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"I want to help people see there is a different way of being. I want to remove their fears, concerns and other barriers stopping them from finding the true joy within their lives. Through Beautiful Creator, I can use my skills to help other people get through any of life’s tribulations."

Robert Winstanley FRSA

Owner, Beautiful Creator

CEO and Founder Jacqueline Winstanley recently caught up with Rob Winstanley of Beautiful Creator to find out what makes him an inspirational Inclusive Entrepreneur. Rob is also a member of the Inclusive Entrepreneur community and is being coached and mentored by Jacqueline.

So what led you to entrepreneurship and how did you start Beautiful Creator?

"I was born with brittle bones. From day one, I have been on my own journey...having shattered my femur and broken seven bones in my rib cage. I have spent many years strapped in a hospital bed - isolated from the world, and experiencing some of the lowest lows, and feeling like there is no way out. That is, until I met one incredible person who helped me see what life truly can be like ..that it was not the material things that I was obsessed with, but experiencing the true joy of love."

"These past 27 years have been a roller coaster which have allowed me to gather the skills and ability I need to help and support people on life's demanding and challenging journey. I wish to help people see there is a different way of being. I want to remove barriers such as fear and any concerns they may have, to help them find the true joy that is within their lives."

That was the beginning of Beautiful Creator. I started the life-coaching company to use my extensive skillset in supporting people, to radically change their lives and views on the world."

So tell me more about Beautiful Creator.

"Beautiful Creator is not just one programme. It is a series of programs that cover a spectrum of activities, ranging from one-to-one life coaching, right though to conferences/events and everything in between."

"For the one-to-one coaching, I work closely with my clients.  We meet wherever they feel safe and secure to speak, whether this is at their home, or a local leisure center, country park. The aim is for them to feel safe and be able to open up."

"While there is a lot of talk in the media how even though you have a disability, many activities are still possible, I want to take it further, showing how everything is still possible, creating travel guides for the disability community, locating accessible hotels, attractions and so on, removing concerns and barriers individuals may have about travel. I see myself reporting on upcoming projects such as inclusive cities, a project run by the ICCC. It is all about people being able to access experiences that support their mental health and wellbeing."

"I want people to see that with the right support, anything is possible. The name Beautiful Creator promotes this concept, reminding people of how beautiful life can be with a little help, how it can be created."

Rob, you are a member of the Inclusive Entrepreneur Community. How has that helped you in your journey as an entrepreneur?

"Jacqueline’s help on my journey towards becoming an entrepreneur has been tremendous. With her coaching and the Inclusive Entrepreneur programme, she was instrumental in helping me remove personal blockages and obstacles that I myself had placed in my way. After a year of struggling with the entrepreneur’s world, I was filled with a new level of self-belief that anything is possible with the right support. She has the knowledge and passion to support members of the disabled community, and can in turn help them to follow their own passions!"

If you would like to contact Rob, you can browse through his website, follow him on social media, email him on This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. or call him on +44 (0) 7931 398400.

Website: www.beautifulcreator.co.uk

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/Beautiful-creator-CIC-108905684144880/

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/beautifulcreatorcic/

Back to The Inclusive Entrepreneur Page

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Albeit an 11th hour reprive, this is fantastic news that Bolton Wanderers Football Club #BWFC (https://www.bwfc.co.uk/)  is under new ownership and remaining in the Football League.

The Club is so much more than match day entertainment. It is the heart of the town and the subject of the famous Lowry painting "Going to the Match"*

*In 1928, a Sunday painter by the name of Lowry completed his painting Going To The Match. Laurence Stephen Lowry is Britain’s best loved impressionist painter and Going To The Match depicts a match at Bolton Wanderers’ Burnden Park, a ground built in August 1895 and once host to crowds as large as 70,000. In 1953, the painting won a Football Association competition in honour of the 1953 coronation of Queen Elizabeth II. It was bought by the by the Professional Footballers' Association for a record £1.9 million in 1999.  https://thelowry.com/about-us/ls-lowry/his-work/

It also has a legacy footprint of Inclusive Opportunities through its football in the community programme and Women’s football team.

