The website for the UCL World Stroke Day Forum is now live! Take a look and sign up for events now.

A week long forum highlighting current research and rehabilitation projects in stroke, the UCL World Stroke Day Forum brings together clinicians, researchers and charities to share their knowledge and engage with stroke survivors and loved ones from across the UK.

Visit https://engagement.fil.ion.ucl.ac.uk/projects/ucl-world-stroke-day/ for a host of talks from UCL researchers and charities, and to sign up for interactive Q&As, workshops and informal ‘meet and greet’ sessions to allow you to delve deeper into the topics during the Forum week.

To get the latest on the Forum, join the Forum Facebook group: www.facebook.com/groups/uclworldstrokedayforum or sign up for the newsletter by emailing ion.fil.publicengagement@ucl.ac.uk with the subject line “Join WSD Forum mailing list”.

In time for Christmas, our Research Update newsletter contains a summary of projects completed in the last year.  It gives an idea of why we planned the research, what volunteers were asked to do, and what we learned as a result. It has been written with the participants in mind and so we hope the format is accessible and easy to read. You can download a copy by clinking on this link: here. Or get in touch if you would like a paper copy.

World Stroke Day Forum is a free event to empower stroke survivors to contribute to and influence stroke research and rehabilitation at UCL. It features interactive workshops, discussion groups, talks and an expo on the latest in stroke research.

The UCL Communication Clinic will be talking to stroke survivors about our work: training speech and language therapy students, carrying out research to improve therapy, and holding events that explore the impact of living with communication difficulties.

World Stroke Day Forum is on 29th October. Tickets are available from 17th September. You can download details by clicking: here to open a flyer.

You can sign up by following this link for the morning session or this link for the afternoon session.

We hope to see you there!

On the 13th May, people with aphasia from the UCL Communication Clinic performed scenes from an opera ‘Speak Red’ at the Cockpit Theatre. The opera has been co-produced through a series of workshops led by librettist Finn Beames and composer Santa Buss (http://www.oedipa.org/about-2/).

Together, the group explored how opera can be a tool for expression, demonstrating that people with aphasia can direct all stages of the creative process.

The opera is based on the story of Ruby Mcdonough. Ruby is a living American woman who has aphasia. By fighting discrimination, she changed the way the law works in the USA. The group told her story from their own perspectives, and shared their own experiences too.

There were afternoon and evening performances, and the team received feedback on this work-in-progress from the audience and through a Q&A session.

The pictures below are © Claire Shovelton – thanks.

Click here for a copy of our Spring Newsletter written in the main by people with acquired communication difficulties who attend the UCL Communication Clinic.

On Friday 15th March we will be holding an event as part of Brain Awareness Week.

It’s free – just turn up!

Room G15 and UCL Communication Clinic reception, Chandler House, 2 Wakefield Street, London, WC1N 1PF

4.15pm-6pm

The event includes:

-a chance to see the development of ideas for a new opera about living with aphasia

-a chance to explore poetry and singing with professional musicians

-a chance to experience more closely what it is like to live with aphasia

-a chance to appreciate the creative talents of people with aphasia

You can click here for a copy of our event flyer.

You can click here for a map showing the venue – Chandler House.

Our latest Research Update newsletter contains a summary of projects from the last year. It gives an idea of why we planned the research, what volunteers were asked to do, and what we learned as a result. We hope that it is easy to follow (and interesting). You can open a copy by following this link.

Writer Finn Beames and composer Santa Bušs are developing a new opera about living with aphasia.

We are looking for people with aphasia to collaborate with us for 3 more workshops.

We have had an idea for the story of the opera, based on a living American woman who has aphasia. She fought discrimination to change the law in an inspiring and powerful way. She is called Ruby McDonough.

We want to share our research with you to see what you think, and explore how your talents could help tell the story. We also want to include your stories!

We want to make sure that people with different communication needs can enjoy and understand the opera.

We want to create roles for people with aphasia to perform, alongside professional singers.

Click here for a flyer with information about the venue, and contact details.

The new dates are: Wednesday 6th, Wednesday 13th and Wednesday 20th February. Sessions are from 1-4pm.

Click here to open a pdf file of our latest newsletter, written in the main part by people with aphasia who attend the UCL Communication Clinic.

Finn Beames (writer and director) and Santa Buss (composer) led a workshop hosted by the UCL Communication Clinic. They are developing an opera about living with aphasia. All aspects of the creative process, from story and music to staging and performance, are open to input from people with aphasia. So watch this space! In this first workshop, we explored how voices, piano and everyday sounds can make music. In this picture you can see the piano played from the inside out.