On Thursday 10th September 2026, Dates-n-Mates hosted our third annual Love Without Limits Conference. This year’s event took place during Scottish Learning Disability Week in Aberdeen’s Beach Ballroom with attendees joining us from across Scotland.
The afternoon brought together Dates-n-Mates members, colleagues and partner organisations to tackle the stigma and break down barriers to relationships for adults with learning disabilities.
The conference was co-hosted by Dates-n-Mates Directors John Paul Moffat and Katrina Duncan, and featured the following sessions:
An introduction to our Love Without Limits campaign and our commitment to upholding and respecting human rights… by John Paul Moffat and Fiona Corbett (Dates-n-Mates)
A presentation from Ruth Callendar on behalf of Scottish Commission for Learning Disabilities (SCLD) about their “Relationships Matters” report.
A discussion led by Alastair Minty in partnership with Stay up late Scotland exploring how to support people around relationships.
A lived experience panel with Dates-n-Mates members, directors and trustees sharing their opinions and personal experiences on relationships, confidence and social inclusion.
Our panel were Tony Young, Katrina Duncan, Lisa Coutts, John Clarke and William Rae, hosted by Louise McEwan (Dates-n-Mates).
A talk about the importance of consent with Hafsa Naiya and Erin Campbell on behalf of Rape Crisis Grampian
An overview and taster of our Love & Sex training programme with Donna-Marie Speir and Tony Young (Dates-n-Mates)
A human bingo interactive activity to get everyone in the room connecting with one another on a personal level.
“The conference was a really well balanced and thoughtful session on an issue that still affects people more than it should because the support isn’t always right. The highlight was Lisa feeling able to tell her story.” – Alastair Minty
Aberdeen member, Lisa, was very nervous as this was her first time taking part in a conference, but she overcame her nerves and did an amazing job. She spoke about her relationship with her boyfriend, Stuart, that she met at a Dates-n-Mates event.
As a member-led organisation, the lived experience panel was truly the highlight of the day. The learning disability week theme this year was “Here to be seen” which is something we are passionate about at Dates-n-Mates… Our members and lived experience colleagues will be seen, heard, listened to, empowered and valued… every day. We are proud of everyone who took part and openly shared their stories.
Glasgow member and volunteer Tony shared some very powerful statements during the panel including a message to support workers… “Give us a social life that you would want for yourself”
The conference allowed us to explore ideas, highlight information and share personal stories in the pursuit of breaking down barriers for adults with learning disabilities who continue to experience challenges in exploring meaningful relationships.
We were delighted to be joined on the day by a wide variety of people within the learning disability and support providing community. Attendees travelled to the event from Glasgow, Edinburgh, Inverness, Stirling, Dundee and Aberdeen city/Aberdeenshire.
We would like to say a big thank you to all of our speakers and attendees for a such a brilliant day.
The conference may be over for another year but the campaign for better understanding of human rights and relationships for adults with learning disabilities continues…
Get in contact with us if you would like to support our campaign, explore working together or learn more about becoming a member at Dates-n-Mates.
