by Author Charlie UVG

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Meeting In The Middle

Event description

Victoria Edwards is an 18 year with a passion for life who sings with The Urban Vocal Group (UVG); who provide free access to music making activities to young people aged 11 – 18 living in the Portsmouth area. She is currently working on her Gold Arts Award with the charity and her chosen area of interest is ‘inclusion in the arts’ which is a subject very close to her heart.

In 2010 she suffered a brain haemorrhage which initially caused paralysis down one side of her body and left her partially sighted. It was also discovered she had a benign brain tumour which has caused her to lose the majority of her sight. Undeterred she worked hard to improve her strength and as Victoria says ‘to get her life back’. She continued to access mainstream activities and has been a Scout for 12 years in addition to being a singer with The UVG for 6 years. Victoria said “I have had first-hand experience of accessing mainstream activities and have always felt comfortable and safe. However I did notice that this was fairly unusual and not the norm for others with additional needs. This led me to ask the question ‘why?”

To help answer that question Victoria has organised ‘Meeting in The Middle’ ; a symposium to discuss  and explore the barriers and perceptions regarding young people with SEN/D accessing mainstream arts provision. The event will take place at Portsmouth Guildhall on 29th November from 5:30pm. Speakers will include Judith Carrie, who has national expertise in this area and Charlie Fletcher, Director of The UVG. There will also be a performance by young singers from The Urban Vocal Group