This week’s postcard is by Nathan, a man who is passionate about protesting the government’s recent changes to bedroom tax.

Nathan’s postcard is called “Taxing Times” and features an image of himself with the words ‘no to bedroom tax’ spelled out in 2p coins.

“This is my protest against the coalition government’s irresponsible slashing of benefits for those who need them the most,” explains Nathan. “In particular, a criticism of the new Bedroom Tax, which unfairly targets the most vulnerable in society while the wealthy enjoy tax cuts.

“I was fortunate enough to win my appeal against this ludicrous levy, but I know plenty of people who’ve been less fortunate and had to be rehoused as a result. The postcard makes my feelings clear.”

You can read the full story of “Taxing Times” and find many more fantastic postcards on the Postcards from the Edges website.

Nathan created a second postcard called “Help” which you can find here.

As always, we still want more people to get creative and make their own postcard. If you haven’t yet made one, why not head to the postcards website for some inspiration.

You can create your own postcard online by pressing the green ‘Create a card’ button on the homepage.

However, if you’d like to get your hands on a postcards pack (includes postcards, freepost envelope to send back and more information on the project) then please request one using the form here or by emailing postcards@unitedresponse.org.uk.

Beth Bridewell, Web Assistant

Martin Hamilton has been United Response’s employment lawyer for the past 16 years. He and some of his colleagues have decided to take on an impressive challenge to raise valuable funds for United Response.

Running with five of my colleagues in the Leeds Half Marathon on Sunday morning, I thought to myself: it doesn’t get much better than this! A city’s traffic grinding to a halt to allow me (and 5,999 other runners) to indulge in something I really enjoy and (in a manner of speaking) am getting paid for it…

The Capsticks Runners have just completed the first of the two half marathons we’re running this year to support United Response in their 40^th anniversary year. The idea came to me on a miserable Sunday evening – during one of the darkest and coldest Januarys I can remember – in a moment of serendipity. Why don’t we run a kilometre for each of United Response’s 40 years, across the two cities where United Response and Capsticks are both based – Leeds and London?

I’ve been United Response’s employment lawyer since pretty much the day I started at Capsticks in 1997! During that time United Response and I have had a funny knack of following each other round. We used to be next door to each other in Putney, then we both moved our main offices to Wimbledon, then we both opened up in Leeds (though United Response had a head start on us that time!).

Right from the start I’ve always hugely admired United Response – their work with and for people with disabilities, striving for them to be equal participants in society with the same rights and opportunities as everyone else. It seems to me this is such a self-evidently right and good thing to be about.

From advising United Response over the years I’ve got a fair idea of just how much time, effort and resource it takes to make that self-evident truth happen – and this is becoming ever more challenging in these times of local authority and NHS cutbacks. Being able to give a little bit back, has been really rewarding for all of us involved in the running.

And the getting paid for bit? Colleagues, friends and family of the Capsticks Runners have been really generous in their giving. We’re well on our way to our fundraising target of £2,000 for our second run in October at the beautiful Royal Park Run in London. Please help us get there!

You can donate to Martin and the Capsticks Runners by visitng their virigin money giving page.

Martin Hamilton, Capsticks Employment Laywer

These are difficult times for many charities. We are operating in a very difficult financial climate, where both local authority budgets and individuals’ disposable incomes are increasingly squeezed. Additionally, recent controversies such as the Cup Trust scandal and the fees paid to fundraising agencies have led to a decline in public trust, and the questioning of our techniques and methods, as well as our ethics and transparency.

Give Where You Live (www.givewhereyoulive.org.uk), a brand new initiative funded by the Cabinet Office Innovation in Giving Fund managed by Nesta and led by United Response, is an attempt to respond to some of these often very valid concerns. Through it, we seek to champion local, transparent and above all inspiring giving by helping people to connect with projects and causes that they believe in and want to support.

Through the use of an interactive platform – developed in partnership with digital media agency and social enterprise Reason Digital – Give Where You Live allows people to find their nearest project or event. They can then donate towards specific projects or items of equipment, read about how their donations have made a difference to people’s lives and explore stories of the achievements of people we support. The platform also allows people to find opportunities to volunteer their time.

For example, as part of our 40^th Anniversary celebrations, United Response services up and down the country are organising ‘4tea’ parties in their local area. Using Give Where You Live, people can find details of their nearest party, read about the work of the project hosting the party, or even donate to items on a special timto ‘uplifting gifting’ list compiled by their local project – a bit like a wedding gift list but with vital equipment designed to make a big difference.

Thanks to our partnership with Do-It people can also donate their time by searching for projects and individuals who need a helping hand in their local community – whether they’re looking for a ‘buddy’ to go with them to the football, or someone to help out with gardening or using a computer.

To find out more about what’s happening in your local area, and how you can get involved, visit: www.givewhereyoulive.org.uk

Martyn Weeds, fundraising manager.

