​My experience
 
When people talk about the cost-of-living crisis, you initially think about prices going up in shops, fuel bills rising, people struggling and having to give up a lot of things.  And all that is true.  But for me, because of my ongoing and chronic mental health issues, I’ve been deemed unfit to hold down a job for many years.  So, I’ve had to learn to live frugally within a restricted budget and to eke things out.  That’s just my normal.
 
The biggest impact for me since the cost-of-living crisis began is that I feel more isolated now, because of how it's affected public services. Places like my local Leisure Centre that I used to go to for a bit of social interaction, have closed down now. 
 
So, since the cost-of-living crisis, I have become more reclusive. I’ve lost a feeling of connectedness with my community and even my street.  It continues to have a huge impact on my mental health, and I feel a huge sense of despair.
 
Sometimes I also don't want to leave the house because I don’t feel safe due to escalating levels of violence especially towards women.  It’s not going away. It's escalating, and it's absolutely terrifying.
 
So, when I hear on the news that crime figures have supposedly dropped, but that crimes towards women aren’t even included in these figures, I find it sickening.  It makes me feel like women like me don’t matter.  I might read pretty words in reports, but I don’t seem to ever see any changes.
 
I also struggle every day to be treated with respect and to be understood, especially because you can’t see my disability.  People always ask, “what do you do?” and because I don’t have a job, I often get ‘that look’.  It’s very stigmatizing.  I might not have a job, but I do try my best to live my life as well as I can, and I try to think of others and help them. 
 
However, organisations that are supposed to help me, often don’t, because they have inflexible systems and are not geared up to respond to women’s issues.  For instance, I’ve only just recently been diagnosed with ADHD after being wrongly diagnosed for my whole life.  Just about all the studies on ADHD have been done on men and boys so they don’t recognise it in women.  We are labelled as problematic or hysterical.
 
Similarly, there’s a reluctance to acknowledge that the root cause of my complex PTSD has been gender-based violence which just invalidates the level of violence that I’ve experienced throughout my life and still am continuing to experience.  
 
Trying to keep myself safe is a real worry when you hear about the cuts to the recruitment of police officers across the Country. You worry that if you do phone them if you have an issue, will they come out and will anything be done? 
 
And I'm always scared about getting pulled in by DWP, especially because they are saying they want half a million people up and down the country off disability benefits and into work.  I'm living in fear constantly.
 
What would help?
 
I think that what would help people like me most with the cost-of-living crisis is building up the infrastructure in our communities. Because of the poor public transport, there's communities that are cut off from one another. Social venues are closing.  Everything's on its knees. There’s very little to call a community spirit and people like me are losing hope, feeling isolated, scared, and vulnerable.  Like there’s no safety net. 
 
Although private houses are being built, these are unaffordable for ordinary folk, and they are not building any community hub to bring people together.  This kind of disconnection is dangerous.
 
We also really need spaces for intersectional women from all backgrounds that we can go to feel safe, to support each other to feel like we have self-worth and dignity. 
 
Women only spaces are important, because in my experience of going to groups, it’s often hard to find a voice, and to feel safe in mixed spaces.  Some men feel threatened and get angry when women speak out, or when they hear discussions around women holding power, having money and being seen in society as equal to men.  This leaves women like me feeling intimidated and unsafe, and like we don’t want to go back there, even though we might really need the support on offer.
 
Although the extra money that I’ve received for the cost-of-living crisis has helped, you can’t make everything better with money. 
 
For me what’s more important is a sense of having a place in society, having a place in my community, a feeling that I’m safe, I’m seen and that I matter.
 
It’s more important to know that I will be treated with respect when going to the Health Centre, that I won’t have to fight for the recognition of the issues that I have, and that I won’t be seen as a mad, bad and dangerous person, just because I have struggles with my mental health. 
 
We're all human. We're all trying to get by.  We all matter.  And if we’re going to really help women and girls like us, we should come together and connect.  Not just words, but in a way that makes real changes happen.

​Hello, my name is Deborah, and like many Sri Lankan Tamils who emigrated to different places, I was one of them.
 
I moved to the UK as a child, and Scotland became my home 24 years ago in order to live a better and safer life. I am also disabled, and I am going to share my situation and experiences due to the living cost crisis.
 
Like so many disabled people in the UK, I struggled to find a job that would accommodate my disability for almost 4 years. I need to cut back on many things, such as energy bills and other essentials, and it has affected my mental health. But I believe in my heart that this country could do so much better for intersectional women who are running away to escape their home country, gender-based violence, and many disabled women rely on life-saving equipment, such as electric wheelchairs, mobility devices, and oxygen concentrators, which are no longer possible due to financial limitations. Because if this government does not stand up for them to fight for gender equality, then who will?
 
I am afraid that the Scottish Government has not provided enough support for intersectional and disabled women, acknowledging the diversity of experiences among survivors, especially the intersectional lens, which not only addresses disparities but also promotes empowerment and inclusivity.
 
