Your voice

Find links to videos and films where children and young people, parents and carers tell us about their experiences and support.  Find out groups to join to share ideas and find support.

The Leicester Parent Carer Forum meets to help plan and shape city services that are important to parent carers and their children. Their involvement covers all cultures, communities and disability groups but you don’t have to be a committee member to benefit from what they do.

The Big Mouth Forum is for 11 to 24 year olds who meet each month to hear about activities and services that take place in the city. They also advise organisations offering activities and services on how to make themselves accessible to people with disabilities.

This is what children and young people and parent/carers tell us about their experiences in Leicester.

The Rights and Participation Service three short films created with children and young people around what is needed to help improve how we listen, and more importantly ensure children and young people have an influence on decisions that are made about them.

• Who heard me?
• Whose right is it anyway?
• Who tuned in?

Here are some personal experience videos

• Radhika Rajesh
  Radhika Rajesh shares her journey supporting her autistic daughter, highlighting the vital role of local SEND services in education and wellbeing.
• Sumaiya Nacinulgani
  Sumaiya, a mother of three, shares how early years support has helped her son Ali with communication and interaction needs.
• Tammy Purdy
  Tammy reflects on her son Romeo’s neurodevelopmental journey and the vital support from health services and the early years support team.
• Sania Khan
  Sania, mother of four, shares her experience supporting her youngest daughter with SEND, highlighting the vital role of health professionals and the early years support team.
• Maria
  Maria shares her son’s journey with severe learning difficulties and vision impairment, and the support received from schools and the vision support team after moving to Leicester from Cyprus.
• Linda 
  Linda, aged 9, shares how social, emotional & mental health, and the virtual schools team supported her through play therapy and specialist provision at school to understand her feelings and emotions.
• Fatima
  Fatima, a mother of five, describes supporting two sons with severe vision impairments, with crucial help from the vision support team, schools, and health professionals.
• Umaymah
  Umaymah explains how the Big Mouth Forum gave her an outlet to share views on disability, influence council services, and carry out accessibility audits to make Leicester more inclusive for everyone.
• Vibha
  Vibha shares how the Big Mouth Forum makes her feel valued and happy, from joining audits and learning about the community to making friends and enjoying new experiences.
• Shaidean
  Shaidean shares her Big Mouth Forum journey, from making youth clubs more inclusive through the Youth Kite Mark to creating films and representing young people at a national conference.
• Ezra
  Ezra shares how the Big Mouth Forum gave him the chance to step out of his comfort zone, feel valued, and take part in new opportunities to help the community.
• Mo
  Mo reflects on his journey with the Big Mouth Forum, where growing confidence, new friendships, and fresh opportunities have shaped him both personally and professionally.
• Moosa
  Moosa hares how the Big Mouth Forum gave him the chance to meet new people, express his likes and dislikes, and feel that his opinion truly mattered.
• Carly
  Carly, a parent of two profoundly deaf children, shares her family’s experiences and the support received from health services, the Hearing Support Team, and schools.
• Ben
  Ben, 16, reflects on his autism journey, his work as a SEND ambassador amplifying student voices, and the support he received from the learning communication and interaction team.
• ‘What you saying?’ Young voices on Healthcare