We asked Andy to tell us more about his postcard called ‘Energy and Joy’ and where he got his inspiration from:

“One of the side effects of my brain tumour is epilepsy. After a seizure you get tired and the drugs you take to control the seizures also make you tired. Life can be very hazy, lived through a veil of tiredness.”

Andy continues: “But is not always like that. There are times when I become me again, when I nearly burst as I see the beauty around me – I am full of energy and joy. It was at one of those times that I made this painting. Even if it is only for moments – life can be wonderful.”

Find out more about this postcard by viewing the postcard and story in full on the Postcards from the Edges website.

We hope this series of blogs encourages you to get creative; we are always in search of more postcards and stories. Everybody has something to contribute, whether you consider yourself artistic or not.

To request a postcard pack, email postcards@unitedresponse.org.uk or filling out the online request form. Alternatively, like Andy, you can upload a postcard online and add your own text using the online creator tool. Just head to the Postcards from the Edges omepage and hit the green ‘Create a card’ button.

Beth Bridewell, Web Assistant

To find out more about the work United Response do with Acquired Brain Injury, see our dedicated web pages.

We’re aiming to beat the amazing £11,000 it raised last year, with the generous support of England football legend, Gary Lineker, and TV sports presenter and United Response vice president, Steve Rider.

Match of the Day anchorman Lineker said: “I wanted to support United Response because of the vital work it does in the heart of communities across the UK, and its excellent reputation for delivering results that transform lives.”

Budding golfers are invited to sign up for the day and show off their skills on the impressive 70-par Richmond course, famous for its beautiful surroundings.

Following play, participants will be presented with their prizes by Steve Rider, followed by a well-earned sumptuous three-course lunch. The day will conclude with a Q&A session with Gary Lineker and a charity auction in which individuals can win exclusive prizes to help raise further funds.    

Entry for the tournament costs £120 per golfer, £480 for a team of four or £65 for lunch only. Everyone who books a place for golf or lunch will be entered into a prize draw to win a seat at Gary Lineker’s table for lunch.

You can book online here or by contacting Lindsey Simmonds on 020 8246 5208 or email Lindsey.Simmonds@unitedresponse.org.uk

Further information about the golf day can be found here.

This week’s postcard is called ‘Bonds’ and has been created by Matthew Wren. Matthew is a trained artist who has a personal experience of supporting those with learning disabilities and autism. Check out some of our previous postcards of the week here.

Matthew’s postcard is inspired by his experience with vulnerable people. We asked him to tell us more about his postcard:

“It’s an abstract painting about the things that make all human beings flourish. There’s obviously a heart at the centre of it, but there’s also a gold circle, and for me that symbolises the bonds that hold us all together.”

You can read the full story of “Bonds” and find many more fantastic postcards on the Postcards from the Edges website.

This week we’ve also launched a Twitter competition in which we are offering a bundle of arty goodies as a prize. Find out more about our competition and how to enter here.

As always, we still want more and more people to get creative and make their own postcard. If you haven’t yet made one, why not head to the postcards website for some inspiration.

You can create your own postcard online by pressing the green ‘Create a card’ button on the homepage.

However, if you’d like to get your hands on a postcards pack (includes postcards, freepost envelope to send back and more information on the project) then please request one using the form here or by emailing postcards@unitedresponse.org.uk.

Beth Bridewell, Web Assistant

This week’s postcard of the week was created by Sarah and is called ‘The new me’.

Sarah receives support from United Response and wanted to join in the Postcards from the Edges campaign to tell people about how much she’s changed in the last few years.

“I used to have a bad life and never felt good about myself,” Sarah said. “My support staff make me feel good about myself. They help me to look nice and I like people to notice the change in me.

“Everyone now says how different I am and how pretty I am. It makes me feel really really happy. It is great to see my postcard on the website with all the others; I hope people look at it!”

Find out more of Sarah’s story by viewing the postcard on the Postcards from the Edges website.

If you want to make postcards at home, request one of our practical postcard packs – it contains everything you need; from the postcard template to ideas for themes – just email postcards@unitedresponse.org.uk or use the request form on this page.

Alternatively you can make one online. Just hit the green ‘Create a card’ button on the homepage.

Beth Bridewell, Media Assistant

Well I did it! 26.2 miles – that demon has been dealt with.

Everyone I spoke to who had run a marathon told me that it would be an amazing experience, and that the London marathon had the best atmosphere and crowds.

I can confirm that the people who lined the streets were fantastic – they were so supportive, cheering us on and shouting our names.

For me, the training was the hardest part of the whole experience! Especially in freezing winter conditions, which felt like they would never turn into spring.

After acclimatising to the sunshine, I started to feel really good. At mile seven my knee started to niggle but I refused to acknowledge it and kept a steady pace. However, by mile 20 the knee won the battle and buckled under me – despite me shouting at it and telling it to behave!

I must say a BIG thank you to the medics and physiotherapists on the route who tried icing it, then half a mile later taping it up and then after another half mile massaging it.

I could see my target time of 4 hours 15 minutes slipping away – in fact I couldn’t start running again until after the 24 mile mark. I shouldn’t really have run but I couldn’t bear the thought of not cracking 5 hours. I did – 4 hours 58 minutes was my finish time.

