Create Future: Creating support models for participation in future work lifePeople with special needs and disadvantaged do face far fewer options for employment than non-disabled candidates. Fewer than 1 in 2 disabled adults were in employment in the EU28 in 2011 and almost a third at risk of poverty or social exclusion in 2013 (Eurostat Dec 14). For example across the UK only 6% of young people with learning difficulties are in employment, and according to Disability Rights employees with disabilities earn nearly £1 an hour less than non-disabled workers.Thus new networks, more sharing of experience and involving the end users to the development is needed for example to avoid the prejudices regarding people with disabilities ability to work productively. At this project we will create a diversity toolkit for employers and train the support workers/ career guidance professionals with the latest tools, so that they can support both their clients and the employers they work with. To complete these objectives we are going to implement and develop: •Collaboration model of user-centered design prosess•Toolkit for diversity training for employers •Multidisciplinary cooperation to support diversity At this project we will create a diversity toolkit for employers and train the support workers/ career guidance professionals with the latest tool, so that they can support both their clients and the employers they work with.The main objective of the project is to train support workers/career advisors who support people with special needs or disadvantaged with the latest coaching models tools which have the most impact with regard to career progression and problem solving. In one hand, support workers often face a lot of pressure with regard to the variables faced in the workplace such as the discrimination that still prevails against special needs workers and the pressure they have as career professionals to meet specific work placement targets. On the other hand, there is a need to find the latest tools in coaching to support special needs workers to gain their confidence and improve their self- efficacy. The project will invest in a multi professional cooperation between education and support services as well as companies and working life representatives to develop meaningful interventions in coaching tools in the field of career guidance. This transnational partnership brings a multidisciplinary approach to coaching and will be able to develop methods and tools for the professional development of coaches; for the employers to use for the workers and clients with special needs. A Diversity handbook for Employers will also be developed to provide them with all the necessary tools and guidance to address their needs while employing disabled workers.The Learning training and teaching activities will allow the partners to get to know and understand better the delivery of interventions at special centres who support people with special needs and disadvantaged employability across Europe and bring back home best practices to later apply such practices in their career guidance. The project will have a clear impact in the knowledge and development of skills amongst the staff and clients of partner organisations dealing with employment of people with special needs or disadvantaged. In particular, the project will develop 3 main coaching models and training programmes using: Neurolinguistic Programming; Strengths Based Coaching and Mentoring Circles to equip the staff to use practical tools to support their clients in their transition from unemployment to employment. These models will be used in current housing and day services, both in individual and group situations in order to ensure that there will be a bridge to support disabled workers to achieve and create a better and more promising future working life.

The INCLUDNET project (Development of Inclusive Entrepreneurship Ecosystem for Young People with Intellectual Disability) aims at fostering social and labour inclusion of young people with intellectual disability through the provision of entrepreneurship education and access to entrepreneurship and self-employment. Young people with Intellectual disability are subject to employers discrimination thus self-employment or entrepreneurship remains for many the only option for labour inclusion. Even if this is the reality in all the European Member States there is still not yet any inclusive entrepreneurship policy or entrepreneurship education for this category of young people. The INCLUDNET partnership will for the first time develop an accessible easy to read training programme on entrepreneurship for young people with Intellectual disability and will establish business support network that will provide them with couching and mentoring services. Inclusive Entrepreneurship programs aim to offer all people an equal opportunity to create a sustainable business whatever is their social group or background thus are an important requirement for achieving smart sustainable and inclusive growth.Five different European countries will participate in the INCLUDNET project and will exchange knowledge and best practices on inclusive entrepreneurship programs for young people with intellectual disability. The INCLUDNET project will: • Develop a sustainable ecosystem of inclusive entrepreneurship for young people with intellectual disability• Enable users to be equal partners within the planning and development of the training program, thus enhancing self-determination;• Provide opportunities for self-development and employment inclusion for young people with intellectual disabilities so that they can be acknowledged as people that can contribute to the development of their community. • Test dedicated pilot actions of inclusive enterprises• Evaluate