Sheila Hollins – författare

Have you ever been mugged or do you know someone who has? This story is about a young man called Charlie who is attacked in the street. The book shows how Charlie is helped by speedy police action, Victim Support and back-up from friends, family members and supporters.

Polly is the victim of an assault. The man she accused is arrested, and she is asked to be a witness at his trial. Polly has intellectual disabilities. Supporting Victims shows how the police help her to choose the special measures she needs to give her best evidence in court. All the special measures which are now available to vulnerable people are explained in this book. For Polly, as with many people, the most important thing is that she has a voice and is believed and listened to. Having a policeman, an intermediary, Victim Support and a judge all listen to you shows how powerful your voice can be.

Everyone feels sad when somebody dies, and people with intellectual disabilities have the same feelings of grief as anyone else. This book tells the story of Mary, who is very upset when someone she loves dies. She is encouraged by a friend to go and see a counsellor. Her counselling sessions help her to feel less sad. Later on in the book, Mary's friend Frank also loses someone he is close to. He is given comfort and companionship by his friends, and learns to cope with life better as time passes.

Ben doesn't like being rushed and when Paul won't make time for a chat, Ben gets cross and upset. Ben asks Jane for help and she helps them sort it out. Now Paul understands what is important for Ben and what has been worrying him. The story ends with them choosing a new activity to do together. We all experience situations that make us feel cross and stressed. Sometimes this can lead to an angry outburst or other sorts of behaviour that challenges. This book will help people and their supporters to work together to sort out difficult situations, and avoid them happening in the future.

After her dad is violent towards her mum, Katie is sad and distracted at college. Her teacher supports the family to get the help of an Independent Domestic Violence Advocate and the police. Katie and her mum are kept safe. Katie's dad is court-ordered to join a group to stop his abusive behaviour. Growing up in a family where there is domestic abuse can leave a young person with painful and overwhelming feelings. It can have a considerable impact on how they grow up and form their own relationships. Sometimes this leads to repeated patterns of abuse in later life. This book will help young people and adults with intellectual or communication difficulties to learn about domestic abuse and how to get help. It will also help people to deal with their own experiences of an abusive home.

Dean goes to the theatre with his family. He enjoys it so much, his friend James encourages him to go to a drama group. He's very nervous and finds it hard to join in at first. But once he gets to know people he has a really good time, doing both backstage roles and acting. Drama groups are a good way to meet new friends and to take part in a theatre production. You can be an actor, or take on a backstage role – like painting the scenery, lighting, make-up, or stage management. Every role in a theatre production is important – if somebody doesn't turn up, the show can't go on. This book will encourage those who'd like to give acting, or backstage roles, a try, by giving examples of activities, as well as illustrating the process of putting on a play.

Neil is desperate to make new friends and be close to other people, but he just doesn't know how. He tries meeting people in the park, but when he approaches them and tries to touch them, they are frightened. With the help of his friend Steve, Neil learns about the right ways to make friends and how to behave safely with people he doesn't know yet. Friendships and relationships are important elements in everyone's life. If someone doesn't have experience of friendships or normal loving touch, making friends can be fraught with difficulty. Some people struggle with understanding even the basics of safe behaviour in public. This book can help people talk about safe ways to make friends, and to reflect on times when inappropriate behaviour may get them into trouble.

Janet is desperate to make new friends and be close to other people, but she just doesn't know how. When she approaches people in the park and tries to touch them, they are frightened. Janet feels devastated and lonely. With the help of her friend Monica, Janet learns about the right ways to make friends and how to behave safely with people she doesn't know yet. Friendships and relationships are important elements in everyone's life. If someone doesn't have experience of friendships or normal loving touch, making friends can be fraught with difficulty. Some people struggle with understanding even the basics of safe behaviour in public. This book can help people talk about safe ways to make friends, and to reflect on times when inappropriate behaviour may get them into trouble.

Katie meets David and falls in love. She moves in with him, but the relationship turns difficult and dangerous when David begins to steal her money and hurt her. Katie quickly gets help through her GP. After a stay in a refuge, Katie begins a new life with a new sense of confidence. Domestic abuse affects millions of people in the UK, causing profound emotional and physical harm. Support to stop the abuse and deal with its effects is vital. This book will help people of all ages and abilities to recognise some of the different types of abuse that can happen in relationships, how to seek help, and how a safe and rewarding life can follow after abuse.

