Country
Finland
Import/Export
Export
Topic
Zero Project 2019/20
Transfer Model
Status
The Finnish Service Foundation for People with an Intellectual Disability (KVPS), an NGO working across Finland, has developed On the Verge of Adulthood – a programme designed to assist people with disabilities to transition from secondary education to the next phase of their life. KVPS works with schools, municipalities and NGOs to support people aged 13–25 and their families. In a first step, a personal action plan is created on key areas like work, housing, relationships, social activity and further study; and in a second step, the necessary support is provided to carry out the transition. Since 2013, 434 young people have been supported.
You can discover KVPS´s presentation at the Zero Project Conference here
Solution
In each municipality, KVPS convenes a steering group of the local municipality, schools, NGOs, and families, which then develops a local action plan and agrees how to work together on key transition areas, such as education, employment, and housing.
Once the local action plan is agreed upon, the focus moves to individual and family goals. Young people and their families get workbooks and other person-centred planning tools to help them determine their wishes and goals. At the meetings, families receive peer support, input from KVPS, and information about access to local support from schools, local authority representatives, and other services. At the end of the process, there is a meeting to finalise the individual goals of young people and their families and to decide how local stakeholders will take this forward.
By the end of 2019, KVPS has supported 434 young people, and feedback shows that participants find the process meaningful and that afterwards they are more certain on what they want in the future. In addition, local support services learn new tools to work with families on future planning.
The project is funded by the Finnish Funding Centre for Social Welfare and Health Organizations, and in-kind support comes from the municipalities that offer venues to support the project. There is no fee for young people and their families
Impact
Since 2013, 434 young people have been supported.
Between 2013 and 2019, KVPS has supported 757 family members
In 2019, KVPS has worked with 505 professionals across 35 municipalities
Transfer Model
The practice has been scaled in 35 municipalities, and the core model and activities are scalable and can be adjusted to meet local and individual needs.
To support further replication, KVPS wants to train other professionals on the model and further formalise their processes.