the impacts of the entrepreneurial process on the quality of life of the users as well as the overall impacts of the project in terms of social inclusion • Promote the development, testing, and implementation of innovative practices in the field of youth participation in the labour market• Promote activities that could better prepare young people on equity, diversity and social inclusion in the training / learning environment. The INCLUDNET project is innovative in the following way: •It will establish a transnational business support network for young people with intellectual disabilities •It will implement the Social Safari methodology within the training/learning activities •It will develop an easy to read learning platform on how to become an entrepreneur •It will offer mentoring services for young entrepreneurs with intellectual disabilityThe INCLUDNET project will directly and indirectly contribute to better fulfillment of the following rights enshrined in the UN Convention on Rights of Persons with Disabilities•Respect for inherent dignity, individual autonomy including the freedom to make one’s own choices, and independence ofpersons; (art 3 a- General Principals Art 3 UN CRPD )•Full and effective participation and inclusion in society ( art 3 c)•Respect for difference and acceptance of persons with disabilities as part of human diversity and humanity (Art 3 (d))•Will promote recognition of the skills, merits and abilities of young people with disabilities, and of their contributions to the workplace and the labour market ( Raising awareness Art 8 (iii) UN CRPD•Will promote the design, development, production and distribution of accessible information and communications ( Accessibility of Information art 9 UN CRPD)•Provide information disabilities in accessible formats and technologies appropriate to different kinds of disabilities (Freedom of expression and opinion and access of information art 21 UN CRPD )•Ensure that young people with disabilities are able to access, vocational training, adult education and lifelong learning without discrimination and on an equal basis with others (art 24 UN CRPD education)•Promote opportunities for self-employment, entrepreneurship, the development of cooperatives and starting one’s own business (art 27)The project is in line with the following objectives and priorities of the European Union •Erasmus plus- Youth Agenda •Social Business Initiative•Research programme on social innovation by DG Research & Innovation•EaSI programme of DG Employment, Social affairs and Inclusion •Platform against Poverty and Social Exclusion

CONTEXTThe Europe 2020 strategy calls for efforts to reduce to less than 10% by 2020 the proportion of people aged 18-24 who leave education and training with lower secondary education at most. According to the main statistical findings (Eurostat) in the EU as a whole the rate of early leavers from school and education is much higher for disabled people, especially for those with specific learning difficulties and autistic spectrum disorders, than for those not having a disability: 31.5 % compared with 12.3 %.As the EU population is getting older, the number of Europeans with disabilities is rising significantly. They remain consistently disadvantaged in terms of employment, education and social inclusion, as discrimination is still a major obstacle.OBJECTIVES The main aim of the IDEA project is exchange of best practices and knowledge on innovative work-based learning methodologies (school-work programs, internships, apprenticeships etc.) for VET teachers, trainers and mentors to increase the current percentage of young people with disabilities who come to qualification and who enter in the labour market for the first time.By implementing this project, among Italian, Spain, French, Romanian, Finnish and Belgian organisations, we aim to discover our neighbours context, practices, challenges and initiatives, regarding the access of disabled learner on vocational training. During the length of the project, especially during the meetings among the partners, the partnership intends to:- Develop the knowledge of partners’ staff on the local contexts abroad (social, economical, cultural and legal perspectives) and approaches facilitating disabled people inclusion in each partner’s place.- Create awareness and interest among organisations dealing with European mobility (VET centers, Mobility agencies...) so that they consider disabled learners as potential beneficiaries.- Develop the confidence of European staff dealing with learners with disability, especially regarding European opportunities like ERASMUS, by discovering successful initiatives.TARGET GROUPS:The direct target groups will be institutions and professionals in vocational training system and in employment services directly involved in the partnership or in the second level network which, thanks to the European exchange, will be able to innovate their practices and methodologies. The indirect target groups, therefore, will be young people with disabilities ((learners, recent graduates of a VET provider and unemployed).DESCRIPTION OF ACTIVITIES AND METHODOLOGY# 3 Transnational project meetings:- The first Kick off meeting in Italy to set up the partnership; - Intermediate meeting in Belgium (at the end of I year) to evaluate the realization of the first project activities and developing the second part of project activities (the second kick off meeting)- The final kick off meeting (place of venue yet to be agreed) to evaluate the results of all the activities realized and discuss follow up# 5 Short-term joint staff training events to exchange practices and to allow peer-learning about:- Innovative work-based learning methodologies (school-work programs, internships, apprenticeships etc.) for teachers/Vet