Seeking help and justice after sexual abuse can be a painful challenge for anyone. When an abuse survivor has a learning disability, their vulnerability can be used against them before, during and after abuse occurs. A learning disabled person is around three to four times more likely to be abused and often have little to no recourse to justice after it happens. 

I spent much of 2019 learning about sexual abuse of people with learning disabilities in the hope of helping a friend of mine tell his story. While that became impossible, the necessity to bring awareness and push for change remains as important as ever. 

Enabling, understanding and supporting a learning disabled abuse survivor can seem like an impossible task. Even the strongest, wealthiest and most loving families can struggle under the weight of recovery. The abuse of learning disabled people is a painful problem but it's very easy to ignore. Our legal, political, and care systems are woefully ill-equipped, it is difficult to keep media attention on something so unappealing to hear about and it's hard to imagine learning disabled people getting their own #MeToo moment. 

I can't imagine what it must be like to be a survivor or a survivor's family trying to navigate these waters and there are thousands of people submerged in them. When I searched for solutions, I found very little. 

However, Respond offered a light in the dark. From their little office in Central London, they use 27 years of experience "to bring about positive change that enables people with learning disabilities, autism or both who have experienced abuse, violence or trauma to live richer, more resilient lives. We achieve this through a range of evidence-based trauma-informed services for children, young people, adults and professionals. These services include psychotherapy, advocacy, campaigning and other support that aim to both prevent abuse and equip individuals and their families to come to terms with their experiences and live more positive lives." 

In many cases, they are among the, if not the, only people providing these sorts of vital services. I wasn't going to try and get sponsored for this run - if I am honest, I'll be doing it anyway - but I am not sure I could ever do in a lifetime what Respond does every working day. Even the slightest donation to support their work would be very much appreciated.