The biggest achievement for me was raising money for United Response, I’m so pleased that I hit my fundraising target  and want to thank  all who donated to a cause that I really do believe makes a difference.

So now my friends are asking me if I would do it again. At the moment, I can say emphatically – “NO”.  Still, just a year ago, none of my friends ever though that I would even attempt to run a marathon, let alone complete it! So I suppose, I’ll never say never… for now.

         Naga Munchetty

You can follow Naga on Twitter @BBCNaga

The 2014 Virgin Money London Marathon ballot opened and closed today, ballot places are hard to come by! If you are looking for a charity to run for then contact our fundraising team to discuss the great package we offer. 

United Response has been working in York for many years and runs a growing range of employment projects in the area. These include working with disabled people and local employers to find job opportunities and a brand new York branch of UR Consultants, our “disability consultancy” that helps businesses to make their products and services accessible to disabled customers.

Last but not least, there is of course Krumbs Kitchen, which has been providing catering training and work experience to people with learning disabilities for 18 years. Through Krumbs, people are able to work towards their NVQ in catering, learn on the job and then move on to mainstream employment.

But how did a charity run café get to be providing the catering at this prestigious event? It all began when Geoff Davidson, Associate Director of ARUP, started to visit Krumbs. He soon became a regular and one day asked us if we could provide bacon rolls for a meeting. They must have been good bacon rolls!

After that the relationship developed. We started providing small buffets for ARUP on a regular basis. They very kindly reprinted our Christmas menus for us and donated a computer to us which they were otherwise going to get rid of.  But being asked to cater for the HS2 event really was the icing on Krumbs’ cake!

Ultimately though, it wasn’t so much the bacon rolls that got Krumbs to the Guildhall. Rather, it was someone being willing to think a bit differently, a bit creatively, and to give Krumbs and its trainees the chance to prove their skills. They did so in spades! The food was exemplary and the pride that the trainees took in serving it at such a prestigious event was clear to see.

But we are not stopping there! There is so much more we want to do – including working with more local businesses around employment and accessibility. We are not asking for tea and sympathy (we can do the tea ourselves!), we are asking for opportunities – and for other people to think a bit differently and a bit creatively about the opportunities they might have.

It might be that there are jobs we could help fill – a work placement or paid work.

It might be about how UR Consultants could help a business reach more disabled customers. Or it might just be some top quality bacon butties for a meeting.

And who knows what might happen next?

Diane Lightfoot, Director of Communications & Fundraising

UR Consultants is a unique service providing bespoke disability awareness training and consultancy.

My name is Paul Mitten and I work for UR consultants, who are part of United Response. I have been working with Claire, an employment advisor, to put together a session to help other people with learning disabilities learn how to get a job.

Claire told me about the Great British Care Show at the Salford City Stadium and how I could help by encouraging more people with learning disabilities to think about working.

Claire and I met up and got working on a presentation, which I will be sharing during a ‘light bulb’ session in the care show.

I hope to be able to share my story of getting a job, by showing some photographs of me getting ready and going to work.  I will be talking about the good things about work, as well as things which are important like being on time and being clean and dressed in the right way.

I also said to Claire that we should talk about where people could go for help if they want a job and how United Response helped me!

After the event

At the Great British Care Show I had to talk on the stage about working for UR Consultants and putting together our raising aspirations training.

The show took place in a big room, filled with lots of people on stalls who were giving information about the work they do. I had to talk through a microphone, and lots of people listened but I wasn’t nervous. I liked telling people about my job, and how other people with disabilities could work.

You could hear my voice all around the room and lots of people said I was really good. I was asked if I could do the training in the United Response office in Leigh, for some of the people who are supported in the area.

The stalls in the show had information about things to do with care and services you can get in the Manchester area.  We had a stall for United Response which I helped out on, I had to give information about United Response and answer questions that people asked me.

It was a good opportunity to meet new people, and other people who work for United Response. If something like this came up again, I would be happy to help out again, especially as I got paid!

The Great British Care Shows are a series of regional care shows. The events include a speaker’s programme, light bulb sessions, drop in advice clinics and product demonstrations. Over the next month, there are shows every week across the country. The next care shows is tomorrow in Newcastle.

The launch will take place at 1.30pm at the Inspire Café in Aberdeen – we are proud to be partnering with Inspire and the Scottish Consortium For Learning Disabilities. The event will feature Dame Anne talking about why she supports the project and discussing the newspaper with local people with learning disabilities, the people the newspaper is particularly designed for. Journalists and local disabled people are invited to email Jaime.gill@unitedresponse.org.uk if they want to attend – but space is strictly limited.

Dame Anne said: “I was very impressed when I attended the launch of Easy News in the House of Commons so I was keen that it should be available in Scotland too.  I’m particularly delighted that the Scottish launch is happening in Aberdeen. Not having access to news in a format which you can understand can make you feel left out of what is happening in the world. I hope that as many people as possible in Aberdeen will benefit from this newspaper.”