provider to increase the current percentage of young people with disabilities who come to qualification and who enter in the labour market for the first time;- identifying the most innovative best practices which may be transferable to other European countries in national / local context on assistive technologies and inclusive methodologies for young people with disabilities.EXPECTED IMPACTS• on the participants involved in the short-time joint staff training events: improvement of the hard skills and competences of training and job service providers in terms of methodologies to foster the first flow of young people with disability into the labour market. Furthermore, project participants will discover new environment and work cultures. It also will strengthen transversal key competences, such as learning-to-learn and communication skills, a sense of initiative and European citizenship.• participating organisations and their professionals – not directly involved in the project - will improve the quality of services and the adoption of innovative work practices, organisational learning by discovering new and different methodologies for the employment of people with disability. This will open their perspective and increase their self-confidence in a basilar understanding of European Union Programmes, especially in Erasmus Programme.• indirect target groups young with disabilities benefit from the best practice exchanged in terms of new approaches, new methodologies in order to increase their employability, self-confidence and economic and social independence.• other relevant stakeholders will involve in each short-time joint training to reinforce the mutual enrichment of practice and networking at bilateral, regional/national.

<< Background >>The urgent need to enhance the digital skills of both teachers and learners has been widely identified and it is even more vital in the COVID-19 situation.National and European policies acknowledge the need to equip all citizens with the necessary competences to use digital technologies critically and creatively. The European Digital Competence Framework (DigComp), which was updated in 2016/17, responds to this need, by providing a structure which allows European citizens to better understand what it means to be digitally competent and to assess and further develop their own digital competence.Digital skills have moved from ‘optional’ to ‘critical’ and need to be complemented with transversal ‘soft skills’ such as the ability to communicate effectively in both online and offline mediums. Entry-level digital skills, meaning basic functional skills required to make basic use of digital devices and online applications, are widely considered a critical component of a new set of literacy skills in the digital era, with traditional reading, writing, and numeracy skills.The indirect target groups (disabled and people in vulnerable situations) that the consortium organisations work with, are in danger of being excluded from the society also due to the lack of sufficient digital skills. The project aims at developing and enhancing the basic digital skills of the teaching staff (DigiComp skills for everybody). The project wants to enhance our teaching staff’s proficiency especially in the areas of digital resources, teaching and learning and empowering learners. Digi Teachers Working Online project aims actively at equipping teaching staff engaged in special education with digital skills they can utilize when teaching and instructing the disabled (secondary) target groups both online and face-to-face.<< Objectives >>The expected impact will vary according to the categories of actors involved in the action- participants will gain a wide and valuable knowledge to improve and enhance their digital skills and competences with a strong link to pedagogy.- participating organisations will gain new digital and pedagogical methods to benefit the students and enhance the quality of online learning and teaching. Organisations will get new tools, ideas and practices. The level of competence on the organisational level will increase.- the project will impact the indirect target group’s possibilities to develop and enhance their key competences of lifelong learning. Their learning will get recognition and validated.- other relevant stakeholders will get new ideas and concrete tools to utilise digital tools and methods in various environments, for example, with their clients. They also see the importance of mastering at least some of digital skills in order to better manage in society.<< Implementation >>The concept of the project is to create and test new digital training content and methods to develop digital key competences of VET teaching staff working with students with special needs or in otherwise vulnerable positions. The structure of the project builds on the surveys that are done during the design phase of the project and the more profound surveys that will be done in the beginning and in the end phase of the project. The surveys identifies the digital and pedagogical skills that teachers need to improve in their current and future distance learning.The surveys, carried out during the project, provide more detailed information on the level of competence of the teaching staff at the beginning and end of the project (result 1). With this information, we can assess the impact of the outputs developed and implemented in the project, such as syllabus, training material and toolkit, on the development of the competence level of the teaching staff.The pedagogical, digital skills needs are transferred into a training course syllabus (result 2) and the actual online training course (result 3) supported by a model of open badge constellation (R2).During the piloting phase (result 4) the content, usability and quality of the training course is validated. The good practice methods and tools are collected on the way to the Digi teachers toolbox (R5).