Today has been a very Positive and Productive Day

Today was a productive day; we (I and mum) attended a meeting for Bournemouth University Carer and Service User Partnership.

We got asked to attend the meeting, because they are trying to put together a welcome booklet for new Carer and Service Users. Also they wanted to hear our ideas and input on what we thought should go in to this welcome pack, so I had to think back to before I got involved in this which wasn’t too hard as I only signed up a few months ago.

There were 7 people in the meeting, and it was all positive I think between us we came up with some good stuff to go into this pack. When this booklet gets made, hopefully I can get my hands on one and I’ll post some picture’s so you can see it.

We talked and disgust so much today and we got on the topic of fire alarm drills, so I shared my story of that time I got left in a room on a fire alarm drill by my own. 

Here it is if you have never read it 

I was doing a web design course and we were doing it up at Bournemouth University. And one day as we were all in the class doing our work and then the fire alarm goes off, and the tutor say’s right leave all your stuff and make your way outside. Everybody dose including the tutor and it’s just me left in the class room alone and I am in my wheelchair. This class room was on the 3^rd floor so I could not take the stairs plus I could no longer walk, so that option was out. I was sat there like what the hell do I do, so I rolled out into the hall way and this guy shouted hey over here, I’ll hold the lift for you. So we took the lift down, and then when we arrived outside and this woman started having a pop at us for using the lift because, if it had been a real fire the lift would have got stuck. Turns out what I was meant to do was wait in the class room and the tutor was meant to carry me down the stairs, which I turned round and said if it was a real fire I’d be burning up stairs,  as my tutor ran out and left me. And she didn’t know what to say and all my tutor could say was I am so sorry I forgot about you being disabled.  Nice of that tutor hey I didn’t mind though being forgotten I didn’t appreciate the shouting from that woman, that was my first time of been in a wheelchair and a fire alarm going off I didn’t know what the rules were of what I was meant to do. When you go into a wheelchair you don’t go to wheelchair school or get a manual, you got to learn it all for yourself.

They are going to look into it, and I think they want to set up a fire alarm drill for when they have some more wheelchair users in the building.

And on the bus on the way home, we got talking to this top lady form the University and she looked at me and said “so what course are you doing? To which I replied none I’m a Service User, I think she was a little bit taken back by that.  We got talking about my day, and on the topic of fire alarm drills again and she was like that’s a really important thing and she wanted to give me her business card but she had run out, and my mum looked at me and said I bet you don’t have yours... but Yes! I did, so I gave her one and she said she was going to email me sometime.

Today has been a very positive and productive day, and even got some networking done today who knows it may lead to some new doors opening for me. :-)