I and all the young people at Kids Core an initiative I founded and managed from 1995 to 2004 and which became the blueprint for the Inclusive Play and Childcare Model, will fondly remember the Summer Football Clubs BWFC ran for us each year. These were ever so popular and saw an increase in the number of young people of all abilities take up the sport, including my own son, and my daughter who went on to play for BWFC Women’s Team and is now a Sports Medicine Doctor. She toured with the New Zealand Under 20’s Women’s World Cup Team in the 2018 FIFA U-20 Women's World Cup. 

The club was at the forefront of Community Cohesion engaging in ways that only sport can, and I am delighted it is here to stay.

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As Disabled People are effectively silenced by the latest conflicting guidance within the Access to Work award, we once again call for support for Disabled People in Enterprise to be placed within BEIS.

It’s hard to imagine that in a year when we celebrate the many achievements of disabled people, once again we see conflicting criteria within the Access to Work (ATW) award. Contrary to its stated intent and potential to lift disabled people out of poverty, it is now acting in ways which serve to remove the right to Advocacy and or Third Party Consent to assist with the application process.

It was shocking to be informed by advisors at the contact centre that this essential support, provided at the point of application and throughout the duration of the award, including review, ceased to exist three weeks ago. This move left disabled people and others who require support in the process unable to access the very support they require at the point of entry to the award or at review.

This move also comes amidst the ongoing difficulties faced by users of the service, which were outlined again recently at a focus group organised by the Inclusive Entrepreneur Network in the UK.

Sadly whilst the key area of practical support to disabled people in enterprise remains within the Department for Work and Pensions (DWP), these enterpreneurs automatically fall within a perceived regime. Focus group members consider this to result in a disproportionate regard to a false perception of misuse of the award. This view, according to the focus group, is over and above the stated intent of supporting disabled people into employment, increasing innovation and economic growth. They also see that this injustice is likely to continue.

So why is this such a blow to disabled people? We are tasked to create Inclusive Economic Growth and the ‘Paradigm Shift’  within the UN 2030 Agenda. This directive falls directly within basic human rights and the UN Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) signed up to by our Government. With this change in policy, this moves the UK out of reach of attaining these goals and delivering the support required for disabled people to achieve economic independence, effectively silencing them in the process. 

More importantly, why does this remit fit within the Dept. of Business Energy and Industrial Strategy (BEIS) and not the traditional realms of the DWP? 

To answer this, let us first explore what we mean by Inclusive Entrepreneurship.  

It is everything that Entrepreneurship can be - a concept or innovation; humanitarian, financial or socially-driven. It can lead to very simple yet practical innovation such as replacing plastic straws or introducing game-changing inventions like the smart curve mammograms.

It embraces failure as an essential step towards greater innovation. 

Remember people like Sir James Dyson, Dr. Shirley Jackson, Thomas Edison, Marie Curie, Stephanie Kwolek … the list goes on. Along the way, they all have experienced failure, time and time again, prior to achieving their great successes.

The only and critical difference for disabled entrepreneurs is that they will require support both to become and remain an entrepreneur. 

The resultant contribution to the growth of the economy from such enterprise is what we term Inclusive Economic Growth. 

In the UK, there is a significant employment gap for disabled people. Disability Rights UK (DRUK) states that there were an estimated 3.7 million people of working age (16-64) with disabilities in employment between January-March 2018, an employment rate of 50.7%. The employment rate for people without disabilities was 81.1%.

We also know from the Joseph Rowntree Foundation that one in six people who become disabled while in work will lose their jobs within the first 12 months of diagnosis. 

We know that the world of work is changing and we are seeing massive growth within the private sector, particularly within SMEs.

Business Population Estimates for the UK and Regions in 2018*:

• Small businesses accounted for 99.3% of all private sector businesses at the start of 2018. 99.9% were small or medium-sized businesses (SMEs).
• Total employment in SMEs was 16.3 million; 60% of all private sector employment in the UK.
• The combined annual turnover of SMEs was £2 trillion, 52% of all private sector turnover.

*above figures from FSB Report 2018

The Inclusive Entrepreneur Program, piloted in the UK, identified the key issues faced by Disabled Entrepreneurs. We have previously made recommendations to Government on how this could be improved, including making an earlier call to place the Access to Work award within what is now BEIS.  

