Behind the scenes: Strictly Makaton
"It's not every day you get to dress up as a tiger, jump around a coiffed garden in the beautiful sunshine and belly laugh out loud. Therapy for me, as well as raising funds for a fantastic cause. Win, win!" - Karen McGuigan
Kate, Vikki, and Shilpa with head judge Maya.
Nikki, our Chair of Trustees and Makaton novice said, "Learning something completely new that needed to be done at speed and with memory …. looks easy but really isn't!"
Many of our team have discovered Makaton for the very first time, with absolutely no previous experience of using signing to aid communication, so the task of learning the signs was significant. Many, many hours went into crafting the hand shapes and getting it right, and they showed real dedication to the challenge and learnt an entirely new skill. For many, it included introducing Makaton to their friends and family and starting the conversation about the barriers that people with communication difficulties can face, and how we can start to help them break down those barriers to support the community. "I learnt more about the challenges and the joys of caring for children with Down’s syndrome; we take so much for granted, and it gave me a whole new perspective. Also, I think I loved being a tiger too much!" Shilpa Patel (Trustee and recently appointed part-time tiger)
Learn and Thrive is also proud to have a sibling representative on the Board. Kate Taylor has an older sister with Down's syndrome and along with a raft of other skills, she brings her experience of growing up as a sibling of a person with Down's syndrome. If you are a regular London Underground user, you may have spied some extra practice sessions. When asked what she found most challenging, she said, “Trying to learn to sign on my daily commute without attracting unwanted attention!" Yes, the challenge was a fundraiser to support the charity, but it quickly became a real learning experience for our Board and made them even more connected with our community.
"I was inspired by the effort and joy that the team put into the challenge. Those on the team who do not have lived experience of a family member with Down's syndrome, not only took up the challenge but embraced our community wholeheartedly. Having spent the last thirteen years raising a daughter with Down's syndrome, I was genuinely touched at the ease of communication and care the contestants showed our judges " - Jo Aiyathurai (CEO)
Right to left: Shilpa Patel, Kate Taylor, Karen McGuigan, Nikki Walker and Vikki Leach.
After an early start (that 5:45am alarm for Jo and Alex was pretty brutal), we gathered to start the challenge off with an early morning glass of bubbles to toast our hard work!
Ethan from EWC visuals joined us at 9:00am to prepare for filming while the contestants readied themselves for the day! Pastries and prosecco, the perfect start to a day of filming.
It was quickly into planning the shots, setting up the judges table and hitting the facepaint! We welcomed the judges onto set at 10:00am and from that moment on, it was a blast!
Right to left: Ethan from EWC Visuals, Cicely, Gordon, and Maya.
"Never work with animals or children." — W. C. Fields
Well, we don't agree!
Our panel were brilliant. It's not easy to step into an unknown venue, with unknown people, and that's before the adults disappear and re-appear dressed as tigers!
Maya (@be_more_maya on Instagram) took to the role like a duck to water. As our most mature judge, she took on the role as 'head judge' and was an absolute star. Gordy, Cicely and Lance all followed her lead and found their own ways to express their thoughts on the quality of the signing and got involved to help us when it got tough. It wasn't without its challenges, as those from our community know, our children and young people can work to their own timetable, so this time it was our turn to accommodate their timescales.
Alex (Learn and Thrive Project Manager) jumped to action and supported the team throughout the day, stating "The engagement of the young people really took the day to the next level and injected such an element of fun (and mayhem) into the whole thing. For such a new charity, it was great to see the leaders come together and work really hard to make this fundraiser and the charity as a whole a resounding success." She worked alongside our brilliant film crew from EWC visuals to ensure we got the best shots and the panel felt comfortable throughout.
“I feel incredibly proud that we have raised a lot of money and even prouder that we've really pushed ourselves out of our comfort zones to do something completely important and different. I hope that other people will be inspired to give it a go and raise some money for us as well!” – Nikki (Chair of Trustees)
You can check out their moves and see the challenge video below.