Hi! I'm Ziva and I am a student at UWC Atlantic College. On January 11th, as a part of our annual Amnesty Headshave event, I will be shaving my head to raise funds for The Brain Charity.

The Brain Charity is a UK based organisation helping individuals affected by neurological conditions and their families to live longer and happier lives. 'Neurological condition' refers to any condition affecting the brain, spinal cord or nervous system (there are over 600 of these!): some examples are Alzheimer's, Cerebral Palsy and Epilepsy, as well as neurodivergent disorders such as Autism, ADHD, OCD and Dyslexia.

My ADHD has caused me to struggle in school and constantly feel the need to force my brain to work in a way it wasn't designed to because the academic system was not designed with neurodivergent people in mind. Many other neurodivergent people face similar struggles in school and at work.

Reading stories of people whose lives were changed by The Brain Charity on their website caused me to recall times when I've been told that I wouldn't cope in the "real world". Statistics unfortunately support this: in 2023, 30-40% of neurodivergent adults (as I am soon to be) in the UK were unemployed compared to under 10% of neurotypical ones. Most of these neurodivergent adults are eager to work but cannot due to stigma, discrimination and a lack of support for their alternative needs. This is just one example of how neurodivergence (and other neurological conditions) can make our lives incredibly difficult and alienate us from the usual ways of accessing community and financial security in society. Hence why The Brain Charity's work is so important.

The Brain Charity also offers training courses to educate companies on how to better support neurodivergent employees and harness their strengths. Through this programme, they aim to reduce neurodivergent unemployment rates. Other services they provide for those with neurological conditions include social activities, employability skills training, confidence coaching, help with navigating the welfare benefits system and emotional support.

Donating even a small amount would mean so much to me. Thank you all so much for your support!