INCLUSIVE ENTREPRENEURSHIP PILOT

The UN Committee on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities (UNCRPD) ratification in the UK requires Government to present a rights-based response to the employment gap for disabled women.

Sadly, evidence shows that the Employment Support programmes within the DWP are not having the desired impact in terms of reducing the Employment Gap for Disabled People. Furthermore, service user feedback within recent Select Committee Investigations; presentations to the UN Inquiry on UK progress on fulfilling its commitments to the UNCRPD; and subsequent recommendations all point to Disabled People being highly dissatisfied with the current programmes and their internal administration. They consider them to be more in line with disability-related benefit programmes - filled with conflict, threat of sanctions, citing recent and ongoing restructure of the ATW award, creating chaos and mistrust.

If we then look at the allocation of funds intended to redress this, we are told by government that they spend millions on Employment Support Programmes designed to reduce the number of disabled women on out of work benefits. This may not an unsubstantial amount, until you see what the Government allocates to BEIS to support economic growth, which depending on the various figures released, is between £91.3 and £180 Billion.

And it’s here where I would like to position the Paradigm Shift and outline how BEIS can support disabled people in enterprise to achieve it. 

When we move out of the realms of the DWP, we are met with terminology and working practice which instantly uplifts and implies a sense of value, purpose and hope. 

Quite simply, BEIS gets it. It comes at it from a different starting point. Its primary concern is not how much of a burden a person is within the Welfare Bill; instead it concerns itself with what disabled people can do, how they can contribute to innovation and increase Economic Growth. 

I have outlined below the elements which will enhance the current portfolio of programmes within BEIS and or inform future development in this area:

• The creation of a Task Group to champion and enhance existing and future opportunities within BEIS, led by Disabled Entrepreneurs.  The task group must work with disabled people to develop measures which support innovation and Inclusive Economic Growth.
• Targeted business support programmes which

o   include the management of health and wellbeing, alongside traditional start-up advice. These must be well publicised, accessible and have the desired level of flexibility that will be required.

o   include elements to fund business compliance, professional development and the day-to-day management of the award.

o   encourage innovation, and which recognise value and purpose of failure along the way without penalty or limitation in scope or location.

• Access to finance programmes which are sympathetic to life-experiences and acknowledge that most disabled people will not have the financial footprint that traditional funding streams require
• Funding for practical support which understands the very nature of Inclusive Entrepreneurship and the complexities for disabled people within the workplace, particularly for those who have life-limiting and fluctuating conditions.
• An Advocacy and Third-Party Consent Mechanism that is embedded within any enterprise support programmes and/or Access to Finance stream.
• Provide easy access to mental health support and holistic treatments to minimise the impact of managing the day-to-day challenges that come with being an Inclusive Entrepreneur.  
• Recognise that traditional methods of evaluation and existing benchmarks based on the way non-disabled people run their business cannot be applied to disabled people. There must be separate evaluation tools and benchmarks that are fit for purpose.
• Create open and realistic pathways, both by way of levels of award, and autonomy within personalised budgets with quick and easy access to additionality.

Inclusive Entrepreneurship, if supported effectively, offers a real and sustainable way forward in reducing the employment gap for Disabled People. 

The simple measures suggested can be implemented quickly, both within existing and future developments within BEIS. They can also bring about a swift and sustainable way forward for Disabled Entrepreneurs. 

In doing so, we will see an end to the current conflicting criteria and restrictive practice currently experienced by Disabled Entrepreneurs - the most notable of which has been the rather short-sighted insistence within the Access to Work Award that Disabled Entrepreneurs are given less time to evidence business viability than their non-disabled peers. This criteria is not clearly defined, and is subject to the discretion of each individual advisor. Sadly, should this not be evidenced, the Disabled Entrepreneur may not try again for five years, (yes that is not a typo - five years!). 

Significant innovation comes to mind which would never have come into being had that criteria been applied, not least of all, the very tool and medium I am using to present this Call to Action. 

Imagine if the cure for cancer is in the gift of a disabled woman in enterprise - not on the first time that she tries, but on her second attempt - and we did not go that extra mile to support that innovation. 

