LET’S is excited to announce that we now have a storage locker for our low sensory space items and, soon to be launched, sensory kits. This will be a tremendous benefit. We have grown so much that we need more space than we previously had. The new locker is large enough for us to organize our supplies and ensure that we have the right supplies for each booking.

LET’S was contacted by the City of Coquitlam Community Services Coordinator, with the portfolio of Inclusion (children’s programs/camps). They enquired about our workshops and the services that we offer.

The Coordinator invited LET’S to table at the Coquitlam AccessAbility Resource Fair. Their Community Services team held the 1st fair last year at Maillardville Community Centre. The free resource fair is in celebration of National AccessAbility Week. It is an opportunity to learn about the City of Coquitlam’s accessible programming options, local agencies, and nonprofits. Additionally, City staff will be onsite to share resources and offer opportunities for residents to check out programs and services available for the community.

(Stim toys, stuffed animals, colouring pages, and

LET’S low sensory space brochure.)

LET’S had a booth to promote our organization and a low sensory space. There wasn’t a large turnout but those who did come were very interested in learning more from the various service providers. The slow times also gave an opportunity for service providers to talk to one another and learn about the various programs and support that are offered in Coquitlam. We talked to several groups about the launch of our upcoming service of sensory item kits. We spoke with a person who runs camps in the summer for students. They said they would love to be able to buy sensory kits, particularly as we will be employing only neurodivergent folks. It’s a win-win. We hope to further this discussion when the service launches in September.

LET’S met with Fraser Valley Pride about our upcoming involvement at Pride on July 13th at Fraser Valley Heritage Park in Mission.

Last year we had an excellent location for the low sensory space. We were in a wooded area, a good distance away from noises and performers. This year we are working with Fraser Valley Pride on better signage and ideas that will draw more people to our tent. We suggested one way to encourage people towards us is with a trail of trans + queer history facts. We will be working with Fraser Valley Pride on this approach by providing them with facts from our Queer + Trans workshop (created and researched by Harmony Bongat, with help by Heather). LET’S will also have a table in the main section of the event.

In April, LET’S hosted a week-long low sensory space at Kwantlen Polytechnic University (KPU) during the university’s exam week. LET’S was approached to host a low sensory space at KPU by a faculty member who stated “With so much stress anxiety and other mental health issues on the rise combined with high wait times for counselling I believe your space is so very much needed.”

Prior to the low sensory space being set up, information was shared with staff. Responses included:

“This is fabulous! Thanks for sharing, and for helping organize this. Great to see this happening at KPU.”

“This is super cool!”

“This news brought tears to my eyes. What a terrific initiative! I will send this news off to my students.”

“This is great, thank you so much! If you have a social media sharable version of this, please let us know and we can share on our Insta.”

“That is excellent… My child …could have used something like this.”

LET’s filled the room with stim toys, stuffies, markers, crayons, colouring pages, books, and posters adorned with positive messages to create an inviting space where people can go to relax, de-escalate, be safe, and regulate themselves.

LET’s was visited by students – and a few curious security guards. More than half of the students stayed more than an hour, with several staying over 2 hours. There were also students who came multiple days. One day, our host held space for 3 students who were dealing with heavy issues.

During the seven-day exam period, over one hundred students visited the room often returning a second time bringing additional guests. During the first day, one student told LET’s staff the following:

‘I studied eight hours; slept four hours, and just took my exam. This room is exactly what I needed now. Thank you, Thank you.”

One host said, “Everyone who came in looked around in bewilderment. It looks so great!”

Overall the space was very well received and working with the university was a positive experience. LET’S is interested in offering low/reduced sensory spaces to other colleges and universities in the future.

The Polygon Gallery engaged Heather McCain in providing on-site feedback on the gallery’s “Velvet Terrorism: Pussy Riot’s Russia” exhibition. The Polygon was interested in exploring how to make the exhibition more low sensory friendly for visitors on their low sensory night. This was an interesting consultation opportunity, due to the exhibition’s overwhelming visual, sonic, and physical intensity, and its densely structured maze-like multimedia environment.

