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Our Programmes
We currently run the following programmes:
- Enterprise days for school based group cohorts,
- Sixth Form College for 16-18 year olds (full time),
- Personalised workplace based programmes for 19-25 year olds with an EHCP (full time).
How We Do It
Everything we do at the Sand Project works within our ‘5ade’ Framework, created here at the Sand Project. We believe these are the ‘5-a-day-expectations’ that need to be met if we are to increase employability of SEND young people.
Why We Do It
In West Sussex, only 3.2% of known people with learning difficulties are in paid employment. This means 96.8% are unemployed and living on benefits – often never leaving home, living as dependants – and increasingly likely to remain so.
In addition, this long term unemployment will statistically contribute to reduced physical, mental and emotional wellbeing which will impact on healthcare and NHS resources.
Some of the reasons that have become apparent in education are:
- Inadequate work experience placements whilst at school or college due to low expectations of employers,
- Insufficient emphasis placed on the importance of teaching work related skills,
- Detrimental college experiences,
- The mainstream workplace is not always accessible for highly skilled people with autism,
- Learned passivity – no one has taught them the entrepreneurial skills needed to create opportunity for themselves.