Overview
Our work includes supporting young people to have their voices heard on issues which affect them, the opportunity to be part of the Voices In Projects (VIP) group, getting involved in inclusive recruitment across the organisation. We welcome all young people and actively target those most difficult to reach and engage.
We are involved in a very exciting work exchange funded by the European Union, which takes young people aged 18-25 across Europe for voluntary work placements, for a period of 6 to 9 weeks. The young people benefit by gaining an insight into working overseas, embracing new cultures, improving their skills, working as part of a team and increasing independence by living with other young people in a group setting. All young people will achieve The Saltire Award for over 200 hours of volunteering, and will be far closer to the labour market on their return.
Activities and events
We also promote engagement through sports and activities with a focus on the health and wellbeing of the people we support. We work closely with Street Soccer Scotland and are involved in coaching the women’s Homeless World Cup team, which again offers great benefits and opportunities to travel to different countries as part of the team representing your country. Our main objective is to promote independence, encourage ownership and empower people to reach their potential.
The team also work with children (birth to 16) and families to encourage participation across the services. This includes consultations, one to one meetings and group activities. Staff, children and families have worked closely with the Inclusion Team to create a participation toolkit called the Inclusion Five, or as we call it, the iFive. The iFive has been designed to empower children and families to identify and act on opportunities for positive change by becoming more involved with their Quarriers service. The iFive encourages children and families to work in partnership with staff at every stage of decisions affecting them.
The team arrange events to encourage cross service participation and so far have worked in partnership with children and families to organise:
- a Commonwealth Fun Day attended by children, families and the community
- a Braehead Clan Teddy Bear Drop. The players from the ice hockey team, the Braehead Clan, visited Quarriers to donate teddy bears to the families who access the service. They also donated ice hockey tickets for some of our families to see them play
- an iFive Consultation Weekend to Blackpool for children and families
- an Outdoor Adventure Weekend in Ardentinny for the children who access our Opt-In service
These events have given children and families, who do not ordinarily have the opportunity to meet and socialise, the opportunity to come together, learn new skills and become more involved with each other and their services.
The Inclusion Team supports all children and young people to increase their confidence and skills by having their voices heard, which in turn will hopefully increase the opportunities they are offered in life.