Easy News is designed to tackle the “information gap” facing many people with learning disabilities. United Response’s own research revealed last year that only 11% of people with learning disabilities read newspapers, usually because they are deterred by the complexity of the language.

Partly as a result, just 16% of people with learning disabilities said they were interested in politics, and over half didn’t feel that politics actually had an impact on their daily lives. Easy News is designed to change that, with 58% of respondents saying that they would be interested in reading an accessible newspaper with simple language and strong visual images to help people understand. 

The newspaper is translated into “easy read” by UR Consultants, a team of people with learning disabilities. One of the consultants is Nick Smith, from Manchester. He says “I like to stay informed. I watch the news two or three times a day, I like to see if anything’s changed. But I know some people who can’t keep up with things because they can’t read. I hope people like that will think Easy News is good, that it helps. The news is important for everybody.”

Easy News will be produced every other month and will be available in paper, downloadable PDF and audio versions. The second edition, the first to be launched in Scotland, covers the horsemeat scandal, the Oscar Pistorius court case, a new report into disability benefits, the long winter and the EU referendum, amongst other topics.

Entries for Postcards from the Edges have come in many forms. From paintings and photography to poetry. Sue’s postcard includes a poem about the challenges she sometimes faces when she gets on the tube to go to work

Sue Kent is a leading masseuse in the field of barefoot, no hands massage. She is keen that people with disabilities have the access and opportunity to develop a career in the areas that interest them.

“As a woman my line of beauty is foreshortened, my arms are 8” long and I have 7 fingers,” explains Sue. “I love clothes but so often I cannot wear the clothes that are in the shops and so over the years, I have turned to shoes as an expression of my sense of fashion.

“I often work in London and travel to work by tube.” She continues: “As I grow older and the escalators go faster, I find my worsening eye sight is affecting my ability to balance. People don’t notice my arms from behind and will knock me in their rush and so the height of my shoes is reducing when on public transport.

“The impending sensible shoe wearing causes me immense stress and sadness, a vain and vacuous admission. When I am stressed I write poems.”

Find out more by viewing the postcard and story in full on the Postcards from the Edges website.

Sue also submitted a second postcard called ‘Straight Lines’ – you can see the postcard and full story here.

If you would like to join in Postcards from the Edges, you can request a postcard pack by emailing postcards@unitedresponse.org.uk. The packs include more information, some example postcards, blank postcards and a free post envelope.

Alternatively, you can create a postcard online by clicking the green ‘create a card’ button to get started.

Beth Bridewell, Media Assistant

Embarking from the marathon start at Greenwich at 9:20am on Sunday, 25 minutes before the mass start, a group of the world’s elite wheelchair marathon athletes will race through the streets of London.

In attempt to win one of the most famous road races in the world, the athletes use high-tech wheelchairs custom fitted to each competitor – but the history of this event stretches back 40 years to far humbler beginnings.

Here are 12 facts that you might not know about the history of wheelchair marathons, from 1970 to the present day…

1) In 1970 Eugene Roberts, a Vietnam veteran from Baltimore, USA, became the first athlete to complete a wheelchair marathon as an unofficial participant of the Boston Marathon. After pushing his hospital-issued wheel chair the hour journey to Boston, Roberts completed the marathon in around 7 hours.

2) The first wheelchair marathon took place in Toledo, Ohio in 1974 and the event was integrated into the Boston Marathon the following year – with a 24 year old paraplegic named Bob Hall becoming the first official wheelchair marathon racer.

3) The Paralympic games at Stoke Mandeville in 1984 heralded in the first real use of specialist sporting wheelchairs, seeing a vast improvement over the only slightly modified and heavy day-chairs used before this.

4) Today’s elite wheelchair athletes compete in custom-built racing wheelchairs, designed to be lightweight and aerodynamic. They achieve this using carbon fibre and aluminium components combined with a far lower-slung design than everyday wheelchairs.

5) The wheelchair event that takes place on the day of the London Marathon is actually named the IPC Athletics Marathon World Cup and requires competitors to provide proof that they have completed a previous marathon in under 3 hours, making for a very hotly contested and prestigious event.

6) The world best time for a wheelchair marathon is 1:18:25 and this is held by Josh Cassidy. This broke the record set by Ernst van Dyk in Boston in 2004.

7) David Weir, the British Paralympic wheelchair athlete has won the LondonMarathon six times and plans to defend his title for the seventh time at the 2013 event.

8) Weir credits beetroot juice as playing an important part in keeping him race fit! Weir consumes huge quantities of the drink, which only has 39 calories per serving.

9) In 2012 Weir completed the marathon in a time of 1:32:23, almost half an hour quicker than Kenya’s Wilson Kipsang, the winner of the men’s able-bodied race who finished in a time of 2:04:44.

10) Shelly Woods, another UK based Paralympic wheelchair athlete is looking to obtain her third title at this year’s event.

11) Research has discovered that wheelchair athletes have faster average speeds than their able-bodied counterparts over distances of more than 400m.

