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WorkABILITY is a user-driven project funded by The Big Lottery Fund with a purpose to ‘overcome barriers to work with students with a physical or learning challenge’. It involves a partnership with Oaklands College ( - with plans to work with other colleges in Hertfordshire) and its targets include
- 20 students per year to benefit from work experience placements (2 each) with a wide choice of employers
- 10 students per year to obtain paid or voluntary employment
- meet all students’ needs for special equipment for use in the workplace
- recruit 40 employers in year 1, 20 employers in year 2, and 10 in year 3
- run an effective, targeted publicity / promotion campaign, and
- 75% of participants to report greater self-confidence, and 75% to report expectation of leading a more fulfilling life.
These targets cover the 3 years of lottery funding from 1st January 2007 to 31st December 2009.
Key achievments
- Apprentices peer mentoring 3 students on Tuesdays, and 6 Ready for Work students on Wednesdays attending WorkABILITY’s Work Taster Workshops to Christmas (October to December 2008)
- 3 young people appointed as apprentices to drive WorkABILITY. They are Andrew Bird (Access Co-ordinator), Patrick Fitzgerald (Placements Co-ordinator) and Katie Fraser (Support Co-ordinator) – April 2008.
- Work experience database designed and built by Mark Harris (student on work experience at WorkABILITY) supported by Jeff Palmer, his LSA – March 2008 on.
- Meeting with Grant Shapps MP and discussing the ‘User-Driven’ book, resulting in questions being asked in Parliament, and WorkABILITY receiving a letter from Ann McGuire – Minister for the Disabled. – March 2008
- Publishing ‘User-Driven’ a book largely written by young disabled people overcoming barriers to work – February 2008
2007 and before:
- A group of 5 students taking a lead role in the selection of the full time Employment Facilitator – Murray Bradburn.
- The 4 students on the Operations Group taking responsibility for the operational management of WorkABILITY – by meeting every fortnight, being involved in working groups (focussing on publicity, placements, and equipment), and meeting the Big Lottery targets.
- 4 students acting in a peer-mentoring role with a Ready for Work group on 4 occasions, and
- A student redesigning Hertfordshire PASS’s website, and the Publicity working group starting to design etc WorkABILITY literature.
Pictures of students involved with WorkABILITY
 
 
 
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