Crucially, and in conclusion, BEIS has within its reach an opportunity to embrace this Paradigm Shift within the 2030 Agenda. It is best placed to bring together the partnership between the Disabled People in enterprise and their aspirations, and the practical measures needed to turn this vision of reducing the employment gap into a reality. 

At this time, I ask Government, specifically

• The Prime Minister
• Secretary of State for Work and Pensions and Minister for Women and Equalities 
• Minister of State for Disabled People, Health and Work
• Minister of State for Countering Extremism and Minister of State for Equalities
• Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, The Minister for Disabled People,

to Support our Call to Action

• To Reinstate the use of the advocate and third-party consent process within the Access to Work award giving back Disabled People in Enterprise their voice.
• To Create opportunities for Disabled People in Enterprise in line with our recommendations.

Jacqueline Winstanley - July 2019

Entrepreneur, Humanitarian and Global Disruptor 

email: This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. for further details

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‘Miss Diagnosis’ – Disability Stockport 40^th Anniversary Festival

Thursday 18th July 2019 held at the Plaza Theatre Green Room

An evening of discussion about incorrect diagnosis of women and the journey to receive the correct diagnosis.

I was honoured to be asked to chair a panel discussion alongside other global disrupters.  It was a brilliant yet emotional event.

Thank you to Carol Ann - Disability Stockport @DisabilitySK, Sara McKee FRSA FCIM - Evermore Founder @SaraMcKeeFRSA, Aba Graham - Director Aspiring Boldly Associates CIC @aspiringboldly and Steph Sherratt -  Project Manager at Breaking Barriers @BarriersNW for joining me on the panel.

Great venue @StockportPlaza1, perfect for a confirmed afternoon tea addict like myself.

Women in general put the health and wellbeing of their children and partner first, and when they do visit a health professional there is a good reason for it.

There is a high incidence of misdiagnosis within the general population, but it is not disaggregated in terms of gender.

The most common areas of misdiagnosis in women are heart attacks, fibromyalgia strokes, endometriosis, lupus and MS.

Women cite three main reasons why they feel they are misdiagnosed:

• There is not enough clinical research or subsequent treatment or advice on gender difference in health conditions,
• they feel health professionals don’t listen to them or take them seriously
• or else they think they are complaining about insignificant conditions.

Other factors which can influence misdiagnosis are fear within health professionals about repercussions as a result of getting it wrong.

In the UK, the only avenue for redress and acquiring any resultant support is via legal action - unlike for instance New Zealand, where if things do go wrong, the state puts everything that is needed because of it in place, eliminating the need for litigation and leading to a much more open and transparent system.

There is also a genuine desire to reach the right diagnosis, as symptoms of different health conditions can mirror each other.

As part of setting the scene, I shared a poem I wrote for the occasion titled ‘Misdiagnosis’

Panel members all echoed that a key factor was not being listened to at the point that their instinct, - many a time, over and over again - was telling them something was seriously wrong.

I posed three questions to the panel:

• A brief summary of their journey/experience to time of diagnosis

• How it impacted them in their day-to-day lives (at work, at home and socially)

• Then a broader discussion on what would have made it easier, including the key areas where they felt should improve in order for them to get early and accurate diagnosis and treatments.

The key elements to come out of the Panel include:

• A feeling of hopelessness; not having their belief that there was something wrong taken seriously enough.
• Horrific, often life-changing results, following misdiagnosis on top of the impact of developing a medical condition - which is traumatic enough to start with.
• Massive negative impact in the workplace - in all cases it resulted in losing the job they had been good at; all echoed an experience where they were no longer seen as valuable.

Furthermore

• All emphasised the lack of relevant information and treatments that suited their individual pathway and circumstances at crucial points in their diagnosis.

• All cited lack of support to remain in work, and where there was support, the criteria to access it was conflicting and could be removed at the drop of a hat particularly if self-employed.

• All echoed a negative impact in their home and social lives as they struggled to function and access services they needed following the onset of their diagnosis.

• The delivery method and approach was seen to be critical in improving women’s experience at the point of diagnosis i.e. having to access support via a call centre and artificial intelligence or recoded message pointing you to the terminally ill department etc.

• Women need the right information at the right time.

• All shared experiences of social isolation, as important people in their lives reacted to their diagnosis alongside often cruel and hurtful responses to the presenting symptoms from those around them.

