Who are we?

Stay Up Late was born following the experiences of the punk band 'Heavy Load', a group with members with and without learning disabilities. Spurred on by the frustration of seeing fans leave gigs early due to staff working inflexible shift patterns, we started off as an awareness raising campaign as we realised more needed to be done. We began promoting full and active social lives for all, working with support workers, venues and adults with learning disabilities to make a more inclusive, joyful society.

Beyond our campaign work, we now run Gig Buddies, a simple solution that reconnects people to their community through the power of friendship and fun. For the past decade we've paired up adults with learning disabilities and/or autistic people with volunteers based on their shared interests and encouraged them to attend mainstream cultural events (be that the theatre, a club night or an opera show).

Why does this matter?
Many people with learning disabilities have told us that they want to lead fuller, more active social lives, experiencing the sorts of things that many people take for granted. In fact, adults within care often struggle with loneliness and isolation, with disabled people twice as likely to be lonely than non-disabled people (Sense, 2023).

We believe that a community that fully involves all its members is stronger and allows us to form relationships and develop informal support networks, strengthening care. It also means that you are able to participate as a full and active member of your community, regardless of your disability.