“Do you see me married?” It’s a question many people might find ordinary or even expected. But when the same question is asked about a person with a learning disability, it challenges a society that too often excludes, overlooks or underestimates the hopes and dreams of people with learning disabilities.

This Learning Disability Week, we’re putting this question front and centre. This is because love, partnership, and the dream of marriage aren’t exclusive to a chosen few. They are part of what it means to be human. And people with learning disabilities, just like everyone else, deserve to have their desires seen, heard, and respected.

Take Andrew and Angela. Andrew first saw Angela while gardening for a neighbour. He told his neighbour, “She’s lovely—I fancy her.” Encouraged to ask her out, he ran after her and invited her for a coffee. She said no. But the next time he saw her, she said yes. That coffee turned into a friendship, and eventually, love. Angela began staying over more often, and after four years, Andrew asked her to be his girlfriend properly.

Years later, Andrew proposed at a local pub. He got down on one knee. Angela said, “Everyone’s looking at us,” but Andrew asked again—and she said yes. The whole pub cheered. The manager brought them a free meal and champagne. Today, they’re married. They go on holidays, help each other at home, and enjoy each other’s company. When asked what makes him happiest in his marriage, Andrew says, “Meeting Angela on that day.”

Too often, the ambitions of people with learning disabilities are boxed in by limiting assumptions: that they won’t live independently, hold down meaningful work, or enter loving relationships. But these assumptions say more about our society than about their capabilities. When someone asks, “Do you see me married?” they’re really asking, “Do you see me as a full person?” That question is a powerful provocation—and it should make us all stop and think.

Whether it’s going on a first date, having a partner, or planning a future with someone they love, people with learning disabilities have the same right to romantic desires as anyone else. Yet too often, barriers stand in their way. There are fewer opportunities for socialising, limited access to inclusive relationship education, and sometimes a lack of support from those around them. But with the right encouragement, understanding, and adjustments, relationships can and do flourish.

This year, we’re sharing stories like Andrew and Angela’s—stories that are joyful, complicated, funny, and touching, just like anyone else’s. These stories ask us to look at love through a different lens. Not a lens of pity or permission, but one of equality and celebration.

Seeing someone married means more than witnessing a wedding. It means recognising their capacity for love. It means ensuring they have the right to make decisions, to give and receive affection, to dream about a life with someone else—and to make that dream a reality. So, when someone asks, “Do you see me married?” our answer should be a resounding “Yes, I see you.” Not as someone who is different. Not as someone whose love is conditional. But as someone whose hopes matter just as much as anyone else’s.

When people think about politics, they don’t always picture someone with a learning disability at the heart of it. But Jonathan is helping to change that view simply by showing up, speaking out, and being himself.

Jonathan, who lives with Down’s syndrome, is an active member of the Labour Party and passionate about making sure everyone has the chance to be heard. He believes that political spaces should reflect the diversity of society—and that includes people with learning disabilities.

Recently, Jonathan was a proud participant in the My Vote My Voice campaign. With warmth and confidence, he helped others understand how important it is to vote, and reminded people that their voice matters, no matter who they are.

With support from his Support Worker Ian, Jonathan attended a political conference in Blackpool. It was a big moment, not just for Jonathan, but for what it represents. His presence there quietly challenged the idea that politics is only for a certain type of person. Jonathan brought his perspective, his passion, and his commitment to being part of the conversation.

This Learning Disability Week, we’re asking: Do You See Me? Jonathan’s story is a reminder that visibility matters. It’s about being seen not for what someone can’t do, but for all the things they can do.

When people like Jonathan are included in political spaces, it makes our democracy stronger. It shows what real inclusion looks like: not just being present, but being welcomed, respected, and heard.

Jonathan has a seat at the table. And he belongs there, just like everyone else.

At Options, we’re working towards a better world where people with learning disabilities are seen, included, and celebrated – everywhere. You can help us by donating today.

59% of people with a learning disability don’t take part in sport — not even once a month. Yet, 2 out of 3 say they want to do more*. At Options, we believe everyone deserves the chance to be active, included, and proud of what they can achieve.

That’s why we’re celebrating Peter, who recently completed the Liverpool Half Marathon — a huge personal milestone. Peter, who has a learning disability, trained every week with his support worker, Liam. Together, they built a routine, set goals, and stayed motivated. Options matched Liam with supporting Peter due to their similar hobbies and interests in sport.

“Every Tuesday, me and Liam do our 10k run,” Peter shared. “Before the race, we practised the route five times.”

On race day, Peter felt the energy of the crowd. “The atmosphere was amazing. People were cheering us on,” he said. Peter crossed the finish line in just over 2 hours — beating his personal best by three minutes.

Peter’s story is a powerful reminder that people with learning disabilities have goals, talents, ambition, and determination. With the right support in place, Peter can be seen and achieve his goals.

We’re working towards a better world where people with learning disabilities are seen, included, and celebrated – everywhere. You can help us by donating today.

*Data from the English Learning Disability Sports Alliance

You may have noticed we look a little different! We’re proud to say that our new brand has launched into the world as of today. This has been a journey we’ve been on over the last year, and we couldn’t be more excited to share it with you. Read on to understand why we’ve done it, how we went about it and what’s staying the same. 