• All reported having key people, friends and colleagues who had stepped up along the way who had helped them keep it together.

• All spoke of a loss of the person they were, but gave powerful tributes to who they have become and what they are achieving alongside dealing with the harsh and often relentless reality of life with a disability.

Comments from our panel speakers:

Sara McKee FRSA FCIM - Founder, Evermore  @SaraMcKeeFRSA,

“Lobby - Parity of physical health and mental health. Need to be government backed”

Aba Graham - Director, Aspiring Boldly Associates CIC @aspiringboldly

“Trying to manage memory loss and hearing.  Workplace needs to recognise it and support. If it’s invisible it’s ten times harder. Look at how they treat people”

Steph Sherratt -  Project Manager, Breaking Barriers @BarriersNW

“Creativity. Stop creating boxes and putting people in boxes..The creativity and talent come from the differences”

In conclusion, the following are required to improve women’s experiences and reduce misdiagnosis:

• Clinical research into the gender difference within medical conditions.

• Treatments which reflect those differences.

• Timely and easy access to support within the workplace, home and social lives of women who are diagnosed and have to live with their diagnosis, including life-limiting ones which kick in automatically and do not have conflicting criteria and/or sanctions.

• Women want the right information at the right time, delivered in a respectful and compassionate way.

• They want a voice and their instinct about their own health to be taken more seriously.

• Women want changes in Health Insurance schemes particularly around mental health, ideally with a move towards systems like that in New Zealand to eradicate some of the underlying areas of malpractice which impact on misdiagnosis.

• Women want this to be the start of a conversation and a platform for change in what has to be fair: the current system was developed predominantly by men, based on male experience of presenting symptoms and resultant treatments.

• Create a Paradigm Shift in respect of health inequalities.

We now look forward to continuing the debate.

July 2019. Jacqueline Winstanley - Founder & CEO  Universal Inclusion @univinclusion

Acknowledgment with thanks to Disability Stockport @DisabilitySK, and The Zebra Partnership @Zebra_carol

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A poem written in advance of the Miss Diagnosis panel on July 18, 2019 in Stockport.

Miss Diagnosis

In the wake of the crashing storm which swept my feet from under me like a gilded scythe, I am Miss Diagnosed

Each rotation cutting deeper than the one before, as I raged against the overwhelming shadow which caressed the contours of my body, reaching deep into the very depth of my soul

The flashing lights that accompanied the inevitable journey, ensconced in the calming reassurance of the humane side of the emergency response

The wave of nausea that accompanies the unbearable pain, as the menstrual fluid flows unchecked within my abdominal walls, now brings me crashing to the floor with the resultant abandonment of all decorum which lies next to the vomit now beside me.

I lay as a wounded bird wrapped in the familiar saltiness of my tears warming my face, as they once again fall silently upon the cold hospital floor, as my thoughts, just as I lose consciousness, move to the incredulity of my plight

A reassuring voice awakens me from my slumber as I glance upon the familiar invading cannula and am soothed by the orchestral tones giving affirmation of my heart rate

The words of the consultant leave me reeling from the procrastinations which linger in the air around me, as if to silence my very being, enveloping me in dark veil of avoidance and delay

My soul cries out in disbelief at the myriad of ears that don't listen, as I travel, as if caught in the headlights through unnecessary tests, excuses, ridiculous procedures - each designed to cast doubt on my instinct and presenting symptoms

A hand on my shoulder found me at my lowest when faced with the only remedy proposed to be psycho-sexual counselling. I was lost in the incongruent swell of communications and despair.

The hand came with a whispered voice, speaking loudly, asking for the opinion of others, and suddenly as the morning mist rolls down from the hills enveloping all in its path, a new swathe of light washed over me.

Whilst liberated by the resultant findings, my world was turned upside down. No apology would quell the sense of loss and fear of what lay ahead when faced with the the reality of the misdiagnosis

My very essence as a woman had been cruelly disfigured, my most intimate of places no longer held the allure or productivity it once did, alongside complications which would blight the rest of my natural years

The greatest shadow cast is one of loss and regret at the journey travelled, and the real and actual harm resultant from the Miss Diagnosis.

J. Winstanley July 2019

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