LJMU will celebrate the 2018 International Day of Persons with Disabilities with an enlightening talk from Liz Sayce OBE, Former Chief Executive of Disability Rights UK.

Liz will be discussing the topic of ‘Mental health, equality and human rights: Developments in Policy & Practice’.

Mental health has become a huge priority nationally – including in universities. Everyone from celebrities to business leaders seems to be talking more openly about mental health challenges – but are things changing for people experiencing distress? This talk will focus on developments in policy thinking on mental health and disability rights; and implications for work, study and practice.

Liz will draw on her experience in disability rights, mental health and equality, including current work chairing a Commission on Equality and Mental Health at the Centre for Mental Health; and as a member of the Disability Advisory Committee of the Equality and Human Rights Commission.

About Liz Sayce 
Liz was Chief Executive of Disability Rights UK (and its legacy charity Radar) from 2007-2017, where she led work for equal participation for all, through programmes on independent living, career opportunities and shifts in cultural attitudes and behaviour.

Liz is a Non-Executive Director of the Care Quality Commission and a member of the Disability Advisory Committee of the Equality and Human Rights Commission, the Committee of Healthwatch England and the Social Security Advisory Committee. She is a visiting senior fellow at the London School of Economics, where she is completing a project supported by the Joseph Rowntree Foundation on policy levers to influence employers to improve disabled people’s employment and pay; and is Chair of the Centre for Mental Health’s Commission on Equality and Mental Health.

With a background in mental health and disability rights policy, previous roles include Policy Director of Mind, where she led programmes on social inclusion and women’s and LGB mental health; and Director of Policy and Communications at the Disability Rights Commission, where she led a new ‘Disability Agenda’ and formal investigations (covering rights of people with mental health challenges and/or learning disabilities). She led an Independent Review into disability employment programmes for Government in 2011 and has published widely on mental health, disability and social participation. She undertook a Harkness Fellowship in the USA resulting in a book (From Psychiatric Patient to Citizen, 2000 – updated in 2016), was awarded an OBE in 2009 and an honorary doctorate from the University of Kent in 2014.

After hearing from our keynote speaker, Liz will be joined by LJMU representatives; Yvonne Turnbull (Director of LJMU’s Student Advice and Wellbeing Department) and Dr Grahame Smith (Reader in LJMU’s School of Nursing and Allied Health), for what we hope to be a lively and engaging panel debate.

The event will be chaired by Gary Graham (Deputy Chief Executive, Organisational Enhancement, LJMU) and opened by Mark Power (Interim Vice-Chancellor & Chief Executive, LJMU) and Zia Chaudhry (Director of the LJMU Foundation for Citizenship).