12) Whilst only elite wheelchair athletes are permitted in the IPC Athletics Marathon World Cup event, in 2013 for the first time, a small group of participants will be allowed to take part in the their wheelchairs in the main race as part of a trial initiative.

• Sources: www.virginlondonmarathon.com and http://www.bwra.co.uk/history.html

First, I wanted to express how shocked and dismayed I was after the terrible events at the Boston Marathon earlier this week. I know that the runners would have worked so hard in their training, many to raise money for charitable causes, and to be attacked in this way is beyond comprehension. My thoughts and heartfelt sympathies are with the families of the victims.

I am now more determined than ever to complete the London Marathon on Sunday. It will be an emotional moment when we mark the tragedy with a 30 second silence before the race and I will be thinking about the victims and their families.

It helps knowing I’m running for a good cause and secondly for a sense of personal achievement.  I’m really pleased that I’m raising money for United Response as it celebrates 40 years as a charity.

I’m particularly thrilled to hear about the launch of Easy News – the first newspaper designed to for people with learning disabilities. It ties in well with my work as a journalist.

I strongly believe that my job is not to just ‘tell’ viewers about the news – but to help them understand its importance and how it will affect them. If people find it difficult to stay informed then we are certainly not doing our jobs well.

I would feel out-of-the loop if I wasn’t aware of what is going on and I certainly wouldn’t have the confidence to make decisions as important as who to vote for in political elections.

I think that more and more people are willing to talk about what is going on in the news – whether over dinner, on the golf course (in my case) or simply catching up with a friend over a coffee. This is how we interact with and learn about each other and lay the foundations of friendship.

No one should feel that they aren’t informed enough to voice an opinion and engage in a conversation. We should all keep on talking and as any of my friends and colleagues will tell you, I’m certainly not shy when it comes to that!

I must admit, I’m enjoying the idea of winding down after I’ve completed the marathon. The training has been tough. The worst thing is since it’s a challenge I set for myself, I can only blame myself!

A few weeks ago, I ran 20 miles in 3 hours and 24 minutes. I felt proud of the achievement but my legs were feeling it for many days after! On Sunday, I’m hoping for a time of around 4 hours and 30 minutes. But I’m starting to think time is irrelevant and that I just need to finish without falling over when I cross the finish line!

Here’s hoping that I have a good story to tell after April 21!

             Naga Munchetty

You can follow Naga on Twitter @BBCNaga. If you would like to sponsor Naga then visit her Virgin Money Giving page. If you fancy a challenge of your own then why not trek London2Brighton.

This is just one of the reasons we’ve launched Postcards from the Edges,  United Response’s biggest creative campaign ever.

We’ve received a real range of postcards over the last few months. This diversity has been reflected in people’s motivation for creating a card. The act of creating a postcard has meant different things to different people; from a therapeutic exercise to a bold statement shouted at the world.

This week’s postcard of the week was created by Christ Wright and is called ‘Welcome to my world’.

Chris’s postcard tells a powerful story. It includes an image of his medical records from 1993, when he was aged 11.

Chris said: “I’ve always been an open book when it comes to my mental health even if some people can be ignorant about it and don’t want to talk about the taboos.”

He continues: “I would like my postcard to shock. Mental health is not a joke; it’s something that is close to my heart.”

Find out more about this postcard by viewing the postcard and story in full on the Postcards from the Edges website.

To join in the project, please create a postcard online or please email postcards@unitedresponse.org.uk with a postal address to request a postcard pack. Or request a postcard pack using the online form here.

Beth Bridewell, Media Assistant

Most people who do a marathon stop after one! Why do you keep coming back? 

I think it is down to my determined character. I’ve suffered setbacks in the past when training for marathons, from chest infections to having a back operation.

The back operations have made me think that you have a choice: you either sink or you pull yourself through it. I’ve kept going and it’s a great feeling when you cross the finish line.

What obstacles have you overcome this year?

In November I tore a cartilage in my left knee and had to have an arthroscopy in January. I’m pleased I was able to come back from this and after training hard, it’s feeling better.

What is your training regime?

I put in three to four hours a day, six days a week. I start in October and train through the cold winter months until the marathon in April.

What is your favourite marathon moment?

In 2011 I did the marathon 7 weeks post-op after my back operation. That is my biggest achievement! As you can imagine I was just really happy to make the finish line!

What spurs you on when you’re running?

The crowds give you so much encouragement which keeps you going. My friends, family and colleagues have also been very supportive with sponsorship.

I have two family members with complex learning disabilities and am well aware of the challenges they face on a daily basis. I found out about the marvelous work United Response does with people with learning disabilities to improve the quality of their lives; this has proved a great motivation for me.

Interview by Mark Schueler, Fundraising Officer

To sponsor Kate, please visit her online fundraising page.

If you have been inspired by Kate’s running story, we have one place left in the Bupa London 10,000, a 10k run through the heart of the capital. For more information, visit our Bupa London 10,000 page.