´The project timeline has been planned meticulously. Each result has been split into tasks that are also placed in the timeline. The consortium is able to follow the progress of each result and the tasks within and quickly address the deviations from the plan. The budget planning is based on the results and the timeline, allocating a realistic amount of working days for each IOand the tasks within.The project has five transnational meetings that are planned so that they contribute to the progress of the project as much as possible. The scheduling of the meetings and the meeting programs have been planned already in the application phase in order to monitor and promote the implementation of the project activities.The Multiplier events have been scheduled to the end of the project in order to have the outputs ready and during that stage we are already starting to see the impact of the project in our organisations that we can pass on to the audience.<< Results >>The digital skills and competences of staff in the participating organisations have improved to be better able to carry out engaging online teaching to enhance the students’ learning experiences.- results for the students: better quality online teaching - results for the students: blended learning- results for the students: individual learning paths The participating organisations have shared good practices, methods and tools working with persons with special needs. They have also created a long-lasting network to develop their activities, to share knowledge and expertise and to work together in both mobility projects and strategic partnership projects. There’s a training module and a model of open badge constellation, both based on the DigCompEdu-framework but also strongly taking into consideration the survey’s results, adjusted to better fit the requirements of special needs education. The training module is built on the principles of competence based learning: all the skills learned are transparent.

<< Background >>The Adapted Dual VET Program (ADVET) is a professional training tool developed and implemented by AMADIP-ESMENT (AE) in the autonomous region of the Balearic Islands (Spain) since 2015. It is aimed at people with intellectual disabilities over 16 years of age and has the objective of increasing their opportunities to access the labor market. It was developed to respond to the special difficulties that the group presents in terms of socio-labor insertion: low participation in the labor market, low level of studies and qualifications and lack of adapted professional training offer in the field of education. This lack of training offer places people with disabilities in a situation of special vulnerability after the completion of the compulsory educational stage, due to the lack of formulas for qualification and therefore difficult access to the labor market. According to the statistical data provided by Eurostat, in 2020 37.6% of people with disabilities remained inactive compared to 17.6% of the rest of the population. The employment rate of the group is 50.8%, 24.2% lower than for the general population. The ADVET program is developed in the framework of vocational training for employment. It includes: the issuance of a certificate of professionalism; complementary training on transversal skills; an eminently practical approach, based on the methodology of learning by doing (“learning-by-doing”) and on training in the workplace (“work- based learning”). Since its introduction in the Balearic Islands, 120 apprentices have participated in the program, 75% of whom have found job. Currently 6 other entities in the region are implementing this model, which has received the support of the Government of the Balearic Islands. Another pilot experience is underway since 2019 in Galicia, always with the financial support of the regional government. The ADVET has proved to be a successful model of access to employment for people with intellectual disabilities. There are already several entities from other European Countries interested in adopting it. To favor this transfer, it is necessary to define a common methodological framework for the implementation of the ADVET at the European level, based on the exchange of experiences between entities from different Countries and taking into account the different regulatory contexts.<< Objectives >>The objective of the DUAL-Ad project is to establish a European cooperation partnership to transfer the ADVET to other European regions and to develop a common implementation framework at the European level. The project has the following specific objectives: 1) Share the ADVET model at European level and analyze how it can be integrated with other training programs for employment aimed at people with intellectual disabilities, which are being carried out in the other partner Countries of the project. 2) Develop a common European methodological framework, to facilitate the implementation of the ADVET in the other countries of the project. 3) Develop and test a training program for experts in ADVET implementation, aimed to trainers and professionals connected to the VET system. 