Independent Living Skills

The Independent Living Skills Programme is designed to stimulate personal growth and development while providing meaningful individual learning opportunities that allow the individual to maximise their potential.

Independent Living Skills objectives are developed during the first College term through consultation between the student, personal tutor, Head of Independent Living Skills and the Extended Curriculum Manager,  to establish an individual programme designed to promote self-confidence and  promote greater independence.

The programme involves structured and unstructured elements that are formally appraised and recorded.   Literacy, numeracy and communication including Functional Skills - English, mathematics and ICT - as well as  key skills, such as working with others and problem solving, are embedded within each programme.

Support is provided to develop self-advocacy and social skills and through these develop the abilitity to function as independently as possible. Learners gain the confidence to make their own decisions, take personal responsibility for their own actions and gain knowledge of their rights as individuals.  Emphasis is placed on developing effective relationships with others, together with taking responsibility for own welfare and leisure time. Road safety and the use of public transport forms an integral part of the work.

Community Access, Healthy Living, Personal Presentation and Lifestyle sessions are an essential element of each student’s PSHE – Foundation Learning - programme.  Community Access sessions concentrate on introducing students to - and ensuring that they have the opportunity to develop the skills necessary to integrate effecitively into - the local community.  In Healthy Living sessions learners work on issues concerning diet and exercise. The Personal Presentation course concentrates on employability issues such as the choice of appropriate clothes for work and personal hygiene. Lifestyle sessions provide a holistic approach to learner  wellbeing.  Some learners undertake Survival Skills sessions with emphasis on topics such as home security and household emergencies.  Recently introduced sessions concentrate on  Drugs Awareness and form part of the PSHE curriculum 

The home management element of the curriculum teaches learners the skills needed in the home, including cooking, basic cleaning, laundry, money handling and shopping.  Accommodation has been designed to allow carefully planned progression from residences with a high level of supervision to bungalows and houses with decreasing levels of support. There are also  opportunities for some learners to move to accommodation within the local community to experience maximum independence using budgeting, shopping, cooking and general housekeeping skills.