NSA Graduate Scheme 2013

This week, Insight and the National Skills Academy (NSA) launched Cohort 4 of the Graduate Training Scheme.

NSA received just under 1,000 applications for this year's programme and faced the difficult task of whittling it down to just 22 final delegates.

On monday, we finally got to meet our new Grads, and we're very excited to get the programme underway!

The Grads come from a variety of backgrounds, locations, and specialisms, but are all interested in and passionate about making a difference in Social Care.

We at the Insight Team are looking forward to working with them, and wish them the best of luck over the coming year!

Sports Driving Unlimited

My name is Liza Pern and I have worked with Insight for many years as a Director with responsibility for most admin and website tasks and issues.  I’ve always had a passion for horses and have been involved with a carriage driving centre that specialises in activities for people with disabilities and special needs for nearly 20 years.  During this time I have become increasingly frustrated that we have been unable to secure funding to enable such people to come to the centre and benefit from contact with our very special ponies.

So in 2007 I set up a charity called Sports Driving Unlimited, supported by Insight, which aims to raise funds to enable anyone with a special need to enjoy the fun and therapeutic benefits of carriage driving as a sport and interaction with ponies.  In the past 5 years we have given many individuals the opportunity to try the sport and we hold regular ‘therapy’ sessions for local schools and voluntary groups.  We have a ‘core group’ of drivers with a variety of disabilities who have honed their skills so that they can now compete regularly, often with success in open competition against able bodied drivers.  As you can imagine this brings them a huge boost in their self esteem and confidence!  Some of our winners include a young man with cerebral palsy who won the title of Scottish Indoor Novice Champion 2012 and a young girl with the same condition who won Novice Para-Champion 2012. 

Carriage driving as an activity has great benefits in terms of improving motor skills, concentration, ability to reason, communication and motivation.  Sitting on a carriage builds core strength and the need to develop effective communication in order for the pony to go forward is a great motivator!  All participants are taught how to drive a pony including correct sitting position, rein handling and voice commands to control the speed and direction.  They also experience the practical aspects of caring for a pony, including grooming, leading, harnessing, feeding and carry out practical tasks at each session.  The coaching is tailored to each person’s own abilities and goals and we have special carriages that can accommodate a wheelchair.  Our participants range from 3 to 80 years old, from all walks of life, with a huge range of additional needs.

The charity has just received the award of Dumfries and Galloway Life Charity of the Year 2012 – which we are over the moon about!  This recognises everyone’s hard work and the success of our activities.  We hope it will raise our profile and bring in more much needed funds to the charity’s coffers!

- Liza

Space Inclusive - Good Practice In Practice

For today's blog we hand over the reins to one of the NSA Graduate Scheme Alumni.

Odunola Okeme completed the Graduate Scheme last year. During the course of the programme, Odunola was part of a research group who were looking at innovation in times of austerity and together they produced a strong report and presented their findings to a panel.

One component of this research was a series of case studies; Odunola personally looked into Space Inclusive, and she's here to tell you more:

Specialisation and Micro-enterprise: Space Inclusive

The current economic trends and reduction in Local Authority spending as a result of the Comprehensive Spending Review has led to a push for a competitive market for social care. There is an expectation that organisations will expand and adapt in order to survive. However, research has shown the benefits of maintaining small scale personalised and specialist services within social care.

Space Inclusive, a Micro-enterprise based in Nottingham has approached the current social care climate by providing a specialist and transitional service for young adults (18+) with Autistic Spectrum Disorder.  The organisation works  these young adults, who have a personal budget, with the aim of empowering them to become less dependent on benefits in the future. For each new service user, the long–term capabilities are assessed and a person-centred plan is developed to enable the individual develop the needed skills to realise his/her pre-determined goals within a realistic and achievable time frame. 

Space Inclusive is flexible and dynamic in the way it goes about working with the individual to enable achievement of their goals. It embeds the skills each individual needs to develop into activities such as music, gardening, horse riding, internet surfing, work experience, art work and social interaction events.

 For clients who have been wholly reliant on one to one support at home, the willingness of Space Inclusive to tailor its service provision to suit the needs of its client allows it to provide an intensive support outreach package (in the individual’s home) to begin with. The main aim being to increase the individuals confidence to a level where he/she can begin to access the integrated support in groups of no more than 5 per activity with a staff ratio of 1:2 or 1:3.5. The small group size and staff ratio for each activity means that undivided support is given, and the specific age group makes it easier for the service users to feel comfortable, socialise and build friendships.

 The organisation’s trendy premises, relaxed atmosphere, dedicated staff who are specifically trained to work with its client group and ability to ‘think outside the box’ has proven to be a success with its service users and is fast making Space Inclusive a point of reference among policy makers.

 Space Inclusive has an annual turnover of about £400,000. The organisation is set to open its second branch so as to retain the current standard and quality of its service provision with the increasing number of referrals it is receiving. Furthermore, the organisation’s blend of an initial intensive support with subsequent integrated support to encourage its service users to be less dependent on the service is creating savings for the Local Authority.

Considering the current climate, there are several lessons to be learnt from Space Inclusive's person-centred approach, driven by a genuine desire to see individuals become less service and benefits dependent. For more information visit the organisations website at www.spaceinclusive.co.uk

- Odunola

Check back soon!

From the Insight Team