Get Involved > Campaigns > Never Seen Never Been

Can you imagine never having been to a show, taken a trip to the seaside, or just to visit a different town?

Many people with learning disabilities go their whole life without these experiences, that the rest of us take for granted.

That’s why we’re campaigning to make inspiring experiences possible for people living with learning disabilities.

Everyone wants to go somewhere different to normal. It’s almost universal, that need to step away and see the world from a different perspective. We all want the sun to shine and that’s what days out and holidays do. They create sun.

Experiences like this should be possible for everyone. They are of great value to people with learning disabilities, increasing self-confidence and independence. On a trip to Butlins last year, Evie, a participant in her 20s, said:

“I was very brave and tried many new things without my parents: choosing my own food, and even going on a water flume. I can’t wait for the next time!”.

If you’re interested in joining the trips, sign up for more information on our Trips page.

Progress so far

Guideposts has been arranging local trips for the people who are members of our services for many years, but there is greater aspiration and need, both from the Guideposts community, and the wider Learning Disability community, to go on longer and more adventurous trips.

Guideposts is making this happen, and over the last two years we have been developing accessible camping and residential trips to the seaside, and produced our inclusive festival zone, FestivALL. The enthusiasm they have been received with has been overwhelming.

Our “Never Seen, Never Been” campaign is continuing to develop this programme. With prices rising, your support can help experiences like this to continue, and for more people.

Next steps

For 2023-24 we are planning an exciting programme of adventurous day trips and longer breaks, including:

• A sailing trip on the Solent
• A weekend trip to Norfolk, to stay in an accessible cottage and take boat trips
• A short break to Butlin’s
• Day Trip to Chessington World of Adventures
• Day Trips to the Seaside at Weston Super-Mare
• Camping with BBQ at our Outdoor Wellbeing Hub
• Canal boat trips
• Ten-Pin Bowling
• Steam railway experience
• Christmas Market visits
• London sightseeing
• Theatre trips

Many of these are still in the planning stages and will depend on costs and practicalities as to whether they can go ahead.

Find out more about the plans on our Trips page.

Join the campaign today

If you believe that new experiences should be accessible to all, regardless of disability, you can support our campaign to make it happen:

Share our Progress

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Donate

£20 could pay for one person to experience a Christmas Market on a day trip

£50 could pay for one person’s travel to Norfolk, to start their boating break

£85 Could pay for a group of 5 people with learning disabilities to take a trip to their county city for the day.

£120 could hire a canal boat for a relaxing trip for 10 people with learning disabilities

Volunteer

Would you like to help out?

• Join our trips in person, to help the participants have the experience they had dreamed of?
• Could you capture the excitement of an experience in words and pictures, to help us tell more people about what a difference it made?

Sponsor a Trip

We are always happy to partner with sponsors who can enable an experience. Whether you can offer discounted tickets, funds for a trip, services, materials, or space, something seemingly small could make a big difference to people living with life-limiting disabilities.