Service user takeover: Meet Hadisa

Meet Hadisa, a creative writing and media student from Manchester. Hadisa will be sharing with you her sight loss story and how, supported by Henshaws, she has been empowered to access services such as digital assessments, well-being classes and more.

Introducing myself

Hi everyone, I’m Hadisa, a college student and avid reader. In this blog, I will be sharing a bit more about me and some of the services I have accessed at Henshaws.

How I came to Henshaws

I was contacted by Henshaws during the pandemic and was asked if I needed any advice or support.
One of the services that is available is the confidence in the community programme. Supported by Josh, one of our Enablement Officers, I was given advice and guidance on travelling back to college. This involved three accompanied journeys to college which built up my confidence to make these journeys independently.

Keeping well

Keeping well is really important to me, and one of the activities I continue to take part in is a weekly group Yoga class with Esmerelda from Unlimited Potential.
As a special treat, here is a video of just some of the activities covered in their session.

Using technology

Being connected to others and also attending online classes during lockdown was extremely important to me.
When I started my university course, I was provided with a Macbook so Josh put me in touch with Chris, one of Henshaws’ Digital Enablement Officers, who carried out a digital assessment.
Henshaws offers digital assessments to people with sight loss living across Greater Manchester. Find out more about our Digital Enablement Service.

Reading

One of my favourite hobbies is to read. I use a magnifier to read my favourite authors and also access apps like BorrowBox and use a kindle.
Find out more about BorrowBox, in Henshaws’s video.

Find out more

If you would like to learn more about me, watch my InSights video below, in which I talk about my experiences of sight loss.