Welsh Government through the Big Lottery has announced a £10m grant to boost the employment prospects of young people in Wales with a learning disability and / or learning difficulty, including autism. The five-year Engage to Change project will work with 800 employers across Wales to help 1,000 young people with learning disability and/or autism to develop their employment skills through paid work placements lasting between 6-12 months.

Learning Disability Wales is leading a consortium of organisations to deliver Engage to Change project. These include supported employment agencies ELITE and Agoriad, the international internship programme Project SEARCH, self advocacy organisation All Wales People First, and Cardiff University.

The project is being funded by The Big Lottery Fund’s Getting Ahead 2 grant – the largest ever awarded by the organisation in Wales. The grant was developed in partnership with Welsh Government to meet priorities for supporting children and young people. It will be funded by money that has been dormant in bank and building society accounts across the UK for 15 years or more.

Engage to Change is hosting 2 events in order to introduce the project and provide more information to all stakeholders, one in North Wales and one in South Wales.

The event will focus on introducing the project and its partners, and will provide information for a range of stakeholders including, policy makers, young people, parents, employers, educational professionals, providers and third sector supporters.

Spaces are limited so please book early – BOOK HERE