4) Create a European network of practices about ADVET, with the aim of promoting the dissemination and implementation of the model in other European countries once the project is completed. DUAL-Ad can be considered as a pioneering project to disseminate the ADVET model for people with disabilities at the European level, spreading this methodology among entities working on disability and companies. Currently there are no similar experiences at the European level. The main innovation of DUAL-Ad is that, for the first time, the ADVET model is shared and transferred to other EU countries, with the aim of promoting its dissemination at the European level. At the same time, it is not a one-way transfer, because – thanks to the exchange of experience and knowledge between the partners – the model will be improved and adapted to the characteristics and needs of each Country. In this way, the project contributes to the transfer at European level of a highly innovative and efficient training model for employment, which has the following advantages: - The training programs are more adapted and reflect the needs of people with disability and companies, since we take in consideration people needs and market demand. - The programs are more flexible, are adapted to the needs of the people and allow their professional certification. - Teaching and learning model is based on “work-based learning”, that is, learning through the performance of tasks in a real work context. - Tutoring is a fundamental value: we are committed to the figure of the tutor, who works in coordination with the pedagogical team and ensures continuous contact and follow-up actions in the company. - Delivery of training on personal and social skills, considering that they are a key to personal and professional success.<< Implementation >>DUAL-Ad lasts 36 months and is implemented by a partnership of 8 organizations from 6 EU Member States: 2 from Southern Europe (Spain and Italy), 3 from the North (Belgium, Finland and Luxembourg) and 1 from the East (Romania). This wide coverage of the territory of the EU makes it possible to collect, compare and share experiences between different countries that have a common need: to promote training for employment and job placement of people with intellectual disabilities and special needs. At the same time, the partnership facilitates the dissemination of the results among a large number of stakeholders; moreover, it allows the establishment of joint work networks at European level. The implementation of the project is also supported by 5 associated partners - 2 from Italy, 1 from Portugal and 2 from Spain - which will contribute to the dissemination and exploitation of the results. The Project Work Plan includes the following activities: 1) Preparation of a Methodological Guide for the implementation at the European level of the ADVET for people with intellectual disabilities and special needs. 2) Development of an open On-line Repository of educational and training resources, which will consist in short learning videos. These videos will easily illustrate all the methodological aspects to be taken into account to implement the ADVET. 3) Preparation of a common European Curriculum of expert in ADVET implementation.4) Organization of 2 transnational training and learning activities: a pilot training activity for ADVET experts, which aims to test the training Curriculum developed; a joint learning activity for people with intellectual disabilities and special needs, carried out by applying peer-to-peer learning methodology. 5) Organization of 7 multiplier events, to boost the dissemination and exploitation of the project results: 1 final European-level conference in virtual mode and 6 national events in each country of the project, in face-to-face mode. 6) Organization of 6 transnational project meetings for coordination and exchange of experiences: 4 face-to-face and 2 virtual. 7) Implementation of a Plan for the communication and promotion of the objectives and results of the project.<< Results >>DUAL-Ad will originate 3 main results: 1) A Methodological Guide for the implementation at European level of the ADVET for people with intellectual disabilities and special needs. The Guide will be the result of the exchange of experiences and good practices in the field of training for employment between the partner countries. This Guide will describe in detail the aspects and procedures to be taken into account in the development and implementation of the ADVET model, with regard to aspects such as the combination of employment policies with social policies, the pedagogical implementation and the use of adapted tools and methodologies.2) An open On-line Repository of educational and training resources about the ADVET, which will be used as a toolbox for the implementation of this methodology at the European level. Drawing from the experience of the partners, the Repository will include short learning videos, which will illustrate the most innovative methodologies and tools to be used when designing and executing ADVET programmes for people with intellectual disabilities and special support needs. 3) A common European Curriculum of expert in the design and implementation of ADVET for people with intellectual disabilities and special needs. The common Curriculum will be prepared on the base of on the Methodological Guide and will draw from the ADVET experiences carried out by AMADIP-ESMENT and IN-RED in Spain, integrated with the training experiences for the employment of the other partners. In particular, the Curriculum will focus on the implementation of the ADVET in two economic sectors: hospitality and facility services, in particular soft services such as gardening and cleaning. Another relevant result of DUAL-Ad will be the constitution of a European network of practices about ADVET. This network will initially be made up of the participants in the transnational training of experts and will be fed by the resources available through the open on-line Repository. Finally, an important achievement of the project will be the dissemination of the ADVET at European level and the awareness of key stakeholders such as the business sector, public administrations at the regional and national level and the families of people with intellectual disabilities.