SERVICE DETAILS
Alongside our events, get2gether has developed and runs courses for our members. These courses have been created in direct response to what our members have told us they need. They are based around topics that can be difficult to talk about and are often forgotten about for adults with disabilities.
The courses use a facilitative approach. Learning happens through guided exploration of subjects. We create space for reflection and conversation so that participants can learn from and support each other. Doing it this way means that as well as learning about the topic, participants also build skills such as confidence, self-reflection and an understanding of how to build supportive friendships. Our aim is that these skills will continue to help participants with their personal development even after the course has finished.
Live Your Life...
Why did we develop this course?
We have seen that people with disabilities (including learning disabilities) can often become stuck in a life of routine with very little changing for them for years and years. We have also seen that people with disabilities (including learning disabilities) often live with emotional struggles or traumatic experiences that they have not been given the space, time or support to work through. As a result people often do not have the skills or understanding to prevent these having a significant and negative impact on their lives, stopping them from moving on or striving for a better life for themselves.
As a result we wanted to develop a course that would provide people with disabilities with an opportunity to gain the knowledge and skills to live a more self-determined life and work through some of the issues that might be holding them back.
The Course Background
The get2gether office is housed within the Thistle Foundation’s Centre of Wellbeing and as a result we were aware of the transformational impact of their Lifestyle Management Course. Working in partnership with Thistle Foundation we have developed get2gether’s Live YOUR Life course. The course is based on the researched principles of Solution Focused Therapy and brings together elements of lifestyle management, Person Centred Planning and other psychological therapies. It has been developed to be accessible for our members which includes adults with learning disabilities and so also focuses on practically supporting participants to develop skills for self reflection and encourage each other to reflect.
The Impact of the Course
We have now successfully run the course 3 times with get2gether members. On each occasion participants not only told us of the positive impact on their lives, but we were also able to observe individuals grow in confidence, self-awareness and start to support each other in deep and meaningful ways.
Participants’ best hopes for coming on the course have been varied. They have included hopes such as being able to manage stress, anxiety and difficult emotions; make new friends; gain confidence; and manage difficult situations or relationships. The course has been described by participants as “life changing” and “exactly what I needed”, leading people to not only feel more confident in the group, but also able to make changes outside the course and work towards living the life they want.
The Future
Having seen the life changing impact of our Live YOUR Life course for get2gether members we are now hoping to take the course out to other organisations to see if the impact can be replicated in different environments and alongside different philosophies.
If you would be interested in getting involved, or if you believe that the course would be something that would benefit you or someone that you support, please get in touch.
TAKE A CHANCE… LIVE YOUR LIFE
