Carers' and family members' skills placement questions answered:
How do I know my loved one will be safe on a skills placement?
We have knowledgeable staff who will get to know your loved one. We offer a choice of risk assessed workplaces, delivering opportunities that we can adapt to people's needs and goals. We believe everyone is capable of learning and we'll tailor support and assessments to help people learn new skills, realise that they are capable of developing and building on what they already know and can do, to achieve their goals.
People we support won't work alone in any skills placement. There will always be someone to ask for help.
How will my loved one be supported on a skills placement with their learning, with anxiety or other needs?
Our skills placement staff have years of experience supporting people with learning and physical disabilities and they'll work closely with staff in our other services, professionals, you and your loved one - all the people who already know and understand the person we're supporting well. This means we can enable support that makes a positive impact by adjusting each placement to exactly what each person wants to learn in a way that works for them; we'll also make any changes needed as they work through their placement.
While the different placements offer different opportunities to learn some specific skills, all the placements will give people experience in transferable job skills. Find out more about these here.
Will staff on a skills placement understand what my loved one needs?
Our staff are trained in systematic instruction training (TSI), which support people to learn skills in a practical way, even if they find traditional learning difficult. You can read more about our TSI training here. All our staff are also trianed in Positive Behaviour Support (PBS) - read more about this here.
How will a skills placement help my loved one to become more independent?
The transferable skills we teach don't only apply at work but also in day to day life. As people realise what they are capable of and how they can continue to learn on their own, they will naturally learn to be more confident, independent and they will be supported to move onto whatever they want to do next by our job coaches, who will meet them while they do their skills placement to talk about their interests and future goals.
What exactly is a UAS (AQA) qualification?
The AQA Unit Award Scheme (UAS) was established in 1984, with the aim of enabling 'achievement for all'. Learners get certificates for completing each short unit. The units are internally assessed and there are no exams. People are assessed by our staff, who know them well and who can adapt the assessments to each person's needs and abilities. This ensures everyone has the opportunity to show their knowledge, develop their confidence and achieve their full potential throughout their placement.
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