Esty Bruck of Friendship Circle Manchester shares the charity’s mission to transform lives this Learning Disability Awareness Week (15th to 21st June).
Learning Disability Awareness Week is an opportunity to foster compassion and understanding, enhancing inclusion throughout our communities. But for Esty Bruck, Programme Director at Friendship Circle, it’s a way of life all year round: “Learning disability and disability awareness is what we do all day, every day.”
Friendship Circle Manchester supports people with a range of disabilities through an incredible range of activities. Around 12 programmes run every week, from football and wall climbing to walking groups and health and wellbeing sessions. With 185 members and 160 volunteers, the charity’s reach across the North Manchester Jewish community and beyond is impressive: “We create a community for our members to be part of. But at the same time, we integrate them into the wider Jewish community. We make sure our members come to various communal events and take part in different things, and we work with local shuls on inclusion.”
If the charity’s day-to-day work is about building community from within, its schools programme is equally important as it focuses on reshaping attitudes in terms of compassion and acceptance before prejudices have a chance to become entrenched.
Esty runs the programme, which takes Friendship Circle members into primary schools and a handful of high schools. During a recent term eight schools took part, spanning local Jewish schools across North Manchester, Bury, Whitefield, and North Cheshire.
The sessions involve interactive activities and open conversations about disability, but the most profound impact occurs when the children simply ask the members anything they like: “They’ll ask about their life with a disability, whether they’ve made friends, all these different things. The members answer them really honestly and you can physically see the barriers coming down. By the time we’ve gone in four times, the children are so much more comfortable.”
One member in particular has become something of a star. Hannah – who uses a wheelchair, is non-verbal, and communicates through sounds and expressions – accompanies Esty on school visits alongside members who can speak directly with the children: “When I first walk in, the children are apprehensive – Hannah’s in a wheelchair, she doesn’t sound like them, and they’re not quite sure what to do. But by the time we leave after four sessions, everyone’s high fiving her, hugging her, giving her pictures they’ve drawn for her, and they’re all asking, ‘When is Hannah coming back?’” It’s a poignant reminder of something important: “It’s so much easier to teach kids about inclusion than it is to teach adults.”
Beyond the schools programme, Friendship Circle has a packed calendar. Members can attend sessions up to seven times a week, where they have the chance not just to socialise, but to build the confidence and skills that come from belonging somewhere. For many members, the relationships they form with volunteers are among the most significant in their lives: “Everything we do is through our volunteers. The friendships they create with our members, that’s what really provides the support and gives them the confidence to do things.”
The charity is also actively seeking to extend its reach, particularly through its inclusion work with local communal organisations. The goal is always the same – a Jewish community in which every member, whatever their ability, has a genuine place.
If you’re interested in volunteering, learning more about Friendship Circle’s programmes, or exploring how your school or shul can get involved, visit Friendshipcircle.org.uk for more information.
