People with learning difficulties speak out

PEOPLE FIRST is the name of the independent self-advocacy and collective advocacy organisation of people with learning difficulties in Scotland.

It is run by and for people with learning difficulties, and declares its purpose as being to bring about change by:

1. The way people with learning difficulties see themselves – most of us have grown up believing that we are not much use; that we have nothing useful to say and that we can do nothing for ourselves or anyone else.

2. The way the world sees and thinks about people with learning difficulties – most people in our communities believe that, at best, we are “poor souls” and, at worst, that we are a nuisance and a drain on society.

3. The law and policy as it affects people with learning difficulties – our lives are often ruled and directed by laws and policies that we have had no say in. One of our mottos is “nothing about us without us” and we’re pleased to say that, these days, Government and local government usually tries hard to listen to our points of view.