Building Stronger Voices

Welcome to our page about the Stronger Voices Project – we would love for you to get involved!

ALLFIE’s new capacity-building project, funded by Trust for London, supports Disabled People’s Organisations (DPOs) to campaign and work more effectively for inclusive education, looking at the links between segregated education poverty and other forms of oppression. 

Through this work, we want to support the building of a strong connected disabled people’s sector and movement which challenges structural oppression in all its forms. To do this we need to build the skills and capacity of our movement as well as ensuring strong links across all movements.  

Capacity building allows a movement to campaign more effectively for positive social change and to use the rights and voices of all disabled people, including children and young people, to an inclusive mainstream education. We carry out capacity building to ensure sustainability and survival of the movement. To do this, we need to focus on those voices which have been erased and excluded. 

Through focusing on the connections between poverty segregated education and other oppressions, we will increase the ability of DPOs and other organisations to work together to challenge segregated education and its impacts.  

Through working in a way which makes connections between all forms of structural oppression (intersectionality) and using human rights we will increase the ability of organisations to campaign for the rights of disabled young people to inclusive education.  

There are lots of different ways we will do this…..so watch this space and get involved!! 

Why is this necessary? 

At ALLFIE, we recognise the importance of building skills within social justice movements and to join in solidarity to support the abolition of segregated education for all disabled people. Our Stronger Voices Project is important in order to build a community and work to build stronger social justice movements. This is because: 

• Inclusive education is fundamental to life and the UK education system creates barriers for disabled learners 
• Poverty is widespread and is set to get worse. There is a link between disabled people and those who are in poverty 
• Intersections between ableism, racism and other oppression  is embedded in the system and cause further barriers to education. This needs to change. 

We would love to hear your thoughts and experiences on what the links are and how they affect you. Contact:  Lani.Parker@allfie.org.uk  

 Getting Involved 

We want to bring our communities together to strengthen the inclusive education movement and better inform societies understanding about inclusive education for all disabled people as a human right. 

Join our Community of Practice and be part of the network to learn and improve our ability to challenge segregated education in all its forms. 

As part of the network, you will be able to: 

• Attend events 
• Get involved in campaigns 
• Support the making of resources and stories to strengthen our voices  
• Get access to support and resources 
• Join the Steering Group 

for more information please contact Lani.Parker@allfie.org.uk  

 Key Terms and Definitions 

“Capacity Building” 

Capacity Building has lots of different levels to it.  

On an individual level it means increasing knowledge and skills, whilst also giving people the ability to use and apply that knowledge and those skills. For organisations, groups and movements, it means increasing the ability to work flexibly and effectively. Increasing an organisation’s ability to work with others and strengthening its networks, increases our ability to build relationships and affect institutional and societal change.   

Capacity Building means: 

• Moving, changing and adapting with time 
• Increasing individual and collective resilience so that we can move together to create both big and small changes.   

• Bringing on others and sharing experiences  
• Developing resilience and adaptability  
• Being able to make more impact in our work  

Campaigning and Movement Building 

Working Together and Collaboration 

We cannot make social change on our own.  

We cannot build movements on our own.  

We aim to work in a way which values everybody’s opinion, strengths and experiences. We focus on relationships. We focus on building our own resilience and we focus on building collective vision without squashing or flattening experiences or opinions.   

To join our network, take part in training and attend our events, please contact: Lani.Parker@allfie.org.uk. 

Lani Parker, Capacity Development Officer (Stronger Voices Lead) 

“I am a white, disabled woman and I live in North London. I have worked in Disabled People’s Organisations and been active within Disabled people’s movements. I have also been involved with other movements and campaigns including migrant solidarity, abolition and feminism.  

I love bringing people together to have conversations, make connections and come up with new solutions to systemic problems….that’s why I’m so excited to be working on this project!”  

– Lani Parker