The low sensory event was a success. Visitors who require low sensory were glad to find staff prepared and aware of the various ways low sensory spaces can be supported. There was an adjacent room set up as a low sensory space with stim toys, colouring, and quiet. The Pussy Riot exhibition is purposely sensorily overwhelming and Polygon Gallery worked to lower that without affecting the impact of the exhibit. Some visitors also shared that they didn’t think they would be able to last long and instead were able to enjoy the exhibit as much as they wanted. The staff said it was great to hear such immediate, positive feedback.

LET’S started our relationship with The Polygon Gallery in 2021, providing Disability Awareness and Gender & Sexuality workshops and an accessibility audit. We were pleased to see them make immediate improvements, based on our recommendations. The Polygon Gallery also applied for, and received, funding to increase accessibility. Since that time, we have been in regular contact as they continue to learn about accessibility and the needs of the disability and neurodivergent communities. We look forward to our continued relationship.

LETS will be doing our Breaking Barriers workshop at AdvoCon in October.

We will also have a low sensory space for the 2 days that are in person at the SFU Surrey campus.

“AdvoCon is an annual education advocacy conference organized by the BCEdAccess Society, a grassroots, BC nonprofit society and Canadian charitable organization, founded in 2014.

We are parents and guardians of students with disabilities and diverse abilities from all over the province. Our focus is action for equitable access to education, and we are led by the population we serve – disabled people, BIPOC, 2SLGBTQ+, and other people in protected classes under human rights.

This conference is for parents/guardians, self advocates, educators, administrators and all allies/accomplices in the pursuit of inclusion. Join us for workshops, panels, and presentations.

Active listeners are present online to provide support during the sessions, and we’ll try to find volunteers to provide similar available support in person.”

Vancouver Writers Fest (VWF) is one of the largest and most prestigious annual literary festivals in North America. Through year-round programming, the organization connects people to exceptional books, ideas, and dialogue that ignites a passion for words and the world around us.

Heather is on the VWF accessibility committee, where they are trying to improve access and provide access-related feedback to the organization. For the first time, LET’S offered a low sensory space at the festival, albeit in a less-than-ideal location for such a space. We’ve provided feedback that the location needs to be more centralized and properly singaged. LET’S had many great conversations with festival volunteers about the need for low sensory spaces. The volunteers were very inquisitive, especially about our stim toys! Some of the volunteers were also teachers and that led to productive conversations about stim toys in schools. We were excited by the enthusiasm of the staff and volunteers and we’re in further talks with the festival to include funding for a better located and supported space for future festivals. We hope other festivals follow suit and incorporate low sensory spaces in their events.

LET’S facilitated a low sensory space for Normie Corp Event Society’s first multi-day festival, Camp Normie, which took place at The Birdhouse in Vancouver in September 2023. Normie was founded in 2020 amidst the pandemic lockdown, bringing community together safely online. They create nightlife and music based events by, featuring, and for 2SQTBIPOC people in the Lower Mainland.

The event was a success. We had participants who thanked us for being there. Some said that they wouldn’t have been able to stay as long, while others said they would have less overwhelm to recover from. We were happy to be there for them.

Our low sensory toys were popular with neurodivergent and non-neurodivergent attendees alike.

(2 photos. 1st is of an attendee knitting in the low sensory space. 2nd photo shows attendee modeling what they’d knit by night’s end.)

AdvoCon is an annual education advocacy conference organized by the BCEdAccess Society, a grassroots, BC non-profit society and Canadian charitable organization. The organization’s focus is action for equitable access to education, and they are led by the population they serve – disabled people, BIPOC, 2SLGBTQIA+, and other people in protected classes under human rights. Some people with ADHD came together in the low sensory space and had a great connective conversation.

Response was such that LET’S was hired by an attendee for a later event at Kwantlen Polytechnic University.

LET’S hosted low sensory spaces for a variety of events, including AdvoCon, Camp Normie, and Vancouver Writers Festival. These low sensory sensory spaces were very well used and loved. We noticed that a lot of the event volunteers really engage with and enjoy our spaces, and also often identify as neurodivergent. Many event attendees thanked us for providing a safe space to stim and regroup.