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arts: book review
Value of work the hospital and did not follow

instructions so was not happy as she
made mistakes but, after getting support
from friends and managers, she did her
Books on a person’s path into work and the job well and got rewarded for it, which
benefits and responsibilities of having a job made her very happy and satisfied.
The book showed us people of different
are discussed by members of LDN Connect ethnicities and ages in all different jobs,
which was good and important. We also
thought people looked happy and that was
Glory Wants a job like working with good to see in a workplace and helped us
Roger Banks, Kathy Melling and Stephen others and learning. to think about work as a good thing to do.
Langley Also, it was very nice for us to see the However, we found the drawings in
Illustrated by Mike Nicholson characters reflect mixed ethnicity, this book not as good as those in the
Books Beyond words, 68pp, £10.00 including workers in various professional other. The black and white drawings were
paperback, £4.95 ebook services and roles. The pictures showed not as interesting to look at.
that a good attitude is important. After the illustrations comes the contents
A Good Day’s Work The story is easy to read and accessible page. Our facilitator was a little worried at
Sheila Hollins, Shirley-Anne Wheeler and for various ages and genders to first as the contents page usually is at the
Wayne McGregor understand. Overall, we think it is a good front of books, not at the back. We think
Illustrated by Rachael Ball and positive story for people in transition. the reason for this layout might be to make
Books Beyond Words, 72pp, £10.00 it more accessible for people across ages
paperback, £4.95 ebook All in a day and ability. We liked it as we started the
We thought A Good Day’s Work shows story straight away and we were each able
e all agreed that Glory Wants a good examples of employees meeting to create a story with different words which
Job is well illustrated in colour, good health and safety and food handling showed our own creativity and thinking.
Wvery busy and vibrant, and standards in a food delivery section. Some We would recommend this book being
shows people with a mix of abilities of us have done catering so we recognised used in a group and 1:1 sessions, and that
engaged in activities. Following the that work and what we do ourselves. families, teachers and carers would be
pictures helped us to have conversations The book shows us a happy customer able to help if needed. n
about work and different aspects of it. service worker with good interaction who ● LDN Connect: www.wspld.org.uk/
Glory wants a job and this book guides looked good (clean and tidy), friendly and find-support/ldn-connect/
us from the very beginning of her journey like he was enjoying his work. ● Beyond Words: https://
when she is having conversations with her We learned from the book that, when booksbeyondwords.co.uk/
parents, through planning and until she you are working, time-keeping is very
achieves her goal and gets her dream work. important and support from friends and LDN Connect is an activity group from the
The book showed us that we need to family is very important to succeed. Westminster Society for People with
have positive attitudes and look nice, and In the book, the lady started work in Learning Disabilities

Hard lives under austerity storm creating deep poverty,

isolation and unhappiness.
Showing how this works out
Austerity’s Victims: Living With a Learning an almost unbearable litany in a personal way in the lives
Disability Under Cameron and May of sadness and shocking of those behind the statistics
Neil Carpenter deprivation. There is a sense is the great achievement of
Available on Amazon. Print: £6.57 (cost of lives blighted, not so Carpenter’s book. He is both
price): www.amazon.co.uk/dp/ much by having a learning a gifted writer (and no doubt
1984977601; Kindle, 99p: www.amazon. disability – although Les a formidable advocate) and a
co.uk/dp/B07D3PVC8G does say “I didn’t ask to be meticulous researcher who
bloody born like this” – but analyses each person’s income
eil Carpenter recounts the lives of by the poverty that seems and expenditure and shows
five men with learning disabilities to come inevitably with disability. they are all receiving way below the UK
Nliving in Cornwall, each of whom As Carpenter repeatedly shows, minimum income deemed necessary for
he has supported as an advocate. swingeing cuts to benefits and allowances an acceptable standard of living.
We are taken, in meticulous detail, have disproportionately affected the most Each is locked in an unequal and at times
through the daily lives of Frank, Les, vulnerable people, who rely on the terrifying battle with the Department of
Thomas, Mark and Danny (not their real system to be able to live some sort of Work & Pensions. The DWP and some
names), widely different personalities meaningful life. Add huge cuts to local politicians are the villains – not too strong a
from a variety of family and social authority funding, rising demand for word for them – of this story. Their callous,
backgrounds, but united by the fact that social care, the loss of networks of systemic indifference to people’s lives is a
they each have a learning disability or, in support that rely on grant funding and a stain on this nation’s moral integrity. n
one case, an acquired brain injury. race to the bottom by providers aiming to
The cumulative effect of these accounts is win contracts, and you have a perfect Review by Simon Jarrett

www.cl-initiatives.co.uk Community Living Vol 32 No 4 | Summer 2019 29