Two women with experience of working with the learning disabled community — Tracy Radford and Karen Aspley — are organising a second awareness short walk through Mansfield town centre.

OneWalk 2018 is aimed at both learning disabled people, people with autism and non-learning disabled people to celebrate inclusion.

Tracy and Karen said they hoped people would get involved to support people with learning disabilities and/or autism to have a voice. This year’s event has a new campaign. What if… is aimed at fostering understanding and community cohesion

“We want to give people with intellectual disabilities a louder voice and hopefully this call and response style campaign
will do that,” said Tracy and Karen.

“Walkers will make the ‘call’ by completing the ‘What if…’ sentence and walking with this on a banner to encourage the public to respond to it.

“So, for example, one woman we work with who has Down Syndrome said: “What if… I could get on a bus without people calling me names.”

“She could make this into a banner to use on the walk. The public would see this and hopefully be called to respond, either by just changing their thought process about learning disabilities or filling in a pledge card.”

The organisers are asking groups and individuals to make a banner to finish the ‘What if…’ sentence with something they would like to say to the public and businesses.

OneWalk 2018 will start and finish in the Market Place, from 11am, on Thursday, 21st June. The short walk, which will go up and down West Gate, up Regent Street, along Clumber Street and down Leeming Street back into the Market Place, has added poignance as it is being held during Learning Disability Week.

Learning disability choir Atmosphere Glee will be singing in the Market Place from 10.30am and the Mansfield District Corps of Drums will be leading the walk.

Go to www.facebook.com/equalsafelivinglife/videos/596956850661286/?t=11 to watch a promotional video.