Action-attainment

Understanding Hidden Communication and Sensory Needs - New Therapist Led Workshops including Lived Experience

This specialist, in depth workshop, run by highly experienced therapists will be made into an online course, should Covid 19 adaptation fundraising prove successful. Further courses, including one on sensory and emotional regulation are in preparation. Our courses include presentations explaining the lived experience of hidden needs and asking for 'reasonable adjustments' for inclusion. Contact us to express interest.

Action-attainment’s new workshop for parents and teaching staff of children and young adults with communication needs examines how we can understand, plan and prepare for attainment with a good understanding of hidden communication needs. Talking Tomorrows have specific experience of working on differentiation of secondary and adult learning, interview and life skills.

‘Talking Tomorrows’, specialist speech and language therapists, explain how to:

• Identify hidden communication needs

• Understand life-long impacts on learning & interaction

• Know how to find practical strategies for education, work and social integration

• Put in place scaffolding for young people’s attainment across their life-span

Young adults with communication and sensory needs can be highly capable, and very mis-understood. Communicating with officials from education to employers, housing to health may be complicated by people just not realising how disabling these difficulties really are.

OCCASIONAL PARENT WORKSHOPS

Legal independence at 18 can also mean that officials, aiming to respect independent decision making, refuse to involve parents who have been key in young people's lives. This can be troubling for all concerned.

Setting up Powers of Attorney can provide the pathway for chosen people to support young adults with communication needs in their decision making around education, finance, health and welfare. This is particularly important now that support towards independence is available from 19 to 25 if a young person is granted an Education, Health and Care Plan.

Since 2015 Action-attainment has worked with Sinclairslaw to provide information for families interested in Powers of Attorney. Other parent workshops to support transition to adulthood have included Golden Lane Housing describing how to set up independent living and a multi-disciplinary team from Richmond and Kingston describing services to support young adults into work.

Powers of Attorney - Workshop Flier
Download the flier to learn more about the event and speakers
PoA flier 71015.pdf
Adobe Acrobat document [437.3 KB]

Getting a Life - workshop programme

Setting up Supported Living: was held on 10th March 2015. The third event in the Getting A Life series for parents of young people with communication needs. The workshop with Golden Lane Housing and Karl Burgess, Transition Manager for LB Richmond, identified how young people can use their personal budgets, share costs for supported living, and group together to live in accommodation in places of their choice.

Into Employment: was held on 3rd February 2015. A specialist pannel of experts discussed how to support young people into work. Pannelists included representatives from Job Centre Plus, Remploy, Balance, the RIchmond service, Stepping Stones (for those aged 14+) and Project Search (for young people aged up to 25).

Legal changes and 19+ education. This workshop was led by educational specialist solicitor Adam Friel and included information from the eminent barrister John Friel. The event covered information relating to the major change to 19+ education and the new Education Health and Care Plans which replace Statements of Special Educational Need.

All of the workshops were run at the Disability Advice Centre, 4 Waldegrave Road, Teddington, TW11 8HT from 7-9pm. These events were part sponsored by -thebridge- legacy fund.