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A new co-researcher-led evaluation has revealed the value of the RIX Big Ideas course for students with learning disabilities, highlighting its impact on learning, confidence, relationships and aspirations.

The RIX Big Ideas course at the University of East London brings people with learning disabilities and social work students together to learn as equals. Over 22 weekly sessions, students explored influential ideas about disability, including power, inequality, institutionalisation, the social model of disability and the history of exclusion.

Rather than learning about people with learning disabilities from textbooks or case studies, social work students learned alongside people with lived experience. Everyone contributed knowledge, asked questions and connected complex theories to real life.

An evaluation led by lived experience

The evaluation focused specifically on what students with learning disabilities gained from taking part.

The evaluation team included RIX co-researchers Baljit Taggar, Kiran Dhillon and Ros Weinberg, RIX staff member and Expert by Experience Ajay Choksi, and social work student Jessica Reynolds. The work was facilitated by independent researcher Dr Helen Evans.

Following each class, the evaluators met to reflect on their experiences using photographs, videos and materials uploaded to a shared RIX Wiki. They used an accessible version of the Value Creation Framework to identify different kinds of value created through the course.

Importantly, the co-researchers did not simply provide information for somebody else to analyse. They helped interpret their own experiences, decide what mattered and shape the evaluation findings.

More than access to a university classroom

The evaluation found that the course created value in many interconnected ways.

Participants described enjoying learning and developing a stronger interest in theory. Several carried out their own research between sessions because they wanted to understand the ideas more deeply. They applied theories about power, choice, disability and inequality to their own lives and began identifying how these ideas could influence other people and services.

The course also created a sense of achievement and belonging.

This course is so much better than any course I had before.

Baljit

Participants reported increased confidence, stronger self-advocacy and new ambitions. Some wanted to help deliver future courses, present at conferences or encourage other universities to adopt similar approaches. Kiran expressed a desire to continue into higher education.

I still want a black cap to get a degree.

Kiran

The findings also show what genuine inclusion requires. Accessible rooms, reliable transport, speech-to-text technology, flexible online participation, easy read information and skilled technical support all affected whether people could participate fully.

The evaluators also identified improvements for future courses, including better transport arrangements, more accessible technology and information about forthcoming sessions so that Experts by Experience can prepare their contributions.

Learning through inclusion

The report demonstrates that inclusive education is about much more than inviting people into an existing course. It requires universities to value different forms of knowledge, remove barriers and enable people with and without learning disabilities to learn from one another.

Get people with learning disabilities and people without learning disabilities to work together.

Ajay

The RIX Big Ideas course shows what becomes possible when people with learning disabilities are recognised not only as contributors to professional education, but also as students, theorists, evaluators and creators of knowledge.

This year’s Big Ideas course runs from 4 November 2026 until 26 April 2027.

Gosia Kwiatkowska

Read the full RIX Big Ideas Course Evaluation Report

On 10 September, we were delighted to contribute to Shout About Sex! at the Brady Centre, Whitechapel, a one-day Supported Loving event led by Claire Bates, Founder and Head of Supported Loving at Choice Support.

Shout About Sex is a welcoming and inclusive event that brings together people with learning disabilities, families, support staff and professionals to talk openly about sex, relationships, friendship, rights and what matters to people in their lives. The day included workshops, information stalls, networking opportunities and a keynote session from the CQC, creating space for honest conversations, shared learning and meaningful connections.

As part of the programme, over 30 participants attended our workshop, Yes, We Can Have Sex!, facilitated by Liselle Terret, Stephanie Newman and Creative Support worker Georgia Carnaby. The workshop showcased extracts from the award-winning disability-led theatre production Not F**kin’ Sorry! (NFS) developed by Not Your Circus Dog (co-produced by Access All Areas) , and explored themes including the right to private time, being proud, sassy and sexy, having relationships if we so desire, and what the right support looks like in enabling people to live fulfilling lives.

Using film clips, inclusive discussion and participative creative interactive activities, participants reflected on the barriers that learning disabled people can face around relationships, intimacy, self-expression and autonomy. Conversations explored how services, families and professionals can support greater choice and independence while balancing important considerations around safeguarding and risk.

The workshop generated thoughtful and powerful responses, with participants describing the work as “fierce”, “anarchic”, “provocative”and “refreshing”. One attendee commented:

“It’s really refreshing to see people talking about it.”

Another reflected:

“It makes me feel slightly sad because it’s still so unusual.”

A central theme of the discussion was the importance of challenging stereotypes and recognising learning disabled people as experts in their own lives. Participants explored how conversations about sexuality, relationships, identity and desire are often absent from support planning and everyday practice, despite being fundamental aspects of human experience.

The workshop also highlighted the tension that can exist between safeguarding and personal autonomy, prompting attendees to consider how organisations, professionals and support networks can enable rather than restrict people’s rights and choices. Many participants spoke about taking away new perspectives on relationships, privacy, support and inclusion, while others expressed interest in future screenings, workshops and training opportunities.

Perhaps the most powerful feedback came from participants who spoke about the importance of “being seen”, the value of “unapologetic representation”, and the reminder that:

“It’s OK to be you.”

The workshop demonstrated the continuing impact of Not F**kin’ Sorry! as pedagogical practice for training. Developed through lived experience, research and creative practice, NFS! The Film continues to create opportunities for learning, reflection and social change. The session opened up important conversations about relationships, sexuality, autonomy and representation, while challenging participants to think differently about safeguarding, rights and support.

The event also reinforced the vital work being led by Supported Loving and its partners to ensure that people with learning disabilities have opportunities to talk openly about relationships, rights, connection, belonging and self-expression. Importantly, the workshop generated interest in future screenings, training, partnerships and wider dissemination, demonstrating the continuing relevance and reach of this award-winning disability-led project.

Key Themes Explored

• Relationships, sexuality and human rights
• Privacy, autonomy and choice
• Challenging ableist assumptions
• Safeguarding and gatekeeping
• Disability-led storytelling and lived experience
• Representation, identity and inclusion
• Organisational and cultural change

A huge thank you to Claire Bates and the Supported Loving team for organising such an important event, to Stephanie Newman for such fantastic co-facilitation and Georgia Carnaby for their support throughout the day, and to Adam Moffat-Seaman for capturing the workshop through photography.

Liselle Terret, Associate Professor in Performance, RIX affiliate