We are currently reviewing the language we use at Entelechy Arts. Historically, our Ambient Jam members have been described as adults labelled with profound and multiple learning disabilities (PMLD).
We acknowledge that this language does not work for everyone, and we are committed to the social model of disability.
Our Creative Director, Rebecca Swift, contextualises the use of PMLD in her chapter, ‘Multi‑sensory improvisation, radical relationships and ‘deep hanging out’ – tracing reciprocal care within a differently disabled/abled ensemble’ in Care Aesthetics and the Arts:
Our Language
“PMLD (Profound and Multiple Learning Disabilities) is an umbrella term encompassing a wide range of unique ways of being. However, the label is sometimes questioned due to the way it might encourage fixed assumptions about a person, including how it might medicalise people. Other labels have emerged in response to this, such as: ‘complex access needs’ (Maskell‑Ludlow 2019), ‘without vocal and cognitive privilege’, introduced by Kate Adams, CEO, Project Art Works, originally coined by Jennifer Law, and ‘sensory beings’ versus ‘linguistic beings’ explored by Theatre Company, Oily Cart (Griffiths & Godwin 2022, p. 19), which emphasise the value in sensory modes of expression. I have included descriptions of the disabilities of our members to highlight the diverse and rich ways in which they communicate beyond conventional language.”
Have your say
In the coming months we will be hosting roundtables with our community, their family members and carers, our artists and our peers. We will continue to listen and learn and make choices around the language we use that better reflects our values and our commitment to the social model of disability. We will update the language on this website following our internal review.
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