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7 Sensory Friendly Holiday Gift Ideas

List titled "7 Sensory Friendly Holiday Gift Ideas" with matching icons for each item. The list includes: Thoughtfully Packaged Edible Treats Noise-Reducing Headphones Scent-Free Personal Care Tactile Fidgets Accessible Digital Entertainment Adaptive Kitchen ToolsThe holidays bring joy, but they also bring overwhelming stimulation for some people. Bright lights flash in every store window, holiday music loops endlessly, artificial cinnamon scents saturate shopping centres, and everyone wants you to wear scratchy sweaters for family photos. For people with sensory sensitivities, whether from autism, ADHD, anxiety, or sensory processing differences, …

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A friendly, flat cartoon illustration showing a middle-aged carer smiling while holding a water bottle with a creatine scoop beside it. Behind them, a subtle split scene shows their dual roles — on one side, helping a disabled family member at home; on the other, working on a laptop at the Disability Horizons Shop.
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Creatine and Healthy Ageing: Evidence-Based Support for Disabled People and Carers

A friendly, flat cartoon illustration showing a middle-aged carer smiling while holding a water bottle with a creatine scoop beside it. Behind them, a subtle split scene shows their dual roles — on one side, helping a disabled family member at home; on the other, working on a laptop at the Disability Horizons Shop.I’ve found creatine really helpful in my daily life, both as a carer and as someone managing the physical and mental demands of running Disability Horizons Shop. I wanted to share my experience — and what the research says — so others can make informed choices about how it might help them too Key Takeaways …

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Flat cartoon illustration of a carer calmly putting on their own oxygen mask before assisting another person, echoing airplane safety advice. Two simplified, friendly characters — one caring adult and one older person — in a warm beige background. Soft, rounded shapes, minimal facial detail, and gentle body language showing care and calm. Include a subtle heart or care symbol between them.
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Are You Experiencing Carer Burnout? Know the Signs & What to Do

Flat cartoon illustration of a carer calmly putting on their own oxygen mask before assisting another person, echoing airplane safety advice. Two simplified, friendly characters — one caring adult and one older person — in a warm beige background. Soft, rounded shapes, minimal facial detail, and gentle body language showing care and calm. Include a subtle heart or care symbol between them.Like the safety advice on a plane — put on your own oxygen mask first — carers need to prioritise their own wellbeing. You don’t have to be perfectly fit or endlessly upbeat. But being well enough, emotionally and physically, to offer care in a way that’s positive and sustainable really does matter. Feeling drained, …

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Flat cartoon illustration of a woman standing on a train wearing a long pink tulle skirt, smiling warmly at a young girl seated nearby. The woman holds a rail with one hand and extends the other toward the girl, who looks up at her with admiration. Other passengers, including an older man with a cane, sit nearby. The scene is set against a warm beige background with simple navy and brown details, creating an inclusive and optimistic mood.
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Age Appropriate or Person Appropriate?

Flat cartoon illustration of a woman standing on a train wearing a long pink tulle skirt, smiling warmly at a young girl seated nearby. The woman holds a rail with one hand and extends the other toward the girl, who looks up at her with admiration. Other passengers, including an older man with a cane, sit nearby. The scene is set against a warm beige background with simple navy and brown details, creating an inclusive and optimistic mood.After the recent loss of sensory education pioneer Flo Longhorn, many of us have found ourselves reflecting on the values and practices that continue to shape inclusive support for people with profound and multiple learning disabilities (PMLD). In that spirit, we’re proud to share this thoughtful new piece from Joanna Grace, founder of The Sensory Projects and a long-time advocate for sensory inclusion and person-centred care.

In this honest and heartfelt reflection, Joanna takes us on a journey through the evolution—and misinterpretation—of the concept of “age-appropriateness.” What began as a vital pushback against the infantilisation of disabled people in institutions, eventually turned into a rigid and often cruel set of norms. Somewhere along the line, support teams were told that to treat someone with dignity meant denying them access to the toys, media, and objects they loved—if they didn’t match their chronological age.

Through stories from her teaching career, personal moments (including a lovely train encounter involving a big pink tulle skirt), and a sharp eye for social contradiction, Joanna argues for a more compassionate approach: “person-appropriate” support.

Why should a 25-year-old man in a care setting be made to give up his Thomas the Tank Engine plate, when adults everywhere eat from cartoon-themed lunchboxes and wear novelty socks without question? Why should joy and comfort be restricted by numbers on a birth certificate?

This article blends storytelling with social critique, grounding its message in both lived experience and academic context. With references to Wolfensberger’s Normalization Principle, the Social Model of Disability, and critiques from contemporary thinkers like Julia Barnes, Joanna builds a case for respecting what matters to a person—not what’s socially expected of them.

Her message is clear:

“Joy doesn’t have an age limit. Being person-appropriate means valuing what people love, not shaming them for it.”

Whether you’re a support worker, a parent, a policy-maker, or simply someone who enjoys plush toys and cartoons well into adulthood—this article will leave you feeling affirmed, challenged, and warmly invited to rethink what inclusion really means.

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Two-panel meme of a knight in full armor. Top text: “A lifelong history of severe disability.” Bottom image shows the knight stabbing himself in the head with his own sword. Overlaid text: “telling the planner I had a ‘good day’ yesterday.”
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Redefining Humour and Creativity: How Meme Culture Strengthens Disabled Voices

Two-panel meme of a knight in full armor. Top text: “A lifelong history of severe disability.” Bottom image shows the knight stabbing himself in the head with his own sword. Overlaid text: “telling the planner I had a ‘good day’ yesterday.”In a world where accessibility is often overlooked, humour can be a soft but powerful force for change. Memes — those bite-sized cultural snapshots — have grown from light online entertainment into tools of social commentary, self-expression, and community building. For disabled people, memes provide a platform to share experiences, challenge stereotypes, and turn everyday …

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