It’s the most wonderful time of the year!
So it’s a pity that a fifth of disabled households won’t be celebrating Christmas this year as they can’t afford to, according to new data from the charity Sense.
With half in debt and a third skipping meals, disabled people are back to the days of Dickens and Mr Scrooge, where the ghost of Christmas Future really is looking at the death of metaphorical Tiny Tim. Many Tiny Tims. And bigger ones too.
Actually it’s not a pity at all.
It’s a complete outrage.
Far too many disabled people can’t heat, can’t eat, and can’t even get to food banks or public warm safe spaces if they can’t get carers either.
I met Santa (of course the real one) at a grotto this week and pleaded with him to leave coal for heating this year for those on the nice list.
He said that he and the elves were very confused about such requests this year.
They’re not the only ones.
How can it be 2022 and people are literally freezing and starving because the Government has slashed so many holes in the social safety net, it’s left holding sorry strings of lametta that can’t catch anyone before they fall?
Speaking of falls, in recent weeks, we have also heard that people who have falls at home during ambulance strikes won’t be classified as an emergency, which tells us everything we need to know about how the Government views disabled people.
We are a highly inconvenient truth.
But we’re not going away.
We’ll be staring in the windows of Whitehall, clanking our chains like Marley’s ghost, until this whole despicable, sorry mess is sorted out.
Let it glow, let it glow, let it glow
For those who do have some disposable income, it can be hard to find accessible celebratory events at Christmas time.
A growth area is glow trails, or light trails.
These are outdoor installations in grand or natural settings such as forests – huge, beautiful neon light installations, designed to invoke joy and wonder.
Access varies wildly – but Leeds Castle has got it right this year.
Its beautiful landscape has a tarmac path the whole way round – mud is often a challenge for people with mobility impairments, wheelchair users and scooter users for glow trails set in garden grounds and forests.
The only iffy bits are a steep blue badge car park and initial steep slope into the grounds – a bit of a rollercoaster for manual wheelchair users.
Weeknights offer less busyness for people with neurodiversity and the need for a little more space and calm.
There are benches and rest points round the trail, signage is clear, and stewards are super helpful.
It wasn’t just the lights glowing by the end. We were too.
Dancing on ice
Last month I went to Somerset House for an ice skating session.
Me, with my shonky legs, on a vast expanse of ice, listening to a chilled soundtrack of Benjamin Clementine and Laura Marling, whizzing round the rink like a pro.
How?
Wheelchair ice skating.
And that should say ‘with’ a pro.
I was pushed round by the lovely Selena – a figure skater who is competition level.
Somerset House lets anyone with a manual wheelchair book a space if there is room, but it is also running dedicated access sessions for wheelchair users and their carers over the winter.
The whole arena is ramped, and the specialist sessions have a mobiloo – a fully accessible van with an accessible loo and a changing place – a full size bed and hoist for those who need alternative toileting provision.
It is so good to be able to participate in activities which are often out of reach for people who use mobility equipment.
I’m no Jayne Torvill, but I had forgotten how good it is to feel the chill of the air over ice, and the wind on my face, gliding around a winter wonderland.
Well done, Somerset House.
I hope other rinks follow suit.