The change comes against a backdrop of controversy and concern from disabled people and activists, who will deliver a petition bearing 450,000 names to the Department of Work and Pensions demanding that the Work and Pensions Secretary live off “£53 a week” as he insisted he could.

The Work and Pensions Secretary has dismissed the petition as a stunt but it’s harder to dismiss the genuine and understandable worries many disabled people have about the introduction of PIP.

The move was first announced back in 2010 when the full extent of the Government’s plans to cut public spending were revealed. Despite the Government’s claims that disability benefits reforms would not be purely about cost-cutting, the fact that they identified a 20% saving at the same time seemed to undermine this position.

The biggest concerns about the move to PIP centre on the fact that the Government itself estimates that half a million people will lose funding, a huge number which makes it inevitable that many will suffer hardship, as well as the potentially restrictive and arduous assessment process. The fact eligibility and face to face assessments will be managed by the same businesses that ran the Work Capability Assessments, which have been universally recognised as highly flawed, only adds to the sense of fear.

Of course, it’s not possible to be sure of the impact of the move to PIP at this early stage, and the difficulties could be eased or worsened by their implementation.

At United Response we are calling on all our staff to work closely with disabled people who they support and let us know if they are let down, treated unfairly or, indeed, provided with a good service. We are also asking people to let us know what the impact of the move to PIP has been on their lives. We will be sharing their stories in this space and more widely in the future.

However, we can be sure that even if the introduction of PIP goes better than expected, many will lose out, and that this will only be a new pressure point on people who are already facing hardship. Already local authorities have slashed services to vulnerable people as a result of Government spending cuts, while inflation has made the cost of living much higher for disabled people, who were already disproportionately poor.

Research by Demos and commissioned by Scope has shown that in total disabled people will be hit by up to six different welfare cuts, with the very worst off potentially losing up to £23,000 each over five years. The effect, reported the Guardian, will “be to plunge tens of thousands of disabled people deeper into poverty.”

It is up to all of us to be aware of how our more vulnerable friends and neighbours are doing in the coming months and years. If they are to face hardship, we need to be prepared to step in to help and to speak out with them against unfairness.

Jaime Gill, head of press and public affairs

Postcards have been submitted to the Postcards from the Edges website or posted to us from all over the country and we love seeing your postcard creations.

Each week, we have been choosing a postcard to feature as our ‘postcard of the week’. This week’s featured postcard is called ‘See me’. It was created by Anna who works for United Response but also has relatives who work in the support sector.

Anna created her postcard to highlight the invisibility of people with disabilities in the media. Whilst we think it’s great that leading brands have started to recognise the importance of including disabled people such as Debenham’s recent stand against ’size zero tyranny’, there’s a long way to go before all disabled people are visible.

Anna said: “There are over one million adults with learning disabilities in the UK, yet if you went by what you see in films, TV and magazines, there’s only about 10 and they all have Down’s syndrome.

Until we see more disabled people playing roles on our screens, people will continue to feel uncomfortable and awkward if they meet someone with a disability in real life. We need to normalise being different.”

Find out more about this postcard by viewing the postcard and story in full on the Postcards from the Edges website.

Why not create your own card, expressing what’s important to you? The Postcards from the Edges website includes a postcard creator tool so you can make a postcard online. Just click the green ‘Create a card’ button on the homepage. Alternatively, we can send you a postcard pack which includes:

- More information about United Response and the project

- Four postcards

- A postcard template for photocopying (in case you want to make more)

- An easy read guide to creating postcards

- A freepost envelope so you can send it back to us.

If you would like a pack, please email postcards@unitedresponse.org.uk with your postal address or request one using the online form here.

Beth Bridewell, Media Assistant

We have chosen a postcard called ‘See the child’ as this week’s ‘Postcard of the week’. This week’s card was created by Liz, a mother who wants to contribute to raising awareness and understanding of autism.

Liz’s postcard shows her son laughing and having fun in the park. She says: “I wish that people would treat children with autism with as much compassion as they would a child with a more visible disability, but equally I want people to realise that a disabled child isn’t defined by their disability and to see beyond this to the person inside.”

She continues: “I would love to see in the future more tolerance and kindness towards families with autism and this can only come with awareness and understanding, which is why I made my card”.

Find out more about this postcard by viewing the postcard and story in full on the Postcards from the Edges website.

We hope that this series of weekly blogs has inspired some of you to get creative but it also demonstrates that behind every postcard is a story that can be shared with the world. We want more postcards and more stories and believe that everyone has something to contribute; whether you consider yourself to be artistic or not.

Please email postcards@unitedresponse.org.uk with a postal address to request a postcard pack. Or you can request one using the online form here.

You can also create a card using our handy online creator tool. Just head to the Postcards from the Edges website and click the green ‘Create a card’ button on the homepage.

Featuring simple language and visual cues, this edition gives readers a news round up featuring the horsemeat scandal, the Oscar Pistorius court case, a new report into disability benefits, the nationwide freezing conditions and the EU referendum, amongst other topics.

