Innovatory Aspects Summarised

There are areas of synergy with the Learning Connections (UfI) and the findings from the pilot website research project that will complement the work that is developing concerning online training in many Universities that have contacted the Project.

The information gathered provides material to begin a process of analysing the needs of the market and the potential future customers, enabling the provision of information advice and guidance to employers and goods and service providers.

Possibilities of employment have been identified for people with disabilities through future development of training content and teaching materials. The inclusion of disabled people in the entire project has proven that they are the 'experts' in this field and must be involved in every aspect of imparting their knowledge. This will ensure that effective changes are really to take place in the fields of training and employment, and this will, in turn, result in positive economic, environmental and social improvement for all.

Partnerships/Networks Brokered - A future funding bid that is being made by this Project has attracted partnership interest from: Carrick District Council, Carrick Primary Care Trust, Carrick Mental Health Team, Cornwall Health Promotion Service, Cornwall Social Services (JIP), Penryn Vision Community Development Forum, Leonard Cheshire Foundation (Workability Scheme), Devon & Cornwall Refugee Support Council, Simon House Homeless Refuge, Slightly Different Ltd - Web Development, Xeretec, Institute for Cornish Studies, RSR Systems, Carrick Mind.

Organisations who have expressed interest or participated in this project - Presentations of Disability Awareness training were provided for Penzance Women's Aid x 2, Penryn Vision Development Group, Cornwall Alcohol & Drug Agency x 2, Penryn Chamber of Commerce, Carrick Healthy Living Forum, West Cornwall Enterprise Trust, Employment Service - Penryn Job Centre, Anchor Project and Carrick Mental Health Team. Each presentation attracted 15 - 20 attendees. All attendees were asked to provide feedback sheets about whether the presentations were relevant to their work situations and if on-line training would have been as effective.

New Target Groups Identified - Carrick Primary Care Trust, Cornwall Health Promotion, Penwith Healthy Living Centre-Chi Project, and Carrick Mind have all expressed interest in future on-line and physical presentations of disability awareness training for their staff.

Client Tracking Systems - Hard copy client records, feedback /assessment sheets containing statistical and geographical, employment status information are held at the project and a database has now been created to enable fast access to this information. A further client tracking system was also built into the design of the website to determine the level of use and which identified difficulties experienced by the users on individual pages of the training module. Weekly log reports were also used as a tracking mechanism detailing the number of visitors to the site.

Studies/research report - An evaluation and a summary report have been written including information on accessibility to the project for people with special needs. The evaluation report also includes information on other training agencies and employers who have expressed an interest in using the website.

Databases - An online database was also created as part of the website development and featured feedback and questionnaire responses from corporate management, goods and service providers, professionals, people who are disabled and sensory impairment cluster groups, employees, educational institutions, community groups, charities, and individuals regarding Internet accessibility and the value of online Disability Awareness Training. The information gathered has been used and will be used in the future to ensure the optimum accessibility level of the e-learning website.

New ICT Application - By keeping the website as a "living " site it has been possible to incorporate changes to the content as feedback was received and to then develop it further. The website has achieved all the recognised benchmark awards for accessibility and was a participating entrant in the Stockholm Challenge.

Quality Assurance Methodologies - The ongoing consultation both on and off line ensured that the website produced was of the highest quality possible given the amount of time and funding allowed for the purpose. Again the use of the site as a living site allowed changes to be made as the site was developed, and although this displayed good practice it was not counted as an outcome under ADAPT funding guidelines.

Publicity Materials - Local and national press releases and online marketing highlighted information gained from the project and kept participation at a high level throughout. Posters of the website pages were also used at exhibitions and were also displayed within the project premises.

Market Analysis & Strategy Methods - The online research and resulting database has enabled the collection of statistical information which can now be used to estimate the effect and future need for on-line training and accessible website design. As a clear strategy for future site development was not identified before the end of the ADAPT funding, this outcome was not allowed under the ADAPT funding regulations.

Jobs Created - Three additional jobs were created within Self Direction Community Project to provide enablers and one-on-one support to those evaluators who participated that had special requirements, but as the people involved in the delivery of the ADAPT funded project were ineligible for inclusion in this category, this positive outcome was not allowed.

Jobs Protected - Two jobs were protected these were the Trainer Assessor and the Project Manager, both of whom will now continue with the project to develop the findings further. Again, the same condition applied to this outcome as with the Jobs Created category under ADAPT outcome regulations.

As some countries are more informed than others about the approaches used to provide training and employment for those who are disabled/disadvantaged, the difficulties that the researchers for this pilot project encountered were more of a cultural, economic and legislative nature. Mainly the differences that exist in the use and types of disability models i.e. "Medical vs. Social Models" and their meaning varied depending upon the European culture being examined, and these models are not always understood after translation in the context that they were originally intended. It is intended to develop these ideas further through consultation with other European States.

It has become apparent from the research that was conducted by the pilot project, that employers need to be more responsive to the idea of Disability Awareness Training for themselves and their staff if organisational practices and attitudes are going to change to create a fully inclusive society. Therefore the legislation and funding already in place at this time is not effective enough in England to bring any pressure to bear on employers to meet their duties and obligations as laid down by the 1995 Disability Discrimination Act. What is also necessary is for employers to receive more positive information about how they might include a person with a disability on their workforce without this causing them any loss of productivity and income. The most effective way of bringing this about would be to introduce information to employers through the means of disabled people themselves presenting it in a professional way. This can be done by creating roles within the employment market for people with disabilities who are the 'experts' in their field.

New roles for disabled people have been identified within the employment market as disability job coaches, training the trainers, consultants, job brokers and employer support/information services.

Acknowledgements

Without the assistance and services of the Slightly Different Ltd. team we would have been without the skills to have contemplated embarking on such a high level of research and would never have been able to have achieved the findings that have resulted. Due to their utmost professionalism, technical expertise, their high commitment to the creation of a fully inclusive society and the recognition of the level of sensitivity necessary when working directly with our staff, Self Direction would like to thank this company above all those that have played an integral role in this research project. Most importantly our acknowledgement and our thanks must also go to Slightly Different for the kind dedication of the thousands of additional hours that they have provided to us as Match Funding in Kind. This Match Funding in Kind was subsequently discounted by the ADAPT funding guidelines, but it should be appreciated that without this contribution the project would never have taken place.

This work would also not have been possible without the valuable feedback that was received from site users, particularly Bim and Jennifer who both contributed on a regular basis, and the promotional efforts undertaken by several organisations throughout the world who assisted us in numerous ways by adding links to the Self Direction site from their own websites, posting the site address on a wide variety of bulletin boards, spread the word by informing colleagues, friends, families, students, and service users, and otherwise passing information that this project was underway and needed feedback. Thank you to you all.

Those organisations that deserve a specific mention are listed below: