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Roscommon EQUAL Partnership

Contact:

Noel Connolly Roscommon Partnership Company, Castle Court Castle Street Roscommon. Tel: 090 662 8161 rosequalptnship@eircom.net www.rosequal.com

Project Aim Objectives
Using a partnership model to develop innovative approaches amongst the relevant disability agencies and stakeholders, the project aims to improve co-ordination of existing services, inform public opinion and influence policymaking throughout the County, in order to empower the disabled community to gain access to appropriate work opportunities.

Project Objectives:

1. To establish a committed partnership of agencies that will formulate and implement a cross-agency clientcentred approach to the progression of the disabled into employment;
2. To develop a specification and application of a vocational profiling and guidance service that will compliment existing activities;
3. To establish an employment marketing service to address the requirements of both employers and clients;
4. To establish a community radio station that will provide a bridge into commercial employment for the target group, empower its staff and listeners, and project a positive impression of professionalism and ability within the disabled community, whilst providing valuable services to the general community;
5. To inform mainstream policy regarding disability, by applying models jointly developed on the initiative to their own organisational policies and procedures;
6. To exploit all employment opportunities e.g. employment by consortium members, subcontracting business from employers, placement within the social economy programme, promotion of existing public sector opportunities (3% national policy target), and upcoming decentralisation opportunities.

Project Actions:

• Establish a state of the art studio and website design facility to service the needs of both the disabled community and the broader community of Roscommon, displaying it as a model of best practice;
• Conduct a series of job analyses on the entire radio station operations. Use this model for demonstration to other organisations of the practical application of job analysis, vocational profiling, and job matching;
• Providing full-time employment and work placements to people with disabilities in the range of skill areas (reception, administration, sales, maintenance, web design, broadcasting, reporting etc);
• Developing a local employment resource pack in the process;
• Employment Marketing - this action aims to put employers centre stage in the employment process, assisted on the supply side by agencies customising training in response to their needs, and encouraged on the demand side by the community, who appreciate the adoption of Equality principles;
• Vocational Career Guidance Service – to guide disabled clients who wish to gain access to employment and are willing to undertake the vocational guidance process and suggested interventions to the stage of being job-ready and then provide pre and post employment support.

Products:
Licensed, fully operational Community Radio Station with a broadcasting range of 6 miles;
Six workstation website design facilities;
Training programme for 10 full-time workers, 50 volunteers in radio operation, programme research and design;
Database of employers;
Archive of extensive programme content stored in digital format;
Establish Ros Equal as a readily recognisable brand for the disabled community;
Information sheet on Best Practice guidelines for employment of people with disabilities;
Develop an employment resource pack;
Transport study-pooling of resources.

Legal Status of DP: Company Limited by Guarantee.

Pillar/Theme: Employability – Theme A.

Geographic Focus: County of Roscommon.

Designate Partner: Roscommon Partnership Company.

Partners: National Training and Development Institute; Brothers of Charity; FÁS; Irish Wheelchair Association; Roscommon Supported Employment Services; Roscommon Support Group for People with Disabilities; Roscommon County Development Board; Western Health Board.

Target Groups: People with disabilities.

Name of TCA: IMPACT.

TCA ID Number: 935.

Member State of origin of Partners: Netherlands, Sweden, Italy.

Principal Aim of TCA: The overall objective of the transnational partnership is to create better conditions for the integration of disabled people unto the labour market. Instead of the "accommodation" policy, which has dominated the approach over years, the new approach should be in line with an active local welfare policy oriented towards integrated policies and actions, personalised pathways and flexible solutions.

Mainstreaming Strategy: The identification of employers’ needs and the needs of all employees who work alongside people with disabilities will help make policy more responsive, helping training programs in particular to focus also on employer needs. The maxim of ‘no training without a purpose’, when applied to the job-readiness elements of a client’s training, should place a renewed focus on their employability skills.

The employment services of vocational guidance and mediation will be in the ideal position to identify, substantiate, and highlight both the inequalities and discrimination in the labour market, and the gaps in service provision between the agencies. As an objective player withno turf to mind, ROS EQUAL may be in a good position to lobby for additional resources or the reallocation of existing resources to fill these gaps.

Government Departments Targeted: Department of Enterprise, Trade and Employment; Department of Justice, Equality and Law Reform; Department of Education and Science; Department of Social and Family Affairs.

State and Other Agencies Targeted: Health Boards; FÁS; Local Employment Services..

Policy Targets: Labour Market Policy; Education; Welfare Support; Health.

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