Access For All

You can now download the enhanced Code of Practice (CoP) for Mentoring in English, Bulgarian, Dutch and Turkish. This CoP (the result of the Validating Mentoring 2 project) is mainly addressed to managers and developers of mentoring programmes. It will help them to critically review their systems and how they work, while also helping them to improve their quality and/or gain external recognition. It will equally be very useful to those planning new mentoring programmes, through the advice about good practice that it provides and by the links it offers to other resources. But such first-time developers are not its main target audience. The CoP is also designed for use by the staff of organisations that provide mentoring programmes. Indeed, an important principle of our approach is that as many of the staff team as possible will participate in the self-assessment process. By contributing to the process staff will bring their own knowledge and expertise and learn from their colleagues while helping to improve their own practice and the performance of the programme overall. This CoP does not address all types of programmes that sometimes are called ‘mentoring’ (see Section 4 for guidance about the nature of ‘mentoring’). It has been developed initially to meet the needs of NGO’s, small training organisations, and others sharing their approach. The term mentoring is often used, for example, to cover aspects of professional training and coaching, where formal reporting requirements may constrain freedom of choice and confidentiality. Though the CoP may have limited applicability to mentoring programmes of this kind, it should still provide some useful guidance and valuable stimulus for self-reflection. The crucial first step, as for all mentoring programmes, is to carefully consider and define the particular goals of the programme and to understand the particular requirements that such goals impose.
Downloads are available at the newspage of the project website.

The conference “Bringing People to Work” will take place on 11–12 June 2009 in Thessaloniki (Greece). The starting point of the conference will be the Employment Directive, The State Aid Regulation, HLG paper on Supported Employment & Art. 27 of the UN convention on work and Employment of persons with disabilities.
The following topics will be covered:
– Mainstream employment and their barriers: how to help persons with disabilities to find and keep a job
– Vocational training to help meet the criteria
– Involvement of employers
– Role of the providers (how can service providers facilitate employers, including trade unions?)
– The view of trade unions, employers and authorities in employing persons with disability in all types of employment

There will be interpreters present for translations into English, French and Greek.

You can register through the website www.easpd.eu.

The European (Valorisation) Conference entitled “Creativity and Innovation in Education, Training, and Employment” will take place on 25 September, 2009 at POLIS, Rue du Trône 98, in Brussels (easily reachable via the metro – station “Troon / Trône”). It is organised with the financial support of the Leonardo da Vinci programme of the EC.

The (provisional) agenda is as following:
8.00-9.00 Registration/welcome coffee and project products exhibition
9.00-9.10 Opening – Maria Goranova-Valkova, MCA, Bulgaria
9.10-10.30 Workshop session 1
“Accessible e-Learning for People with Disabilities”:
• Quality and Accessible Training II Project (9:10am – 9:30am) – Dr. Val Chapman, UW, UK
• E-Access II Project (9:30am – 9:50am) – Andrean Lazarov, MCA, Bulgaria
• ETTAD Project (9:50am – 10:10am) – To be confirmed
• Educational Platform for Physically Disabled People Project (10:10am – 10:30am) – To be confirmed
• Discussion / Questions – Moderator: Maria Goranova-Valkova, MCA, Bulgaria
10.30-11.00 Coffee break
11.00-13.00 Workshop session 2
“New Opportunities for Rising of Job Readiness for People with Disabilities”
• GOAL.NET Project (11:00am – 11:20am) – Prof. David Brown, NTU, UK
• Validating Mentoring 2 Project (11:20am – 11:40am) – Maria Goranova-Valkova, MCA, Bulgaria
• Social Employers Network: Common European Portal (11:40am – 12:00am) – Petya Grudeva, MCA, Bulgaria
• ESTEEM Project (12:00pm – 12:20pm) – Dr. George Taylor, UW, UK
• KeyComKit Project (12:20pm – 12:40pm) – To be confirmed
• ENEVA Project European Portal Linking Projects in the Field of Disabilities (12:40pm – 13:00pm) – Andrean Lazarov, MCA, Bulgaria
• Discussion / Questions – Moderator: Maria Goranova-Valkova, MCA, Bulgaria
13.00-13.10 Closing of the event – Maria Goranova-Valkova, MCA, Bulgaria
13.10-14.30 Lunch. Continuation of the networking.

For registration, click on this registration link. As places are limited, please register before 4 September 2009.

A European (Valorisation) Conference entitled “A Job Environment for All” will take place on 25 September, 2009 in Brussels, Belgium. A whole range of projects will present its outcomes, most in direct relationship to the increased employability of people with disabilities. The conference will take place at POLIS, Rue du Trône 98, in Brussels (easily reachable via the metro – station “Troon / Trône”) from 9.30 till 14.30. It is organised with the financial support of the Leonardo da Vinci programme of the EC.

Registration is now open via http://www.phoenixkm.eu/registration.php.

Organisational vitality is an important issue in the area of complexity, diversity and uncertainty making it a constant challenge to develop and lead sustainable organisational forms for future generations. Concern over the rapidly ageing European labour force calls for increased attention to the potential ‘skills and knowledge gaps’ that will emerge and the different approaches needed to develop a new cadre of “vital” staff.

The concept of the learning organisation and the principles of lifelong learning offer known approaches to providing, maintaining and developing a healthy workforce. Looking at issues through the ‘lens’ of vitality will bring a fresh and new perspective to organisational theory and practice. This is particularly appropriate as the demands for “organisational sustainability” raise new even more challenging questions.
The KPC sponsored ECLO 2009 conference aims to explore and discuss these questions and challenges and disseminate exciting new language and thinking about how organisational “vitality” can be achieved. Through the conference philosophy we provide different approaches and experiences from a wide range of diverse experience and expertise. The conferences trigger discussions, deepen dialogue not simply imparting information. The conferences encourage debate and generate innovative ideas and developments giving all participants a “take-away” toolbox of fresh thinking.
More information about the event can be found at the event website.

The aim of the Check and go project is to enhance access to workplaces for people with disabilities. With the tools developed in the project, people with disabilities will find it easier to apply for a trainee post or a job in a company. By constructing an individual profile of accessibility they will be able to say quickly and easily what barriers they face and what they need in order to do their job efficiently. In addition, companies that receive applications with this profile of accessibility can easily determine if the applicant will fit into the company and people with disabilities will be able to find a suitable job quickly and easily.

With the Check and go website, people with disabilities, companies, staff managers, trainers, instructors and job coaches can get a three-part product range to learn how they can include or integrate people with disabilities at a workplace more efficiently. These products are:
the Training tool, the Check and go tool and the Advice tool.

More information can be found on the project website.