The winner of Mencap’s annual Christmas card competition for people with a learning disability has been announced.
Sam Stockdale (4) who lives in Downpatrick has won first prize for his fantastic ‘Hark the Herald Angels Sing’ design.
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Sam Stockdale (4) from Downpatrick has won the Mencap Christmas card design competition.[/caption]
Sam has Angelman syndrome, and wanted to capture this in a Christmas theme, using his hand and footprint to create a festive angel.
Sam’s mother Emma Stockdale, said: “Sam is completely thrilled that he has won this year’s Christmas card competition! We know how important the support Mencap provides is to parents of a child with a learning disability, so it’s great that Sam’s design will help raise money for this great cause.
“Sam’s design also raises awareness of Angelman syndrome which is incredibly important to us. Sam used to go to Mencap’s Segal House Nursery and the staff there were brilliant. It’s really exciting to think that his design will be on sale all over the country, and that the money raised will go to help Mencap projects, such as Segal House”.
The winning card designs from each year are now on sale at Mencap’s online Christmas shop. There is also a range of other festive merchandise featuring previous winning designs, including mugs, hats and tote bags. With Yuletide season fast approaching, it’s a great place to pick up Christmas cards and stocking fillers, with all proceeds going to Mencap.
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Sam Stockdale from Downpatrick all smiles as he gets set to draw and paint.[/caption]
Mencap’s online Christmas shop is now live at:
There are 1.4 million people with a learning disability in the UK. Mencap works to support people with a learning disability, their families and carers by fighting to change laws, improve services and access to education, employment and leisure facilities. Mencap supports thousands of people with a learning disability to live their lives the way they want.
For advice and information about learning disability and Mencap services in your area, contact Mencap Direct on 0808 808 1111 (9am-5pm, Monday-Friday) or email help@mencap.org.uk
About learning disability.
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Sam Stockdale with his mum Emma gets a helping hand.[/caption]
A learning disability is a reduced intellectual ability, which can cause problems with everyday tasks – for example shopping and cooking, or travelling to new places – which affects someone for their whole life.
People with a learning disability can take longer to learn new things and may need support to develop new skills, understand difficult information and engage with other people. The level of support someone needs is different with every individual. For example, someone with a severe learning disability might need much more support with daily tasks than someone with a mild learning disability.
Learning disability is NOT a mental illness or a learning difficulty, like dyslexia. Very often the term ‘learning difficulty’ is wrongly used interchangeably with ‘learning disability’.
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