Positive Voices Self Advocacy Conference 2024

We had a fantastic time at the Positive Voices Self Advocacy Conference 2024 in Birmingham! It was a great way to finish off our time as the current Lewisham People’s Parliament reps’ team and meet some amazing new people.

The Journey

We had a long but fun journey from Lewisham to Birmingham. We had plenty of time to chat, laugh, and even catch some sleep! When we arrived at our hotel, we were blown away by how nice it was. The rooms were comfortable, the showers were nice and warm, and we all had hot chocolates and teas!

Party time

After a quick rest we headed downstairs for a party! We had some amazing food, like Shepherd’s Pie, Curry and Bread and Butter Pudding. We danced with some of our old friends and made some new ones. And we even sang some karaoke!

The Conference

The next day we had a big breakfast and got ready for the conference. At the conference, we learned a lot about what makes a good self-advocate and the importance of training. We also shared our experiences and achievements as a team. It was inspiring to hear from other groups like Sunderland People First, Sheffield Voices, Advocacy for All and My Life My Choice. We think it’s important for everyone to share what they are doing, so we can get ideas from each other and work together.

We told everyone about what Lewisham Speaking Up have done this year and sang a song that showed how we feel. The song was “Any Dream Will Do” from Joseph and the Amazing Technicolour Dream Coat. We even showed off our own Technicolour Dreamcoat with all the things we have done, and what being a self-advocate means to us. Then, everyone picked us as the most creative presentation, and we won a £100 pub voucher! Advocacy for All made a film of highlights of all the presentations which you can watch on YouTube.

We finished with a presentation from our hosts, Dudley Voices for Choice. That was one we won’t forget for a while!