Back in January United Response launched the first edition of Easy News because it was aware that few people with learning disabilities read traditional newspapers, as they are put off by complex language, small print and confusing layout.

The launch took place in the House of Commons and United Response was delighted by how the different political parties supported it: not only did Esther McVey, the minister for disabled people, come along to speak at the event, but so did her shadow, the Rt Hon Anne McGuire MP. Esther McVey described Easy News as a “wonderful initiative.”

The first edition was also greeted with positive coverage across the media, from national newspapers to specialist disability magazines. Perhaps most importantly, people with learning disabilities and their families were supportive. As one mother wrote to us: “My son has mild learning disabilities and autism. He enjoyed the first copy of Easy News and was particularly interested in the article about the Bristol care home scandal. This promoted a bit of a discussion which is rare occurrence as he is not very talkative.”

That’s not to say that people thought the first edition was perfect. We were always open about the fact that Easy News was a new initiative which would evolve, and that we wanted as much feedback as possible to make it better in the future. And people weren’t shy about responding – we had MPs, other charities, many readers and family members feeding back congratulations and a few criticisms.

The majority of people were very excited about the newspaper and felt that it struck an excellent balance between being informative about important news stories while also being accessible and using simple language that would connect with readers with learning disabilities. Everyone felt that it was an important and valuable project, a step towards full equality.

However, some people did feel that it was a shame that the first edition contained news stories from throughout 2012 as they felt that it meant many stories were a little “out of date”. Others felt that the newspaper looked a little bit too much like a brochure, and wondered if the front page could be made more visually striking, as newspapers are. We have ensured that both of these changes – amongst many others – have been taken on board in this new edition of Easy News, with its high impact cover and stories rounded up from the last few weeks.

Not that we expect it to be perfect yet – we still want to hear from readers on ways to make edition three even better. Some problems are an inevitable by-product of the time it takes to translate and print the newspaper – for example, eagle eyed readers will notice that our story on the Pope says that a new appointment would not be made til Easter, a fact which has been overtaken by events. However, we still want to hear from you on the content and the look, so that we can make improvements wherever possible. But for now – read all about it.

Jaime Gill, Head of Press and Public Affairs

Download Easy News issue 2 as a PDF

Donate to help ensure the Easy News service continues (make sure you include ‘Easy News’ in the donation target box)

Sign up to receive an online copy or print copy of Easy News by emailing easynews@unitedresponse.org.uk or by filling in the form on the bottom of this page.

These reforms will have a significant effect on disabled people, including many of the people supported by United Response but they are extremely complicated and it can be hard to understand their cumulative impact. At United Response we are particularly concerned about how difficult it will be for people with learning disabilities – who are likely to be disproportionately affected by the changes – to grasp how they may be affected. We do not want the people we support to suddenly find themselves in serious financial trouble or distress because they didn’t understand the changes.

For that reason, we have been informing our staff and people we support about the benefits changes taking place, using an “easy read” introduction to the changes as a key tool. We have campaigned for many years for information about money and democracy to be made more accessible, so it was important that we practiced what we preached and did the same for benefits.

The guide explains some of the most significant changes and explains what people can expect to happen over the next few years.  It was written with the people supported by United Response in mind, but we are keen to make it available to other organisations, support workers and individuals to use if they think it would be helpful. We consider it important that easy read materials should be widely disseminated and not held onto in a proprietary way.

You can find the guide here (or click on the image to the right) – we are very happy for anyone to use it to guide their own education efforts. However, we should stress at this stage that as well as being a document created with our own specific stakeholders in mind it is an easy read guide, which means that some details have been simplified and others omitted in order to make it as accessible as possible.

It is also important to remember that all of the reforms are subject to change and adjustment (the Government was still clarifying some details of its “bedroom tax” in the weeks before the guide was written). As a result, it is up to anyone who uses it to check the guide and tailor it to the needs of their own service users.

While the guide cannot cover all aspects of the changes, it will help to raise awareness of some of the most significant issues.  It also includes some of the places that people can go for support or advice if they need extra information.  If there are any further changes, these sources will have the most up-to-date information. We hope the guide will have some value during a time of upheaval and doubt.

Rachel Bowen, Campaigns Officer

We know that word of the project is spreading and we encourage you all to share you creations with your family and friends.  If you haven’t yet joined in, then why not have a look on the website for some inspiration and make the most of  the opportunity to send a postcard to the world.

In this series of weekly blogs, we have been giving you some of the stories behind the postcards we have received.

This week’s ‘Postcard of the week’ is called ‘A great boyfriend’ and was created by Eric at a workshop in York. Eric’s postcard is about focusing on things he is good at, such as being a good boyfriend to his girlfriend, Liz. The postcard shows a photo of them looking very happy together.

Find out more about this postcard by viewing the postcard and story in full on the Postcards from the Edges website.

The Postcards from the Edges website includes a postcard creator tool so you can make a postcard online. Just click the green ‘Create a card’ button on the homepage. Alternatively, we can send you a postcard pack which includes more information, blank postcards, an easy read guide to creating postcards and a freepost envelope so you can pop the postcards in the post to us.