Jenny has moved to a group home, but she is very unhappy and unsettled. Things come to a head when her support worker finds a photo of Dad.Sensitively, the support worker helps Jenny to feel secure enough to talk about why she is upset. Jenny discloses that she was sexually abused by her father. The story shows how the warmth and trust of her support worker and friends begin a healing process which will bring hope and a fresh start for Jenny.Jenny Speaks Out may enable a person with an intellectual disability or mental health problem, or someone who has English as a second language, to open up about their experience of sexual abuse.One of the Books Beyond Words seriesProfessor the Baroness Hollins and her team have spent many years working with people who find pictures easier to understand than words, and have learnt a lot about what is important to them. Books Beyond Words are the result of careful development with the help of the people who read the books, and with family, supporters and professional experts.

Bob has moved to a group home, but his erratic behaviour and terrifying nightmares unsettle the other people living there.Sensitively, a social worker helps Bob unravel his painful past as a victim of sexual abuse. Bob discovers that talking with people he can trust begins a slow but positive healing process.Bob Tells All may enable a person with an intellectual disability or mental health problem, or someone who has English as a second language, to open up about their experience of sexual abuse.One of the Books Beyond Words seriesProfessor the Baroness Hollins and her team have spent many years working with people who find pictures easier to understand than words, and have learnt a lot about what is important to them. Books Beyond Words are the result of careful development with the help of the people who read the books, and with family, supporters and professional experts.

We all worry about going into hospital. For people with intellectual disabilities there is the added fear of not being able to explain what is wrong, as well as not understanding what is happening. This book is designed to support patients like Martin and Mary, who are shown going into hospital, by explaining what happens to them there. Martin is having a planned operation and Mary is admitted as an emergency. Feelings, information and consent are all addressed. Ideally this book should be used to prepare someone before he or she goes into hospital. It will also be invaluable to hospital staff to use during consultations and before treatments, and to understand the needs of people with intellectual disabilities.

This is a story about what happens when a person is arrested. Some people call this being 'nicked'. The police arrest people who they think have done a crime. People who are under arrest often feel worried about what will happen. They do not know what to do. This book will help people to understand what is happening when they are arrested, even if what happens to Dave in this story is not exactly the same as what happens to them.

This book is about what happens when someone is accused of a crime. It will help you if you have been accused of a crime and have to go to court for a trial. In our story we see what happens to Dave when he has to go on trial in a Magistrates' Court, and we also see what a Magistrates' Court looks like. The story is told in pictures without any words although there is text at the back of the book which may be useful too. You can make any story you like from this book as the pictures will fit any crime and any verdict.

Matthew eats lots of sugary foods and doesn't take very good care of his teeth. When Matthew gets toothache he goes to see the dentist. At the appointment, he agrees to have a check-up and treatment to get rid of his toothache. When he feels better, Matthew goes back to the dentist to learn how to keep his teeth and gums healthy. The story gives examples of a dental x-ray, an injection, drilling and filling, and also good oral hygiene routines. This book will be helpful for both professionals and supporters when preparing someone for a visit to the dentist or supporting a patient during an appointment.

This is a book about two people who are introduced by friends. Mike and Janet get on well and enjoy doing things together. They decide they want to live together, but initially their families try to discourage them. This love story traces the ups and downs of their relationship, until they are able to make a commitment to each other.Readers can identify with Mike and Janet, and use the book as a starting point to explore their own relationships, and the role of families, friends and carers in supporting them.

This is the story of a young woman with cerebral palsy who is unable to speak, and finds it difficult to communicate what she is thinking and feeling to people who might help her. She feels isolated and unhappy. Her supporters and carers are frustrated that they cannot understand or recognise her needs.Michelle Finds a Voice shows what happens to Michelle, and how she and her carers are helped to overcome difficulties. Various solutions are explored, including signing, symbol charts and electronic communication. Many people will be able to identify with Michelle.One of the Books Beyond Words seriesProfessor the Baroness Hollins and her team have spent many years working with people who find pictures easier to understand than words, and have learnt a lot about what is important to them. Books Beyond Words are the result of careful development with the help of the people who read the books, and with family, supporters and professional experts.

Belonging to a community reduces isolation, gives people meaning and purpose, and can equip people to contribute more fully. To belong to a community means that people recognise you for who you are, care for you and miss you when you are not there. Going to Church can support people to explore aspects of a church community, and to decide if they want to be part of it. It will also help a church community actively consider how to reduce the barriers to participation that some members of society face. When read together by church members, with and without learning disabilities, this story will deepen understanding of people's experiences, the issues that they can encounter in church, and some of the ways in which we can work together to create stronger communities.The Books Beyond Words seriesProfessor the Baroness Hollin's and her team have spent many years working with people who find pictures easier to understand than words, and have learnt a lot about what is important to them. Books Beyond Words are the result of careful development with the help of the people who read the books, and with family, supporters and professional experts.

