All of us at Tai Pawb are very sad to hear of the passing of Graham Findlay, former Tai Pawb Board member. Our CEO, Alicja Zalesinska, reflects on his contribution to shaping the rights of disabled people in Wales, and her personal experience of his wit and empathy:
“I was deeply saddened to hear of the passing of Graham Findlay.
Graham was a tireless equality and disability rights advocate, campaigner, a valuable board member (twice) and a longstanding friend and supporter of Tai Pawb. His contribution to accessible housing and disability rights in Wales has been profound and enduring.
One of Graham’s most significant recent contributions to our work, and to the lives of disabled people in Wales, was his role in helping shape the disability element of the new Welsh Housing Quality Standard and in informing new Building Safety legislation from a disability perspective. His insight, challenge and advice played an important role in influencing how disability was considered within these frameworks, and in strengthening the focus on disabled people’s needs within Welsh Government’s approach.
Much of what we have learned as an organisation, and as a sector, about accessible housing over the past decade has been influenced and championed by Graham. He was a genuine expert in co-production, consistently embodying the principle of “Nothing about us without us.” He challenged us to think carefully about how lived experience shaped our work, questioning decisions and approaches to ensure that disabled people were meaningfully involved rather than consulted as an afterthought. He kept us honest and on the right path.
Graham’s values were firmly rooted in the disability movement and the social model of disability. He always acted with integrity and in what he believed to be the best interests of disabled people, even when that meant asking difficult questions or pushing back against comfortable assumptions – he was so good at that. His influence can be seen across much of the progress made on accessible housing in Wales in recent years, even though we was (rightly!) frustrated with it.
One of the last things he penned for us was this blog , first published as an article in Welsh Housing Quarterly in 2022. In it, he reflected on years of missed opportunities around accessible housing, while also urging the sector to make the most of emerging opportunities linked to decarbonisation and the growing opportunities around the legal right to adequate housing. Written in his characteristically direct, thoughtful and constructive style, it captured both his frustration with incremental change and his belief that we could, and should, do better.
Beyond Tai Pawb, Graham was involved in countless initiatives and movements, including managing the Positive Action for Disability Programme for CIH, and working with organisations such as Disability Wales, Scope and many others. I am certain there is far more he was involved in than I will ever be aware of – such was the breadth of his commitment, his influence, and his willingness to give his time, knowledge and energy wherever he felt it could make a difference.
On a personal note, Graham was one of the kindest and most supportive people I have met in my housing career. I remember arriving at my first CIH Cymru Tai conference, newly appointed and slightly terrified, and Graham being the most welcoming person in the room. He offered help without hesitation, lifted the mood with his cracking sense of humour, and made what could have been an intimidating space feel human and welcoming. He was also one of the people who was deeply angry about the injustice and hostility of the anti-immigration rhetoric around Brexit (and beyond), and he contacted me at the time simply to check that I was OK. That instinctive solidarity and care meant a great deal and says so much about who he was.
Graham will be deeply missed. His legacy lives on in the policies he helped influence, the values he championed, and the continued push for housing systems that truly include disabled people. Read his blog: endtothetinkering/
My thoughts are with Graham’s family, friends and all those who knew and worked alongside him.”