If you would like a pack, please email postcards@unitedresponse.org.uk with your postal address or request one using the online form here.

Beth Bridewell, Media Assistant

We spoke to John Courtney, James’s foster parent and guide runner about James’s running career so far, and why they are running this year’s Virgin London Marathon to raise money for United Response.

Can you tell us a bit about you and James and your running careers so far?

I’m John and I’m 74 years old. James is 40 years old, which is quite fitting as I believe it is also United Response’s 40^th anniversary. This will be James’s 45^th marathon and 18^th London Marathon, and will be my 52^nd marathon in total.

So what made you and James start running?

I didn’t start marathon running until I was 49 years old. One day, I fell asleep on the sofa and when I woke up my son said that I would never be able to do a marathon. I set out to prove him wrong!

Before James became my foster son, he wasn’t used to exercising or outside environments. We began to grow James’s confidence. We started off walking together, at first only 100 yards. The walks became longer and turned into light jogs until eventually we started marathon running. It took us two and a half years to train for our first marathon and it took me and James 6 hours and 47 minutes to finish it. That was some achievement! Our quickest marathon time is now 4 hours and 20 minutes.

James is blind – what challenges does that bring to running together?

A lot of blind runners use a rope or cord to join them with their guides but James is so trustworthy of me that he can run independently. If you can imagine for a minute, it’s the same as me saying to you: ‘shut your eyes and run with me for five hours!’ Most people wouldn’t be able to do it but James is a one-off. I stay two paces in front of him and he taps me on the shoulder or elbow so that he knows where I am.

Do you have any routines that help you get through a marathon?

Before the run we say a prayer and during the run we sing songs including ‘Run Rabbit Run’ to keep us going.

Why are you running to raise money for United Response this year? 

James has had a lot of support from United Response over the years, in particularly through United Response’s Shared Lives scheme in Liverpool. It will be an honour to run for United Response this year and to raise money to improve the lives of people like James. I am so amazed by James’s ability. To show the bravery he has demonstrated is an inspiration to us all.

Interview by Mark Schueler, Fundraising Officer

To sponsor James, please visit his online fundraising page.

If you have been inspired by James and John’s story, we have one place left in the Bupa London 10,000, a 10k run through the heart of the capital. For more information, visit our Bupa London 10,000 page.

We wanted to use the opportunity to take a step back and reflect on the progress we have made over four decades, as well as to recognise how much more will need to be done over the next 40 years.

A lot has happened in 40 years, as you might expect. For United Response, the years have seen us grow from a tiny charity operating one house in West Sussex into one of the country’s largest social care providers. Where once we supported a few people with learning disabilities we now support thousands of people across the disability spectrum and beyond, including people with mental health needs, autism and physical disability.

Much more importantly, we have seen major strides forward for disabled people, particularly people with learning disabilities. Where once most people we support were told they couldn’t live in their own homes, have a job, get married, vote or live a normal life, now many are doing all of these things.

But there is still so much more to do. There are still profound challenges facing disabled people, such as poverty, bullying or a lack of understanding from the general public. Many are also understandably concerned about the impact of welfare reform, and fear financial hardship. We want to use our 40th anniversary to start to change that.

So, in January we launched Easy News, which we believe is the first accessible newspaper for people with learning disabilities. Last month saw the launch of our “Postcards from the Edges” project which will run throughout the year. Postcards from the Edges is a creative project which aims to give a voice and a platform to anyone who cares about disability issues. Participants simply fill a blank postcard with drawings, photographs or words which express their views or tell the world something about their lives. We hope as many people as possible will spread the word and get involved – you can order a pack by emailing postcards@unitedresponse.org.uk or make a postcard at our dedicated new website, www.postcardsfromtheedges.org.uk

Moving forward, we will of course continue to campaign with and on behalf of the people we support until the rights and choices that others may take for granted are a reality for all.

If you’d like to find out more about what we’ve been up to over the past year click here to view our anniversary review online. We hope you enjoy it or find it thought provoking.

Diane Lightfoot, Director of Communications & Fundraising

In this series of weekly blogs, we want to give you the stories behind some of the postcards. Hopefully it will inspire you, and many others, to get involved.

This postcard was uploaded to the Postcards website from author and artist, E. V. Rose. She talks about her passion to create art at a time when she could paint without hindrance. When she looks back on her paintings she finds this one the most soothing and restful of all.

Find out more about this postcard by viewing the postcard and story in full on the Postcards from the Edges website.

The Postcards from the Edges website includes a postcard creator tool so you can make a postcard online. Just click the green ‘Create a card’ button on the homepage. Alternatively, we can send you a postcard pack which includes:

• More information about United Response and the project
• Four postcards
• A postcard template for photocopying (in case you want to make more)
• An easy read guide to creating postcards
• A freepost envelope so you can send it back to us.

If you would like a pack, please email postcards@unitedresponse.org.uk with your postal address or request one using the online form here.

Beth Bridewell, Media Assistant