Skip to main content

The Latest Bulletin

Neil Thompson’s Lesson for Living – Put yourself in their shoes

Neil Thompson’s Lesson for Living – Put yourself in their shoes

Many a problem has been caused by someone putting something in writing in a way that led to misunderstanding. What you intended to convey and what is interpreted by the reader can sometimes be very different indeed. For example, what you intended to be friendly advice could be perceived as issuing instructions. These mismatches arise because communication does not take place in a vacuum. When you write something you will be doing so within a context of your own circumstances and your own frameworks of meaning. The person reading what you have written will be doing so within their own context and their own frameworks of meaning, and so there is plenty of scope for misunderstanding. What can be helpful…
Dr Neil Thompson
May 4, 2022
Supporting people with everyday technology

Supporting people with everyday technology

Social care staff need to be ready to help people they support and their families to make choices about using technology to stay connected and contribute to their communities, especially while social distancing restrictions are in place. Using technology is now as much a part of life as any other aspect of life that someone might need support with. This means social care workers and volunteers need to help people understand, choose, and use everyday technology for things like: using the internet to stay up to date on guidance, apply for benefits, housing or jobs; doing online shopping or ordering repeat prescriptions accessing track and trace/booking COVID-19 tests and checking results and booking vaccinations video calls to get support instead…
Dr Neil Thompson
May 4, 2022
Invisible disabilities

Invisible disabilities

There are 14 million disabled people in the UK. That's 1 in 5 of us. Many impairments and conditions are not immediately obvious. That's why we are supporting ITV to raise awareness of the negative attitudes and social isolation people with invisible impairments can face. We are calling on everyone to be a disability ally. Click here to read more
Dr Neil Thompson
May 4, 2022
Homelessness data

Homelessness data

This presents available data and empirical evidence on homelessness, focusing specifically on how it affects people in high-income countries. Homeless people are among the most vulnerable groups in high-income countries. You can read our entry on Extreme Poverty if you are interested in a broader perspective on economic deprivation and a perspective beyond high-income countries. Click here to read more
Dr Neil Thompson
May 4, 2022
Spotlight – Anti-racism for Beginners

Spotlight – Anti-racism for Beginners

There is no room for racism in a civilised society. The recent surge of interest in anti-racism is very much to be welcomed, but we have to guard against oversimplifying some complex and sensitive issues. This book, from the author of Anti-discriminatory Practice and Promoting Equality, provides an important foundation of learning that will be helpful for anyone committed to a genuinely anti-racist approach to practice. Available from here or Amazon
Dr Neil Thompson
April 8, 2022
Neil Thompson’s Lessons for Living – Getting too comfortable

Neil Thompson’s Lessons for Living – Getting too comfortable

It can feel really good to be comfortable, to be out of danger, with no significant hassles at that particular time. So, it can be very appealing to enter what is often called the ‘comfort zone’. But, ironically, there are dangers involved in getting too comfortable, in being too keen to stay in that warm and cosy place. It can stop us learning; discourage us from being imaginative and creative and thereby block innovation; and at times it can also make us complacent. So, rather than get too used to our comfort zone, perhaps we should think of it as somewhere we return to as a safe haven after we have allowed ourselves to go beyond it and be a…
Dr Neil Thompson
April 8, 2022
Dying Matters calls for change

Dying Matters calls for change

Right now people are dying without the support they need. Since the start of the pandemic, it is estimated that almost 70,000 people have died at home without access to specialist care. That's why Hospice UK and Dying Matters have been calling for the Government to give end of life care the attention it deserves. Along with our friends across the sector, we have been making great strides. But there's still more work to be done. Together, we must call for meaningful change so that everyone dies #InAGoodPlace. Click here to read more
Dr Neil Thompson
April 8, 2022
Five neurodiversity myths that must be challenged

Five neurodiversity myths that must be challenged

Here’s why there has been a surge of searches on Google for neurodiversity – according to Naomi Humber, Head of Mental Wellbeing at Bupa: Neurodiversity is a term that explains the different ways we think, process information, and relate to others. Neurodiverse employees can bring unique skills to their role, such as problem solving, spotting trends, creativity, and data analysis. Where you sit on the cognitive spectrum is unique to you. Whilst most people think and act in a way that society perceives as the ‘norm’ (neurotypical), one in seven people are neurodivergent. This means they behave, think and process information in ways that are different to most other people. Autism, ADHD, dyslexia, dyspraxia, dyscalculia, and Tourette’s syndrome are all…
Dr Neil Thompson
April 8, 2022