{"id":1294,"date":"2022-03-02T17:36:36","date_gmt":"2022-03-02T17:36:36","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.sense.org.uk\/?page_id=1294"},"modified":"2026-03-02T17:26:20","modified_gmt":"2026-03-02T17:26:20","slug":"our-story","status":"publish","type":"page","link":"https:\/\/www.sense.org.uk\/about-us\/our-story\/","title":{"rendered":"Our history"},"content":{"rendered":"\n\t
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70 years of supporting disabled people to connect with others and be included in the world. <\/p>\n\n<\/div>\n\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t<\/div>\n\n\n\n\n\t

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Meet our founders<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

It all began with two mothers\u2014Peggy Freeman and Margaret Brock\u2014who saw limitless potential in their children, despite the challenges of deafblindness.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Peggy Freeman<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n
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Margaret Brock<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/figure>\n\n\n\n

In 1946, Margaret Brock contracted rubella during pregnancy, and in 1951 Peggy Freeman faced the same. As a result, both of their children were born deafblind.  The two mothers didn\u2019t know who to turn to, and no one knew how to help them. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

With no support available, the two mothers decided to take matters into their own hands. <\/p>\n\n<\/div>\n\t<\/div>\n\n\n\n\n

The start of a network<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Peggy and Margaret knew there must be other families in need of support. Through contacts and letters, they soon discovered that there were, and their group grew into ten founder families known as \u2018The Rubella Group\u2019.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Peggy\u2019s daughter Bunty<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n
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\u201cWhen Peggy and I first met…we could not possibly have foreseen how our search for other rubella parents would develop.\u201d<\/p>\nMargaret Brock<\/sub><\/strong><\/cite><\/blockquote>\n\n\n\n

Through conferences, the group became affiliated with other major organisations for disabled people, which really started to expand their influence and visibility.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Margaret and her son Christopher<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n
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\u201cFor once the United States is not the first in the field. The initiative from the United Kingdom has been taken by a group of parents who have organised an association, to the great embarrassment of educators.\u201d <\/p>\nDr Edward J. Waterhouse<\/cite><\/blockquote>\n\n\n\n

The group\u2019s ongoing focus on what children with deafblindness could <\/em>achieve, rather than what they couldn’t, drove them forward every day. Through sheer determination, they proved to the world that with the right support, at the right time, their children could learn, communicate and develop.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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\u201cThe overwhelming love and affection you have for your children, is the driving force of this association.\u201d <\/p>\nMr Lumsden \u2013 professional at an early conference<\/cite><\/blockquote>\n\n\n\n\t

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A legacy that lives on<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

After registering as a charity in 1961, the group would go on to become Sense, as we\u2019re still known today.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

From their humble beginnings, Peggy and Margaret went on to pioneer revolutionary work in specialised support for children and young people. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Their commitment to breaking down barriers for disabled people drove landmark changes in education, health and social care.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Both Peggy and Margaret were awarded MBEs for their incredible work.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Today, their legacy lives on. The values that Peggy and Margaret embodied \u2013 inclusivity, innovation, personalised support, connection, boldness and determination \u2013 have shaped and are still embedded in our work today.<\/p>\n\n<\/div>\n\t<\/div>\n\n\n\n\n

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Sense today<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n
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Sense continues their mission to this day. We now reach 32,000 disabled people a year<\/strong>, providing support in people\u2019s homes, and in our centres, colleges and residential services.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The heart of what we do has always been the same \u2013 breaking down barriers so that every disabled person is connected and included.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

We work to create a world where children can communicate with their parents and get the best possible start in life. Where young people and adults can develop skills, build confidence and connect with their community. Where families can find the hope and resilience to thrive, not just survive.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Together, we can achieve long term change. That\u2019s why we go to any lengths, step up in the face of adversity and unite with the 1.6 million disabled people with complex needs in the UK.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Regardless of how long it takes, how many barriers we need to overcome or how hard we have to fight, we\u2019ll stop at nothing to create a world where disabled people are connected and included, no matter what.<\/p>\n\n<\/div>\n\t<\/div>\n\n\n<\/div>\n <\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n\t

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Christine reflects on the support that her son, Paul, has received from Sense for over 40 years.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Supporting Paul through every stage of life<\/a><\/p>\n\n<\/div>\n <\/div>\n\n\n\n\n

Get involved<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

 We’re a charity, and we can\u2019t continue our work without your help.<\/p>\n\n\n

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\n \n Sign up to our newsletter\n <\/a>\n <\/h2>\n\n \n
\n\t\t\tStay up to date with our story and read powerful stories about how disabled people overcome the barriers they face.\n <\/div>\n <\/div>\n<\/div><\/div>
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\n \n Fundraise\n <\/a>\n <\/h2>\n\n \n
\n\t\t\tRun, cycle or trek for Sense, or host a fundraising event of your own. \n <\/div>\n <\/div>\n<\/div><\/div>
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\n \n Donate\n <\/a>\n <\/h2>\n\n \n
\n\t\t\tNo matter what you can afford to give, you\u2019ll be making an invaluable difference. \n <\/div>\n <\/div>\n<\/div><\/div><\/div>\n<\/div>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t<\/div>\n\n\n\n\n\t
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More information about Sense<\/h2>\n\n\n
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\n \n About us\n <\/a>\n <\/h2>\n\n \n
\n\t\t\tSense is the national charity for people who are deafblind or have complex disabilities.\n <\/div>\n <\/div>\n<\/div><\/div>
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\n \n Our strategy\n <\/a>\n <\/h2>\n\n \n
\n\t\t\tWe have an ambitious plan to reach more people in the next five years. Here’s how. \n <\/div>\n <\/div>\n<\/div><\/div>
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\n \n Our impact\n <\/a>\n <\/h2>\n\n \n
\n\t\t\tYour generous support helps us reach thousands of people each year. \n <\/div>\n <\/div>\n<\/div><\/div><\/div>\n<\/div>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t<\/div>\n\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

70 years of supporting disabled people to connect with others and be included in the world.\u00a0<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":15,"featured_media":0,"parent":1892,"menu_order":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","template":"","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"_searchwp_excluded":"","footnotes":""},"content_label":[],"class_list":["post-1294","page","type-page","status-publish","hentry"],"acf":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.sense.org.uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/1294","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.sense.org.uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.sense.org.uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/page"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.sense.org.uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/15"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.sense.org.uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=1294"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.sense.org.uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/1294\/revisions"}],"up":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.sense.org.uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/1892"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.sense.org.uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=1294"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"content_label","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.sense.org.uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/content_label?post=1294"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}