Neurodivergent Community Bristol

Welcome to On Our Minds, Bristol's first adult neurodivergent community where different minds can share, shine and socialise in a fun and supportive space.

Event details

• When: Sunday 23rd June, 14:00-17:00
• Where: Armada House, Telephone Avenue, Bristol City Centre, BS1 4BQ
• Theme: Beginnings
• Dress code: Be yourself!
• Attendees must be 18+ years old due to the stories and bar
• Cost: £12 adults / £4 open concessions (use discount code "CONCESSIONSDISCOUNT" to apply). If you don’t have the cash right now, don’t worry. Book this rate and let us welcome you with open arms, no questions asked.

Run by neurodivergent individuals for those who feel like they think differently, On Our Minds offers a unique space to tell your true stories or give short talks on your special interests under a given theme.

This upcoming event is all about “Beginnings”.

Every attendee can put their name into the hat to tell a 5-minute story on stage. Or write down a 1 sentence story and place it in a second hat to be read out for you in between stories.

Whether you're eager to showcase your art, share your own life experiences or simply listen and learn from others, speaking is optional. The choice is yours.

We encourage everyone to get involved by contributing in any way they feel comfortable. The main thing is that you can connect with others who understand you and feel a sense of belonging.

So, if you're 18+ years old and feel like this is the space for you, join us as we come together to create a more understanding and compassionate world, one story at a time.

Here’s what you can expect on the day

The event will last for three hours and will be structured like the following:

• 1st hour – You arrive and can see the activity station and gallery item.
• 2nd hour – Live story and idea sharing.
• 3rd hour – It’s your time to chat and revisit the gallery and activity stations.

There are two distinct spaces at the event – one where you can sit and watch performances and another where you can have a few stations of sensory/ hyperfocus activities.

Both spaces are to be set in a sensory-friendly way that provides respite from stimulation and a safe and comfortable setting.

There will also be a bar for drinks and a quiet space available if you want to take a moment to relax. Plus, a yellow-green sticker system to indicate whether you want to participate in conversation.

A few house rules

To keep the story and idea sharing segment fun, fair and engaging, we have a few rules:

• The story or idea must be shared within 5 minutes. (We’ll have to kindly ask you to stop if you go beyond this point.)
• Please include any trigger warnings when you enter your idea or story into the hat.
• All stories you tell must be true.
• No hate speech allowed – your story will be stopped.
• The individual must take responsibility for the information shared. We expect you to share things that you are emotionally ready to share. This community is not a support group.
• We will also make sure that support is available onsite for anyone who is feeling emotional and would like it. We will also signpost, if necessary, to services that can provide ongoing support.

Accessing Armada House

There’s a small car park strictly reserved for drivers with a disability. You’ll need to contact the venue directly to reserve these in advance.

Otherwise, there are multiple Pay & Display car parks within a mile radius, including the ones on Queen Charlotte Street and Princess Street.

If you are hearing or visually impaired and wish to attend, or want to discuss anything related to accessibility, please email Devon before the event – **devon@self-agency.org**.

The minds behind the meetup

On Our Minds is brought to you by Self Agency in partnership with CareScribe.

Self Agency is a neurodiversity consultancy in Bristol, paving new opportunities for every mind through training, workshops, events and consultancy.

CareScribe is an award-winning assistive technology company based in Bristol. They create software that supports thousands of neurodivergent individuals in both work and study.

They have two game-changing products: Caption.Ed and TalkType:

• Caption.Ed offers live captioning and note-taking to help you better understand and remember the vast amounts of information you face every day.
• TalkType provides highly accurate, lightning-fast dictation, allowing you to effortlessly transform your thoughts into text.

Take a look at the software here.

Do your part for the community

As this community is new, we need you! If you're interested in sponsoring a volunteer or contributing in any way, please email Devon from Self Agency at [devon@self-agency.org](mailto:devon@self-agency.org). Your support will help us continue to create meaningful experiences for our community.