DISABILITY AND INCLUSION
OUR ETHOS
At Wigan Youth Zone we believe that #everyyoungpersoncan. That’s why our inclusion team are dedicated to providing support for all young people at the Youth Zone. The team make sure that each and every young person who attends the youth zone can get involved in the activities they want to, regardless of their abilities.
OUR VISION
To encourage and develop an environment so that we Inspire, Invest and Include young people in all the activities and opportunities we have available. We understand that some young people will have more specific needs to enable them to be able to access the same opportunities as others.
OPPORTUNITIES
We run specific sessions each week including:
- Baking once a week
- Rebound therapy
- Inclusive climbing with full hoist for wheelchair users
- Closed karaoke sessions to build confidence
- Sensory activities
OUR APPROACH
Wigan Youth Zone have developed a model of working that takes into consideration any barriers that may prevent young people from joining in with activities and working to remove those barriers wherever possible. We believe this approach should be inclusive of all abilities yet specific enough to cater for each individual.
Our work consists of:
- Providing an accessible location that takes into account transport links.
- Providing equipment and facilities (such as lifts, hygiene suite etc).
- Carrying out a structured induction for anyone who indicates they may have additional needs or support requirements.
- Finding out what those support needs are and how we can best manage them within our setting and making support information available to all staff.
- Providing accessible leisure opportunities – such as Boccia, Kurling and Rebound Therapy.
- Providing staff on specific nights to support young people through discussion, relationship building, structured activities and encouraging personal development skills.
- Training staff in relevant areas towards how they can adapt activities to take ability into account.
LEVELS OF SUPPORT
If young people require additional support to access our opportunities a discussion will take place as to how this can be arranged.
WYZ is not able to offer 1:1 support, but we make provision for this by allowing that young person to be supported by a parent/carer/pa etc within the Youth Zone. We ask that they provide a current DBS to enable them to do this and they follow the guidelines we have set in place for those adults who are supporting young people on premises.
PROVISIONS AND FACILITIES
The following is a list of some of the provisions we have in place that allow us to work towards our vision:
- Structured activity sessions (open to all but also closed groups where appropriate).
- Access to aids such as ear defenders, sensory activities and quiet spaces when needed.
- Staff trained in approaches for behaviour, awareness etc.
- 5 accessible toilets.
- Hygiene Suite with tracker hoist and bed.
- Provision of inclusive sporting opportunities with organisations such as Wigan Athletic Community Trust.
At Wigan Youth Zone we aim to Inspire, Invest and Include all people in all that we do as we believe that #everyyoungpersoncan.
Our Inclusion Team are on hand to support young people with additional needs here at the Youth Zone. If you would like to set up a tour of the Youth Zone, or find out more about how we can support young people with additional needs, fill out the contact form beneath and our team will come back to you.