Work is a big part of life for both John and Daisy. They get some very important benefits from work, like friendship and money to spend on the things they want. There are responsibilities too, like being on time, following policies like health and safety, and working well as a team.A Good Day's Work shows John and Daisy taking pride in their jobs and understanding their responsibilities well, so that they can sort out problems when they crop up. The stories can be read together or on their own to help someone think about what the day-to-day reality of having a job is like, or to talk about their own situations and responsibilities and how they can make sure they are getting the most from their job.This book is part of a mini series about moving towards work for people with intellectual disabilities.

The Kumars are a hard-working family. Mum has a part-time job at the theatre, Dad looks after the dog and everyone cares passionately about the environment. Everyone pitches in at home. When Dad does a neighbour a good turn by walking her dog for her, it sparks an idea about how to turn a hobby into a small business. Soon the whole family is helping out, advertising and organising the new business and involving the local community in social action to improve the environment.A Family at Work shows how volunteering is not an alternative to employment, but something that can either lead to paid work or bring its own satisfactions. The story and the different roles the family members take can also help young people understand the rewards of responsibility and aspiration to work at an early age.This book is part of a mini series about moving towards work for people with learning disabilities.

Kali is lonely. She has no real friends and no reason to leave the house to socialise; community activities seem remote and pointless to her. Outside her home, Kali defends herself with a mask of hostility, hiding her true feelings. But when things go wrong, Kali finds herself in a position to help Stefan, another vulnerable and isolated person. In the aftermath, they forge a friendship and find themselves in the centre of a community where they feel they belong.Belonging addresses commonly experienced feelings of isolation, and the struggle to find a place within the community. For some it is an engaging story about two people who form a friendship following a dramatic event. Others will be able to identify with the more complex, troubling emotions and barriers Kali and Stefan experience, and the ways that they help each other to open up and feel safe.This book is for anyone who finds pictures easier to understand than words. People with intellectual disabilities are currently the main group of people finding the book useful.

Going to the doctor can be worrying. For people with an intellectual disability there may be the added worry of not being able to explain what's wrong, as well as not understanding what's happening.This book is about Jim, Anne and Laura who visit their General Practice for different reasons. The stories look at the ways the doctor and nurse listen to each of them, asking questions, explaining what will happen next and checking their understanding so that they can give informed consent. Many of the scenarios shown in the book form part of the annual health check. They also show how to involve the supporter appropriately.The book can be used to help someone get ready to visit the doctor, as a reasonable adjustment during the consultation, and for wider health promotion work.

Going for breast screening can be worrying. For women with intellectual disabilities there is the added fear of not understanding what is happening.This book can be used to prepare women before going for breast screening, and to increase breast awareness. In the first story, Beth gets an invitation letter for screening, decides whether to go, has a mammogram and gets the results. The second story shows what happens when Beth is asked back for further tests. The third story is about Sue, who shows how she checks her own breasts. She knows what is normal for her and what changes to look and feel for.

Having a smear test can be worrying. For women with learning disabilities there is the added fear of not understanding what is happening.This book will help to prepare and support women like Carol who are invited to have a smear test. It begins with a nurse telling Carol and her friends how to stay healthy 'down below'. It goes on to explain what happens to Carol, from receiving the invitation for a smear test, making the preliminary visit to the GP practice and deciding whether she will have the smear or not, to having the smear and receiving the results. We then see her being recalled for a further test.

This is a story about what can happen to a man when he does not keep himself clean. People do not need to be able to read in order to understand the story. In the book we follow George's daily life - at home, at work, on the bus and in the pub. George likes being with people and does not understand why they seem to avoid him. He often feels lonely and unhappy, and sometime feels unwell.George's life changes when he is helped to be clean and to wear appropriate clothes. Not only is he happy about the way he now looks and feels, but his work-mates and friends want to be with him. George enjoys their company, and no longer feels so isolated.One of the Books Beyond Words seriesProfessor the Baroness Hollins and her team have spent many years working with people who find pictures easier to understand than words, and have learnt a lot about what is important to them. Books Beyond Words are the result of careful development with the help of the people who read the books, and with family, supporters and professional experts.

This volume looks at the physical, mental and emotional development of children with varying degrees of learning disabilities through tracing the development of six young adults from childhood. The case studies are in the form of illuminating commentaries from the parents and provide extra insight into the children's everyday lives. Each chapter also looks at education and schooling in detail, as well as acknowledging the importance of support outside of the family nucleus.