Rep Body Member, Kumudu and Membership and Engagement Lead, Amanda went to the Open University for the SHLD conference to run the Good Lives Photobooth. Here they share how it went…
Kumudu and Amanda went to the Social History of Learning Disability Conference 2025 to learn from others and share the Good Lives framework.
We were so pleased to be part of such a brilliant programme which opened our minds to the many different ways that people with Learning Disabilities are reclaiming and retelling their histories.
You can find out more about the conference here.
This year was the 30th Anniversary of the Social History of Learning Disability (SHLD) Conference Programme, held on 9-10th July 2025.
The conference is about the importance of the stories, memories and histories of people with learning disabilities.
It’s a powerful place where people with Learning Disabilities record their own experiences and take up space in the archives and history books!
We had to start our days off with some coffee at the Open University Hub to get ready for busy days filled with learning and listening and discussing peoples’ actions towards Good Lives!
We set up the Good Lives Photobooth which included:
- A table with information about Learning Disability England and Good Lives
- Posters about the Good Lives Framework and each of its chapters
- Whiteboards which had titles of each chapter
- Pens and Photosymbols for people to write and share their actions on their whiteboards
- The photo printer – so people could take their actions home with them
- …and a GIANT GREEN GLITTER CURTAIN to provide the perfect backdrop!
People could write or use Photosymbols to express their action and then they stood in front of the glitter curtain to get a photo with their action!
Lots of people shared and committed to taking actions towards Good Lives.
Thank you to everyone who shared their actions!
If you took part and shared your photo on social media – make sure to tag Learning Disability England.
– AmandaThe SHLD conferences have made a space where people with learning Disabilities have confronted historians and ‘official’ histories, they’re writing their stories and providing an important perspective on the histories and lives of people with learning disabilities.
We felt really lucky to see this in action and be part of this year’s conference.
I thought about what they said about recording people with learning disabilities’ experience so future generations could see and compare their experience to years gone by.
– Kumudu
You can find out more about Good Lives here.