How Person Centred Planning Changed My Life

Alexander Warren

Superb graphics curtsy of Helen of EDG

Me at 15 years old

• I was at a Special Needs School and worried about my future.

• I wanted to do a mainstream drama course, but didn’t know how to get there (in truth I had no real acting skills).

• I wanted to be independent.• The school was encouraging me to do an

“extension course”, which I didn’t want to do (Some of my friends did extension courses and they thought they were a waste of time. It's just a place to put them for another 2 years.)

My Frustrations

• Mainstream Kids can choose there own courses, whereas special needs kids are pushed towards a limited set of options.

• Special needs teachers are so frightened of us failing that they don't give us anything challenging.

• How do they expect us to work hard at something we don't want to do?

My Person Centre Plan

• EDG came to the School and explained about person centred planning, then offered it to any of the older kids in the school.

• I volunteered and they did a person centred plan for me with a group of my family, my teachers and my friends.

• There were various parts :- “My Story”, “Who is Alexander”, “My Dreams”, “My Nightmares”, “What is Needed Now” and “Action Plan”

“My Story”

• This was the first time ever I’d gone through all my life.

• We all realised that it was a big achievement to get where I was at the time. (When I was 1 year old a doctor said I would never walk, talk, read or write)

• Everyone in the room had felt the experience was quite moving.

• Before that meeting I was pretty down about myself, suddenly I thought I could achieve anything.

“Who is Alexander?”

• I felt really warm because everyone said nice things about me, like – " brave "– "incredibly honest "– "tremendously empathetic" .

“My Dreams”

• This was where I could express my wildest dreams, without anyone saying they were unrealistic.

• Some of my dreams were:– going to acting school– a loving relationship– travelling on the bus on my own– going to town on my own to look around the

shops or meet friends.

“My Nightmares”

• They included :-– being homeless – not having any friends – a boring job

“My What’s Needed Now” and “My Action Plan”

• These steps looked at the first steps towards my dreams.– Everyone was finally listening to me– I had a way forward towards something I

wanted to do.

The Next 2 Years• At College I did a pathways art course, a

pathways drama course and a mainstream drama course.

• I started catching a bus to college on my own (a complicated route, changing buses at Princes Street).

• I was also catching the bus into town to look around the shops and meet my friends.

... and Now• I regularly present my experiences to others

with EDG as part of their “The Big Plan” course.

• I’ve also worked with Enable as part of their course.

... and there’s more• I’m now doing a mainstream drama course at

Carnegie College. I passed the 1st year and I'm now in my 2nd year.

• I have a girlfriend.

Person Centred Planning has changed my life around

• It allowed me to express myself, sometimes with ideas I didn't even know I had.

• It got me out of the rut that was special needs and extension courses.

• It got me excited about my future and my prospects.

• It got me trying harder to achieve my goals, rather than just going through the motions of life.

• It gave me masses of confidence.