For women and girls like me, we need better sensibility, and the Scottish Government should advocate for intersectionality to form the foundation.
 

​Community groups and facilities is the glue that keeps so many communities together. To give you the direct quotes of some young people I’ve worked with:
“I don’t know where I’d be without this group”, “I feel like you guys get me, I’ve never felt that before”, “I love coming here, it gets me out the house”.

Whether it’s youth groups, community cafes, adult learning groups or sports clubs, each group has had a role to play during the cost of living crisis. During a time where many people may lack warm spaces, hot meals, company and laughter, community spaces have provided a safe, welcoming, non-judgemental and inclusive space for the most vulnerable to come along and just “be”.

Taking an example from my own work - throughout the cost of living crisis we introduced hot meals for all evening youth work provisions, ensuring all young people could access at least one hot meal a day. As a result, we seen a massive spike in numbers - it wasn’t unprecedented, we knew word was spreading and we were glad to be reaching more and more young people, however the current funding climate means we cannot spread our reach, or even sustain our current programmes.

These groups can provide a lifeline to individuals, they can be the glue holding a person or family together, but as budgets are slashed and resources are pushed to last longer and go further, it’s the people that suffer.

Over the last year - I’ve watched more and more groups, cafes and larders close due to increased costs and lack of funding. It’s not that these groups weren’t busy, weren’t reaching outcomes and weren’t making a difference - but they didn’t have the resources to back this. Even as I write this, my own job is in jeopardy as I struggle to secure more funding.

More funding, and importantly secure, sustainable funding is needed to allow community-based services to continue to deliver vital services to those most in need. I see first-hand each day the benefits on young people and families. At a time with lots of uncertainties and financial pressure, these groups are needed to respond to the needs of the community; develop resilience; build capacity and to empower communities.

My name is Leeanne, and I am a person who has a background in the Care system and has lived experience of a Learning Disability. Over the years I have made a life for myself where I have been involved and worn all different kinds of hats in different parts of my life - to help and encourage other people to get their voices heard in different parts of the world and other organisations to try and make a difference worldwide and beyond! 

I want to tell you a little bit about my experience.  

Our Human Rights are no different to other people. People with a Learning Disability in particular who are also facing a care-experienced background face more barriers than most. More than a few people who have a Learning Disability do not get our Human Rights respected. This needs to be changed by listening to us who have lived experience and what we know. Those barriers are highlighted by services that are meant to be a support system in our lives. The choices, for example, to have a family in the future is another set of hoops to jump through and more.

When I was younger my birth family treated me as an outsider and did not want to see me as part of their family. I always thought I was on my own with this but through the years I came to realise that there are more people that I have met in different places such as people in organisations and friends that I have come to know over the years working alongside them. I tend always to say you never know who has been through the same thing as you until you speak up.

I would like to see the Scottish Government leading the way to educate those needing advice from someone who has firsthand experience of a very challenging childhood. The Scottish Government must work closely with those who have lived experience to do this the right way. 

What we need to say is very important, educational, and inspiring to other people!

I have written a book that combines my lived experience in one giant puzzle. The book is called ‘My Journey Through Life – The Real Me!’  I am also writing my second book which will reference a lot of important learning and lessons to be learned. Yes, the two books will highlight a lot of things. But the important message is that everyone is unique and important, and you need to understand that everyone is different. 

Today I would like to ask one vastly important question. To me, it is very important in today’s society: What do you think you would do to support people with a Learning Disability and care-experienced background to communicate better? For example, I would say communication is first and foremost and that people need to communicate with us to ensure that we get the right help from the right people and services. 

In my time as a trainer, I have always looked at my Learning Disability differently from others or I have questioned myself. Most of the time people have often told me when I was younger that I do have a Learning Disability but to be honest with you I do not see me having a Learning Disability.

I see someone who learns differently and who has a mild difficulty. Being part of the Learning Disability, Autism and Neurodivergence LDAN Bill as one of the Leap members who help and advise the Scottish Government has made me question whether or not I have a Learning Disability. 

While on the Learning Disability, Autism and Neurodivergence LDAN Bill I was allocated by organisations that I have been working with over the years to be on a panel of people with Learning Disabilities to advise what was best for us to the Scottish Government. We worked very hard for over a year and still are to ensure that the voices are heard for people with Learning Disabilities in this bill. 

People with Learning Disabilities must be at the front of the bill instead of the back pages. There was a time during the process when we thought we were losing our voices. It is still a great opportunity for those who were on the Leap panel. People with learning disabilities attended over 56 meetings to ensure that people with Learning Disabilities are more than just heard in any part of the bill and their lives. 

Most people who enter the care system have several issues that are very important and unique. Most of these people do not have a voice or it is hard for them to stand up for themselves. The people with a voice do try their best to stand up for other people and not just themselves.