading the way in showing what people with Down Syndrome can…
Story: 09.12.20 It's My Choice James has Down Syndrome and he uses an Individual Service Fund (ISF) to maintain control over his support and his life.
Story: 23.05.20 I am More than My Mental Health Poems in memory of Kes, a wonderful young man who died before his time, but who brought joy into the lives of many.
Story: 19.12.19 5 Self-Directed Support Stories in Italian Five stories from Finland about how self-directed support works in practice.
Story: 19.12.19 5 Self-Directed Support Stories in Finnish Five stories from Finland of how self-directed support works in practice.
Story: 19.12.19 3 Self-Directed Support Stories Three stories from Finland of how self-directed support is beginning to work in practice plus other resources
Story: 28.04.19 The Inclusive Headteacher Inclusive Solutions work around the world to advance inclusion for all in schools and in the wider community.
Story: 20.12.18 Regulation in Education David Zigmond tells the story of Eve, a teacher whose joy in her work is being strangled by over-regulation.
Story: 18.12.18 How Can We Know What People Need? What Barbro Borge learned at the Manavodaya Institute International Facilitation Course on a Carl Poll Scholarship.
Story: 10.12.18 Towards Development from Within Kabanda Mwansa shares his experience of participating in the People Based Development course held at the Manavodaya…
Story: 03.12.18 The Injustice of Benefit Sanctions The welfare system has become punitive, even more bureaucratic and humiliating. It delivers pain instead of support…
Story: 02.10.18 Northamptonshire - Abandon Hope All Who Enter Marion Turner-Hawes describes the hopeless, divide and completely undemocratic process by which Northamptonshire…
Story: 04.04.18 Krystian’s Inclusion Story My name is Krystian Shaw and I embrace inclusion and diverse abilities.
Story: 12.02.18 Government Cuts are Slowly Killing Me Lorraine Howard describes how the closure of the ILF and cuts in social care in Coventry are slowly killing her.
Story: 07.08.17 Basic Income Changed My Life Anne van Dalen describes the positive impact that the freedom and security of basic income had on her life.
Story: 03.07.17 Our New Family Peter Leidy shares his family's experience of partnering with another family to support an elderly relative.
Story: 07.03.17 Carers Benefits and Basic Income Citizen K explores the strange paradoxes of the UK's benefit system and argues for a system of basic income.
Story: 06.03.17 When is Change Progress? David Zigmond describes his final reflections as CQC closes down his GP practice for its refusal to be fully compliant…
Story: 05.03.17 When is Compliance Necessary for Public Safety? David Zigmond explores how regulation, disconnected from people's real experience and evidence of impact, can…
Story: 01.03.17 Assessing Need Under Austerity Virginia Moffatt compares previous efforts to assess the need for social care with the current systems emerging as…
Story: 03.02.17 Citizenship and Community Rowena Hallé shares Jim's story, arguing that we must support every person to share their gifts and value everyone as…
Story: 08.08.16 Dangers of Prescribed Tranquillisers (Benzodiazepines) Barry Haslam explains the devastating impact that commonly prescribed tranquillisers (Benzodiazepines) have had…
Story: 07.08.16 Devon County Council Supported Living Service Review An anonymous account of how one service provider saw services for people they support cut after a new round of…
Story: 04.08.16 Autism in the Care System Alice (mother of an autistic looked after child) describes the challenge of supporting a son who rejects human contact…
Story: 04.08.16 Care Cuts: Indignity & Uprootedness An anonymous account of the reality of social care for one man with complex disabilities in the United Kingdom.
Story: 22.03.16 A Student Nurse and the DWP Rebecca Allen explains what happens when a student nurse falls ill and needs assistance from the benefit system in the…
Story: 02.03.16 The Delight in Recognising a Friend Dominic Lodge describes the delight we find in friendship - the impossibility of any artificial replacement - and the…
Story: 18.01.16 Carla Uses an ISF Jenny Date describes how her daughter Carla uses an Individual Service Fund (ISF) so that she can have flexible support…
Story: 02.10.15 Using a Personal Health Budget Rob Moriarty describes the benefits of using a personal health budget for himself and the merits of the system.
Story: 14.09.15 Coffee, Cake and the Recipe for Friendship Living independently should not mean living in loneliness, Dominic Lodge has learnt from experience.
Story: 24.08.15 I Wanna Hold Your Hand Alison Chalmers realised it was time for her daughter to walk with independence, however difficult she found it as a…
Story: 24.08.15 The Person Who Most Inspires Me Alison Chalmers describes all the ways in which her daughter inspires her.
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