Researchers: Dr Diane Willis, Dr Kirstie Jamieson, Dr Paul C Sellors, Dr Jill Davey
With participants from FAIR and other organisations, project initiated in March 2025
The lives of families who have a member with a learning disability is multifaceted as it is for any family but sometimes, they need support in terms of where to find information or extra monetary support. This is where charities and voluntary services come in as they can prevent families from falling into crisis. However, many charities rely on fund raising or central funding such as from local councils. With the current economic crisis budgets are tight and many councils are exploring their budgets as are the government with the threatened cuts to disability payments. This film is important to both lead researchers because they have family members with a learning disability and are passionate about the rights of this community. Documentary film makers like Ken Loach have often captured the tide and made people and governments stop and think, hence this film looks at how charities work together to support families who may be falling into to crisis was a way to highlight the work the voluntary organisations and charities do.
The film we were making was born out the 2024 proposal of Edinburgh City Council to cut fund to some of the charity/voluntary organisations which could mean they could no longer function. It concerns a family a farther and son with learning disabilities and a daughter (who is a child carer) who inadvertently are falling into crisis. When trying to seek help all the charities/voluntary organisations had closed, hence they lost their home and are homeless. The scenario is repeated but now the charities/voluntary organisations were still funded, and through joint working these organisations support the family before they reached crisis.
Working with organisations and charities supporting people with learning disabilities and their families enabled the film to be coproduced by the community and for them to take ownership in forming the scenario, acting in the film and having fun along the way.