Making a better world for people with disabilities

At the core of our new brand is the belief that everyone has the right to the life they want. People should be able to choose who they spend time with, the passions they want to pursue and ultimately create a life that’s worth living on their terms. We believe in a better world. A world where a full life is accessible to everyone. 

For over 30 years we’ve been delivering properly person-centred support because we know it’s the right thing to do. We want to help build to  a world where people with disabilities contribute as unique and valued members of dynamic and inclusive communities. Which is precisely why we support, empower, and enable people with disabilities to live their lives to the fullest.

Why the change?

The main reasons we felt a rebrand was needed were:

• We’ve been going for 30 years, but some people still don’t know us. We wanted to use the rebrand as an opportunity to introduce ourselves to new audiences and engage with our wider community.
  
• Introducing fundraising – We wanted to introduce new revenue streams and create a brand that would encourage donations, welcome new people to our work and secure the support we offer hundreds of families.
  
• We needed to modernise – Our new look and feel are designed to be modern, accessible, and inclusive. Our new look ensures that everyone feels welcome.

A brand made with and for people with disabilities

We wanted our new brand to come from the people we support, their families and our team. Their individuality, glorious differences and creativity has been captured so we can celebrate and highlight our community. But don’t worry, while we’ve changed how we look and sound, it doesn’t mean what we do is changing. We’re still dedicated to delivering person-centred support across our Options community.

Getting stuck into the creative process

Through a collaborative workshop, we were able to give the people we support, their families and our team the chance to influence what our new brand would look like. We offered people free reign to get creative with paints, brushes and colours to produce unique shapes and a new, vibrant palette. Our new brand proudly celebrates the spirit and uniqueness of every person we support.

Our new logo

The shapes radiating from each letter of Options reflect how our support is built around each person’s needs, placing them at the centre of everything we do. The clear, widely spaced uppercase letters symbolise the strength, reliability, and expertise behind our support.

Our shapes

Our brand’s circular shapes were inspired by mark-making exercises with the people we support. Each shape occupies the same space, symbolising equity, while their unique forms – smooth, curved, or spiky – represent individuality.

Our colours

Our vibrant colour palette is like a rainbow, celebrating individuality and joy while reinforcing a sense of visibility and belonging for everyone.

Our typeface

Accessibility and legibility were our priorities when choosing a typeface. Every detail, from the shape of the lowercase ‘a’ to clear distinctions between letterforms, were carefully considered.

Our imagery

Our imagery is all about people – they are our inspiration. It reflects the reality of those we support, ensuring everyone is seen, valued, and included.

Our name

We decided it was time to slightly update our name (and use the name most people refer to us as anyway!), so now you’ll see it as just using Options. We’ve shortened it to make it more memorable and usable. 

What’s not changing

With so much newness happening, we also wanted to reassure everyone that some fundamental things aren’t changing:

• We’re still offering person-centred support – This is the core of what we do, and it won’t change today, or ever.
  
• Our uniquely Options approach – We’re proud to do things differently to the rest of the social care system, and our new brand helps to highlight and celebrate this for everyone to see and understand.
  
• Us celebrating the people we support – If anything, we want to do it more! Every person we support is our reason for being, so we want them, their voices and their stories to be shared with as many people as possible. 

Have thoughts or feedback?

We’d love to hear what you think of our rebrand, please share any thoughts to marketing@optionsempowers.co.uk. Otherwise, sign up to our newsletter to stay on top of our latest updates or follow us on Instagram, Facebook and LinkedIn to see our latest campaign unfold. 

And a Happy New Year from everyone here at Options.

As a person-centred organisation, we believe that listening is one of the most important things we can do. Listening well to people we support, their families and our staff helps us to learn and grow as an organisation. Recently, we sent out a survey to everybody we support asking them to let us know what they think about the support we provide…

We asked ‘what do you think about the support that Options provides?’ Here’s what people said:

We asked ‘how reliable do you think we are?’ Here’s what people said:

We asked ‘How many stars would you rate Options?’ Overall, people gave us 4.2 stars!

Things that people wanted to keep the same were:

• Their staff team
• Events run by Options like our ball and our fabulous Christmas parties
• Fun activities and trips

Things that people wanted to change were:

• Even more events and trips
• Having more support staff on their teams
• Better communication when things change

We also received some fabulous compliments…

‘My staff team are fabulous and Margi is lovely with me (she’s the best!)’

‘‘Anthony is very happy with the support he gets and is loving going out more than during the pandemic’

‘A big thank you to all of Options for their support and time’

So, what next?

We’d like to say a huge thank you to people who took the time to fill in the survey and give us some great feedback! We have passed any specific feedback about support on to our Team Leaders who will set clear actions to make sure this feedback is acted on.

A reoccurring theme in the feedback we received highlighted one of the key issues facing social care at the moment: staffing. We understand that consistency in staffing is important to people we support, and we are currently working hard to ensure this is delivered. We are constantly listening to the feedback of our staff and reviewing pay and conditions to ensure that we recruit and retain high-quality staff who share our values and beliefs.

You don’t have to wait for a survey to have your say! People we support are invited to attend our regular ‘Voices ‘R’ Us’ Meetings to give us feedback and help us improve the way we do things at Options. Staff and people we support, along with their friends and families are also welcome to give us a call on 0151 236 0855 and let us know how we’re doing.