Over 75 members of our community joined us at Great Windsor Park for this vibrant festival of inclusivity, all proudly wearing Shaftesbury’s distinctive branding. It was exciting to see so many smiley, familiar faces, full of enthusiasm for the day ahead.
Now in its 10th year, Parallel operates as a social enterprise with the simple aim of supporting people with disabilities to live life to the full. This aligns with our own objectives, making it the perfect opportunity to bring together staff, people we support, and their families.
People with and without disabilities travelled from Shaftesbury services across the UK; from Essex, London, Gateshead, Northern Ireland, Northumberland and Somerset. Whether by car, bus, train or plane, we were there.
The mission was a simple one; to have fun. Everyone can be themselves at this uniquely diverse festival.
“As soon as I saw the pictures in the Shaftesbury magazine, I knew I wanted to come. I’m not good with words so I couldn’t read what it said. I just saw the photos and got straight on to Chris to book it,” says Stephen, who is supported by Shaftesbury in Northern Ireland. Support worker Chris confirms he was being urged to book flights even before registrations had opened!
Parallel centres on different challenges – distance races of 100m to 10K, a SuperSensory experience and a dance off, to name a few.
We gave it a good go and were well represented in all the challenges. Everywhere you looked, there were clusters of Shaftesbury green. It felt special to meet people from different services and have so many of us together, reflects Zee, a Team Leader in the North East. She and her colleagues enjoyed feeling part of something bigger.
“We were highly visible throughout the day. It was a proud moment to see Shaftesbury making such a positive and memorable impact on the lives of the people we support. The event highlighted the courage and compassion of our team,” says Zee.
Participants could walk, wheel, push or run the distances. Mobility aids and assistance animals were welcomed and there were no cut‑off times – the Parallel mantra is ‘start together, finish whenever’. Anyone that entered was awarded with a medal; a massive achievement for some.
Laura is always out to prove that life doesn’t stop after acquiring a disability. Adventurous as ever, she signed up for the 5K in her motorised chair, persuading her parents and support worker Christabel to join her. They’d been looking forward to attending the event as a family without the usual worry of whether it would be fully accessible.
“This is the first time I’ve attended a disability event. It’s lovely to have the opportunity to embrace and celebrate my disability and differences without being treated like an afterthought and be in the minority,” Laura says.
Never wanting to miss out on a party, Shaftesbury North East were out in force; 16 of them travelled over five hours in a minibus to be there – skilfully led by Complex Care Manager Sandra who is accustomed to meeting a range of different needs on days out.
Support worker Bright was also part of the North East contingency (last seen recording the new Shaftesbury song at a Gateshead studio!). He’s an accomplished athlete who last year competed in the Great North Run to fundraise for us. Instead of sprinting ahead in the 1K race as you’d expect, Bright took a relaxed walk holding the hand of David, one of the older people we support in the North East. It was nothing new to either of them, but symbolic of how our frontline staff enable people with disabilities to take part on their own terms.
Matthew, on the other hand, was not afraid of picking up the pace, steaming ahead in the 5K. He was SO proud to represent Shaftesbury Anvil House and even prouder to finish in 45 minutes. As someone who lacks self-confidence, it was huge for him.
It’s fair to say Shaftesbury dominated at the dance off. Despite the heat, a sea of green t-shirts flocked to the main stage to learn a routine together. Stephen, supported by Shaftesbury North Down & Ards, led the charge, still wearing his medal having just competed in the 1K. (Quick ice cream and he was ready to go!)
Brian followed suit, dancing in his wheelchair alongside staff from Shaftesbury Bradbury Court in Harrow. This lot bring the positivity; they are a tight team and never seem to stop smiling and laughing. Their energy is infectious. No-one needed to ask Brian if he was having a good time; it was all over his face.
Stephen was the same: “I’m really happy to be here, to meet people from Shaftesbury I’ve never seen before. It’s something different, a great opportunity for me to represent Northern Ireland. People don’t know what they’re missing!”
As Parallel’s charity partner, Shaftesbury hosted a sensory garden (created by experts from Little Muddy Boots) plus a multi-sensory experience, aptly named ‘the tunnel of curiosity’. The idea was to support people with disabilities to enjoy the simple pleasure of spending time outdoors, at the same time enabling us to connect with new audiences and raise awareness of our work.
The event was busy with a lot going on. For some people we support, it became overwhelming at times. The beauty of Parallel is that it’s designed for people with seen and unseen disabilities. Anyone experiencing sensory overload could come and relax in our sensory garden, enjoy the shade and be inspired to explore and connect with nature.
There were other intentional quiet spaces for people to decompress and take a breather. People with disabilities so often feel like an outsider at mass participation events so it felt novel to be considered in this way.
Take the toilets, for example. These are notoriously unpleasant at festivals, enough to put some of us off going! Thankfully, Parallel surpassed all expectations on this front. “It was truly inclusive, even the accessibility of the toilets was brilliant,” says Sandra, explaining that for some people we support, staff need to return to the vehicle to fetch equipment for toileting. As facilities were already available on site, it avoided anyone having to feel self-conscious about queuing with equipment.
Carolyn is our Service Delivery Lead at Shaftesbury Anvil House. She reported back after the event: “We had the best day ever – it was better than we could ever have imagined! We ran, danced and sang, whilst celebrating everyone’s achievements. It was so inclusive from the minute we arrived. We would definitely attend again without question.”
Chigo, our Activities Champion at Shaftesbury Bradbury Court, was similarly enthusiastic: “It was truly an amazing day, beyond my expectations. The atmosphere was vibrant, the different activities were meaningful, and the dancing absolutely spectacular. It has created unforgettable memories. What I especially appreciated was meeting different Shaftesbury services. Being all dressed in the same t-shirts made us really united. It is an event I would not like to miss.”
Trustee Sam Sharpe travelled from Winchester to see for himself what Parallel is all about. He works in finance at Oxfam International, joining our Board last year so he can also contribute to meaningful work closer to home. Sam has a real sense that the Shaftesbury brand is becoming more widely known and our presence at Parallel is a perfect example of that. Needless to say, we soon got him in a t-shirt!
As always, event founder Andrew Douglass gave us a warm welcome. Shaftesbury was involved in Parallel’s inaugural event in 2016 so he was thrilled to have us as partners again for this year’s 10th anniversary. Having seen us at the dance off, he invited Shaftesbury to take to the stage next year. I think we may have made an impression…
See you there in 2027?
PS After an exhausting day, those travelling back to Gateshead somehow had the energy for karaoke on the minibus. It’s safe to say we can count them in for next time (although we may need a bigger bus!)
For more on the history of our partnership with Parallel, read our earlier blog here.
A big thank you to all our staff and volunteers who worked so hard to make Parallel 2026 such an epic day.
(Featured image: Relaxing at Shaftesbury’s sensory garden)