Sensory Stories of Black Britons 

Stories about the lives of three important historical and contemporary black Britons: Ignatius Sancho, Mary Seacole & Marcus Rashford.

Available to purchase on the Sensory Stories page.

Introduction from Dr Nicola Grove

During the COVID pandemic, a website was set up to collect stories of the lived experience of people with learning disabilities and autism during the crisis, giving them a platform for their voices to be heard. Called Surviving Through Story (survivingthroughstory.com), the project was co-led with a group of self-advocates and supporters from the Open University, The Rix Centre and Generate UK amongst others.

One of our advisors, Paul Christian, was galvanised in the summer of 2020 by the death in custody of George Floyd in the USA, news of which of course went all round the world and resulted in the Black Lives Matter movement. The historian David Olosoga published a best-selling book on the stories of black Britons, from the earliest times in our history, and some of these featured in a television series. Paul looked around for books on black history that could be read by people like himself who have learning disabilities. He couldn’t find any. However, Paul and Sue Ledger from the Open University have been working with the George Padmore Institute, a black history archive and centre for combating racism in London, to provide some easy-to-read resources to help fill this gap.

Paul was introduced to the Generate Race and Racism Awareness Group, also set up in the wake of the murder of George Floyd. Paul visited them and gave them a talk about his research, which interested them greatly, since they too had no prior knowledge of these stories. At the same time, Jo Grace and Nicola Grove had a conversation about the need for some more diverse resources for children and adults who benefit from sensory stories, very many of whom of course come from black or Asian British communities. Working with the Race and Racism group to devise these resources was an obvious opportunity which the young people enthusiastically embraced.

We looked at a timeline of black British history. There were so many inspiring stories we could have chosen! Marcus Rashford was our starting point, because everyone knew about him and his campaign for hungry children. For the other two stories we wanted excitement and drama; the potential for some sensory activities that would engage the audience; and a reason why they stood out as role models. We also wanted to feature at least one woman. Those who watched Doctor Who had recently seen an episode set during the Crimean war, which featured Mary Seacole. Nicola knew about Ignatius Sancho from a previous historical project she had worked on and thought that both his musicianship and his campaigning made him a good choice. Having chosen our three subjects, our next task was to put the stories together.

We feel really excited and proud to have produced these stories and we hope that you will enjoy them! You are free to use them in ways that will suit your story experiencers.

Thanks to Jo Grace for providing this opportunity, and to Generate for their support and time.

How we wrote the stories

• After our first planning meeting, when we chose our subjects, we met online three times.

• Everyone did some research. Chiz produced some background information.

• In turn, each person said something about the subject and suggested sensory props.

• Nicola organised these into sentences, wrote up the ideas, and send them back for comments.

• Jo Grace looked at the stories and gave some advice and additional ideas.

About the authors

Terry Bartlett

I am 30 years old and live with Autistic Spectrum Disorder. However, I work as the Volunteer Coordinator for Generate and have attended their clubs for some years now. In my spare time, my hobbies are steam trains and railways and I also regularly do volunteer work on a steam engine. I live in south London and enjoy watching wrestling (WWE) along with shows like Airwolf, Knight Rider, Street Hawk and The A Team.

I got involved with the book project as I think it will enhance the experience of profoundly disabled people, as the sensory aids and props will bring it to life.

Bryn Griffiths

My name is Bryn Griffiths and I am an Art & Design student at South Thames College, in Wandsworth, South London. I’ve been attending various services provided by Generate for 6 years now and particularly enjoy being involved in sports activities. I got involved with the Race Issues group at Generate during the lockdown and through this became part of the sensory stories book project. I enjoy discussing issues that affect disadvantaged people who are discriminated against, so am excited that our books will help others with disabilities enjoy some great stories.

Nicola Grove 

My background is in education, speech and language therapy and storytelling. I founded the charity OpenStoryTellers and currently I write, research and collaborate on projects to support self-advocacy and belonging through the sharing of personal stories (storysharing.org.uk).  I am a member of The Open University Social History of Learning Disabilities Group. It has been such a privilege to work with the fantastic Generate Race and Racism Group on these resources.

Kiether Hamilton

I have attended Generate since February 2018, but have been doing stuff online with them since February 2020. I’m doing Level 3 Music Production and I volunteer at Little Gate Farm, near Rye. My Interests are London buses, electronic dance music, cartoon & animation, Minecraft, walking, alternative fashion, and jewellery and other accessories. I want to become a music producer and wear my alternative fashion styles, as I know music embraces difference. I've enjoyed being part of this book as the people we have written about reflect many race issues we discuss and are still going through.

Chiz Kaluba

I was born in Zambia and brought up in the UK, and am an Equality, Diversity and Inclusion (EDI) professional. Currently, I am working with Generate as a Course Facilitator for Race Issues, a Buddy Mentor and Youth Worker. I have a strong relationship with Surviving Through Story. I am the co-founder of the UK registered charity DHLK Educational Trust which facilitates access to education for children, youths and adults in sub-Saharan Africa.

Sruthy Manendran

I was born and raised in the UK with a Sri Lankan heritage and I run the anti-racism project at Generate along with Chiz. I work in the Learning Disability, Autism and Violence Against Women and Girls sectors and am extremely passionate about highlighting the intersections of race within these sectors. I am really grateful and excited for being part of this amazing project alongside the young people from Generate to co-author these stories of inspirational black British individuals in an accessible format.

Kai Mavour

Hi my name is Kai Mavour, I am 19 years old and I attended south Thames college 3 days a week, where I am currently studying Progression Skills. I have been going to Generate for over 5 years, where I have enjoyed many activities and clubs that has helped me develop new skills and make friends.  I have been involved with the race issue group at Generate and through this I got the opportunity to co-author this book, along with other Generate members with learning difficulties. I have enjoyed being part of something new and am excited that our book of sensory stories will help others with a disability. 

Joseph Oguma

I've been attending Generate since July 2014 and am currently a student at South Thames College, where I do Maths and English. My hobbies include watching trains and tubes, but I’m also very active on TikTok.  I really enjoy going live on TikTok, but in the future I'd like to get a job as a train driver. I've enjoyed everything about the project and am excited to be part of the writing of an actual book!

Rehan Qureshi

Rehan Qureshi works with a variety of mediums, creating a wide-ranging array of art works, an independent and confident artist with a strong sense of detail and colour.

I am 40 years old and live in Tooting with my dad. I have two older siblings, a sister and brother. Since childhood, I have always enjoyed drawing. As soon as I was able to hold a pencil I would draw cartoon characters, such as Thomas the Tank Engine and Danger Mouse, from memory. As an adult I began to explore painting as an artistic outlet when I was introduced to it through the SHARE project. A proud moment was when my artwork was displayed in a Generate gallery in Balham - it was a huge success. I have lived with Autism all my life which has meant I like a routine-based life, I don't like change but have tried to learn how to adapt from time to time. In recent years I have taken up the violin and have played in various venues. I'm looking forward to sharing my art with you.

Jodian Young

My name is Jodian Young, I am 29 years old and have been attending Generate since I was 12 years old. At the moment I am looking for work, but Generate keeps me busy with their activities.

I got involved with the book through them and enjoy being part of creating a story for others with disabilities. In the future I would like to be a mechanic or work as gardener.

Additional documents

• Managing challenges - guidelines for working with challenging material

• Co-running sensory story groups as a self-advocate