EXCLUSIVE Council shut down my disability podcast... all because a photo of me taking my prescription cannabis was circulated by a spiteful social media user
Sarah Wingfield, 37, was keen to draw attention to employment issues for disabled jobseekers in the episode, which was set up by DurhamEnable - a council-funded body focussing on such challenges.
The podcast was also aimed at opening up job opportunities for herself, including in the world of indie acting, where she has already appeared in several roles.
The independent disability advocate, who has autism, even attended a photoshoot to promote the episode.
But the exciting prospect soon turned into a nightmare ordeal, with Durham County Council opting to stop the podcast from being uploaded after they were handed a screenshot from Facebook which appeared to show her smoking cannabis.
Ms Wingfield, who says police are aware of her prescription for the drug, was then hauled into a meeting with a DurhamEnable officer, where she claims she made her case - but to no avail.
The painful experience has left her feeling 'cancelled' and full of doubts about using the employment body in the future.
She told MailOnline: 'I am reluctant to use DurhamEnable for support now, which is a concern considering I've been looking for employment for three years.
'[The podcast] could have opened doors and opportunities for me. It's a big jump to being cancelled.
'I'm the only voice that has been silenced.'
Ms Wingfield typically smokes her cannabis in a vape but when the device's cooling head breaks, she smokes it in rolling papers while she waits for a replacement part.
A screenshot sent to the council in between the recording of her podcast and the date it was due to go live appeared to show her taking the prescribed substance in this way, although she refuses to confirm what was in the papers.
The disability advocate was then called into a meeting attended by a DurhamEnable representative, as well as her job coach, where they discussed the decision not to upload the episode.
Ms Wingfield said she was told the move was based on 'perception' and a breach of the council's social media policy, despite her not being a direct employee.
In fact, she pointed out that she does not get paid for her podcast appearances, rather she has to arrange transport out of her own pocket.
'They said that it didn't matter if it was tobacco I was smoking,' she added.
'[Cannabis] is really good for chronic pain. It's helped me with my studies and everything.
'I understand it can be abused. I understand the stigma surrounding that as well.'
After the meeting, the Durham local then asked for a copy of the council's social media policy but claims she got vague screenshots of rules applying to employees.
Further attempts to determine what regulations or guidance she had broken with the video have proved unfruitful and now Ms Wingfield is threatening to escalate the matter to the social care ombudsman and her local MP.
She said: 'I told the council to reinstate the podcast to help the disabled community.
'[The submission of the Facebook screenshot] was sabotage via malicious communications and hate and Durham County Council have aided and abetted in this abusive and unnecessary ostracising of a disability advocate's voice.
'My voice matters too.
'It's unprofessional, harmful, and hasn't been handled professionally at any time.'
Ms Wingfield insists the saga has opened her up to increased abuse online, the exact outcome the council's social media policy aims to prevent.
'[The saga] has allowed people to bully and that isn't what the policies and procedures are for,' she said.
'I've made a lot of enemies doing disability advocacy, and there's a lot of hate for disabled people and when you are in the public eye, it's magnified. So I deal with a lot of trolling.
'This was an issue close to my heart and by cancelling it, they're telling me I'm not as valid or important as everybody else.
'I wish I could change it. I'm considering moving out of the area because my charity work and community work is fine, it's my local area where opportunities are being sabotaged.
'I did nothing wrong, and at the end of the day, the content [on the podcast] was very important.'
The fallout, however, has not ended with the shelving of her podcast. The disability advocate later noticed she had been cropped out of the pictures taking during the photoshoot she attended.
Ms Wingfield's shoulder can still be seen in one of the shots from the promotional day but her face has been left out of the snaps.
'I broke down in tears [when I saw the cropped photo,' she added.
'I just felt so rejected and discarded. It was so dehumanising.'
To add insult to injury, she has also had a Facebook account dedicated to her acting career taken down after someone reported it for impersonation.
Meanwhile, her page on Etsy was temporarily removed after a similar complaint, which she suspects came from someone in her hometown of Newton Aycliffe.
'It's a very small town so the smallest thing becomes a huge thing,' Ms Wingfield added.
'I've been a target of some local click-led hate campaigns in my hometown, and I'm constantly battling that.'
Jim Murray, head of education and skills at Durham County Council, said: 'We are committed to supporting and giving a voice to people from all backgrounds.
'This commitment is a key motivation behind the DurhamEnable podcast, which we set up to share the experiences of people with disabilities.
'A decision was made not to publish an episode featuring Sarah. We informed Sarah of this decision and the reasons behind it, both in writing and in person and stressed how her wellbeing is of the utmost importance to us.
'We are keen to continue supporting Sarah through our DurhamEnable service, which aims to help disabled people gain the skills and confidence to succeed in long-term employment.'
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