As I stood outside and watched a group of people cycle away from me, I couldn’t help but smile. One of these people was my brother, the Thistle Foundation have supported him once again with their adaptive cycling sessions.
My brother Ross was diagnosed with autism when he was 7, he is now 23 and the Thistle Foundation has been an incredible support system. The Thistle Foundation is a Scottish charity which supports those with learning disabilities and long-term health conditions to embrace their lives to the fullest. Set up in 1944, the charity originally aimed to provide homes for disabled ex-servicemen, but they have now grown to support all ages and backgrounds.
One of the Thistle Foundation’s focuses is physical activity, their building located on Queen’s Walk includes a gym with a membership for only £25 a year. Also, as previously mentioned, they offer adaptive bike sessions on Tuesday and Wednesday afternoons to encourage not only physical health but quality leisure time through their range of specially adapted bikes.
Another of the people I saw was Rameez Haq, he is also autistic and now volunteers towards the Big Plan. The Big Plan is a service catered towards young people who are soon going to leave high school, the weekly 6-session course aims to help them identify their strengths and goals to create a plan of what they’ll do once they leave.
Rameez attended the Big Plan before becoming a volunteer, they provided a thoroughly positive experience for him and others: ‘Since having autism, we still face discrimination from certain places and are prone to being stereotyped when it comes to achieving certain goals. With the help of the Big Plan, they made sure every individual with autism or any additional support needs are in fact different to each other and are their own person. No matter what challenges we may have faced and dreams we have, they made sure we never felt put off and made us feel hopeful and optimistic about achieving our future goals.’
Rameez feels inspired as a volunteer to be helping younger people who were in the same situation as him a few years prior alongside also being able to provide support for those who have faced ableism: ‘I feel inspired to help others who have similar goals and face certain challenges like being stereotyped and patronised for having autism and other types of additional support needs. When we get to a certain age, we have the equal rights to be treated like adults rather than being spoken to in a tone like how people would speak to youngsters. I feel this is sometimes the case with myself and others who have additional support needs.’
As mentioned prior, I watched Rameez partake in the foundation’s adaptive cycling sessions. Despite the hour-long cycle ride, Rameez still embraced a smile as he reapproached the building. The sessions appear to be welcoming and educational: ‘I find the cycling club fascinating since they teach us how to learn to cycle safely on main roads, maintaining bicycles and learning some key fundamental skills around handling bicycles. Also, the folks in the group including the staff and fellow participants are very friendly and share similar things in common such as going out and exploring places and cycling being one our favourite types of sports.’
As our discussion draws to a close, he shares the overall importance of the Thistle Foundation and why more foundations such as this should be in place: ‘There should be more organisations, groups, and foundations like Thistle Foundation in place across the UK and around the world. Places like the Thistle Foundation are surrounded by many incredible, hardworking, and passionate staff and participants who are a huge asset in helping those who face certain challenges and uncertainties about the future.’
Other benefits of the Thistle Foundation include its Mindfulness course which encourages people to live in the present moment to reduce anxiety, stress and even blood pressure. Additionally, their Lifestyle Management course helps young people practice self-management techniques to live their life to the fullest.
At the Thistle Foundation, life is for living, your way. The support they have provided for Ross, Rameez and others is incredibly honourable.
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