“ INDEPENDENCE THROUGH SELF DIRECTED SUPPORT ”

The 2^nd independent evaluation of Hertfordshire PASS’s employerABILITY programme ( – involving the development of a new apprenticeship in ‘being an employer of PAs’ and combining it with an apprenticeship for PAs) has now been published by Margaret Martin, the report’s author – go to attached link.

Hertfordshire PASS will welcome Stephen McPartland MP for Stevenage, and members of a national steering group convened by the National Apprenticeships Service to PASS’s offices in Stevenage on Thursday 14^th March – with the Media Release we have prepared being available via this link. This is PASS’s way of celebrating Apprenticeships Week. The Media Release includes very supportive comments by Esther McVey (Minister for Disabled People), John Hayes ( – when he was Minister for Apprenticeships) and Stephen McPartland MP.

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Owen Parry (Chair of PASS Trustees) – in the wheelchair in the foreground – and Nigel Fenner (PASS Manager) at the House of Commons on the 14^th January 2013 before meeting Rt Hon Esther McVey (Minister for Disabled People). Owen and Nigel had 10 minutes with the Minister including handing over PASS’s newly published User-Driven 3 book and sharing the progress it is making with its apprenticeship programme with disabled people.

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Hertfordshire PASS have appointed 2 Retail Apprentices.

Emily Cheetham has already started her Apprenticeship at Cancer Research.

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Hertfordshire PASS is now open for 2013.

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Nigel Fenner (Manager of Hertfordshire PASS) on the right of the photo – after a meeting with Nick Hurd (Minister for Civil Society), Stephen McPartland (Stevenage’s MP) (4^th and 5^th from the right), and representatives from other charities in Stevenage – at the House of Commons on Tuesday 11^th December. What impressed Nigel most of all was Nick Hurd listing the priorities for his department, as follows:

• Devolving funds to individuals and communities, through for example personal budgets, and community budgets
• Enabling individuals and communities to get access to the right information (advice and guidance), and
• Developing the quality of commissioning.

This is very encouraging given PASS’s innovative employerABILITY programme which addresses the first of the these priorities head on. Nigel used PASS’s new book – User-Driven 3 to make this point. On leaving, Nigel invited Nick Hurd to visit PASS in Stevenage which included sending him an email invitation the next day. Watch this space!

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“Hertfordshire PASS is looking for young disabled people aged 16-25 to come along and work with Hertfordshire PASS. Please feel free to look at our Leaflets below:

Work Club Leaflet  /  Herts PASS Work Experience LEAFLET

If you are interested in these opportunities, then please let Katie Fraser (Work Experience Co-Ordinator) know by contacting her on 01438 747455 extension 29.”

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Due to Hertfordshire PASS receiving some funding from the European Social Fund, we will access you to help with our targets of funding young people and will give you an Individual Learning Plan as well.

Each Work Club session we run will start with an opportunity for young disabled to ask questions of a visitor, some of whom are disabled, about their experience of work for example asking them about what their first job was, or if they had any barriers to accessing work etc.. Afterwards, there is an opportunity to use a form of media (-to communicate what has been explored in the morning or whatever is on the mind of the young person in relation to work) or do a work preparation activity.

Further to that,  this may lead to you becoming either an apprentice where we can support you in employment or going on either an initernal or external work experience with us or another organisation.

Further details may be given by contacting Katie Fraser (Work Experience Co-ordinator) on :01438 747455 ext 29, email: katie@hertspass.com or Patrick Fitzgerald (Apprenticeships Co-ordinator) on : 01438 747455 ext  28 email: patrick@hertspass.com.

Katie Fraser  (Work Experience Co-ordinator) has managed to set up a fundraising page on JustGiving for WorkABILITY please click here for more details.

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