The Harington Scheme Annual Report 2010 - 2011 The Harington Scheme The Harington Scheme affords a unique opportunity for young adults with learning disabilities and/or difficulties, providing individual learning programmes designed to help them into employment, further education or a more rewarding life. Set up as a charity by the local community some 30 years ago, the majority of learners come from the North London area though the unusual nature of the scheme attracts people from all over the capital. The scheme is situated on a land-locked site behind Highgate High Street in North London. There are four main strands to the training: ■ The Vocational Training Scheme aims to prepare learners for work, find them further employment and support them in their new jobs. Qualifications and training in horticulture and retail are offered and the programme is designed as a holistic package that develops transferable skills vital for successful and sustained employment. ■ Harington Gardeners is a supported employment initiative offering a stepping stone for those learners who are not ready to go straight into work at the end of their training. ■ The Day Service provision offers horticultural activity of a therapeutic nature to adults with a learning disability or mental health support needs. ■ The Foundation Skills provision equips young people with the basic skills needed for employment, self-direction and personal development. Every learner has an individual programme of activities to support their personal development and skill needs. The majority of learners are found a job or further education when they leave and the Scheme supports them for as long as is needed to settle in. The Harington Scheme (founded in 1980) 55a Cholmeley Park, Highgate, London, N6 5EH • [email protected] • www.harington.org.uk Founding Chairman Dame Geraldine Aves DBE Patron Joe Swift A Registered Charity no. 279376 (10th November 1979) Chairs’ Report Normally we have our AGM, presentation of Certificates and Annual Report on the same day in July. This year we had the presentation of Certificates in July as usual, but the AGM and Annual Report and Accounts are being moved to November. This is because the Harington, like the majority of Further Education training providers, is moving from the traditional financial year (April to March) to the academic year (August to July). As the Government, our major funding provider, bases both its funding and its target setting on the academic year, it makes sense for us to do the same. We will still continue to give oral updates of our progress at the presentation of Certificates in July. Charlotte Green, one of our Directors, has resigned and we would like to thank her for her support, particularly with fundraising. Jennifer Horne Roberts, who is a barrister, joined the Directors in July 2010, and her expertise has already been much appreciated. Liz Leverton, formerly Finsbury Park Co-ordinator, agreed to join the Directors in June 2011. Her previous experience in horticulture will be invaluable to the Scheme. This year the staff have focussed on implementing the new Foundation Learning Tier which has taken the place of the Education to Employment programme, although several learners followed the latter course during the year. The Directors have been involved in preparing a three year Business Plan, which is due to be completed in December 2011, and also in monitoring developments affecting the future of our site. Our current landlord is Haringey Primary Care Trust (PCT) which is due to be abolished in April 2012. We are as yet unclear who will inherit ownership of the land. In addition, the proposal to build new luxury homes on the Capital Gardens site, which, like the Harington Scheme, forms part of the Highgate Bowl, could also have a knock on effect on our future. Unlike many other providers we do not merely require classrooms and office space, but large areas of open land, which are not easy to find in central London. We are working closely with the Highgate Society, both to protect both the local environment, and the future of some of our most vulnerable people. The Friends, under Rosalind Laurie, their new Chair, have organised a series of events as part of the 30th year celebrations of the Harington. These included a special fundraising evening at the Gatehouse, organised by Joe Swift, our patron, and Highgate School’s nomination of the Harington Scheme as their chosen charity for one of their fundraising breakfasts. These, together 1 with our annual quiz night hosted by John and Katie Plews, a special restaurant tree raffle at the Christmas plant sale organised by Leila Hodge, and a further plant sale in the summer, have raised a magnificent total of £15000 for the Scheme. We are extremely grateful to the Friends for all the work they do in organising and providing delicious refreshments for these functions, and also for helping, together with the trainees, to staff the produce stall in Pond Square. This year there have been several changes in the staff. At the end of this academic year the long serving Team Leader of the Gardeners, Peter Graham, moved to West Sussex and left the Scheme. We would like to thank him for his consistent and careful support for the Assistant Gardeners, and the work he has done in expanding contracts for the Gardeners. In his place we welcome Darren Townsend. We also said goodbye to John Fairweather, a member of the horticulture team, who has been with the Scheme for six years and played a central role in maintaining the appearance of the site. We welcomed Steve Gaylor onto the horticultural team. In addition both Joanna Baxter, the manager, and Rachel Pilkington, the Team Leader for Horticulture, will be on maternity leave from autumn 2011. We would like to congratulate Joanna on the birth of her baby daughter in September. Donald Lush formerly Director of Student Support at Westminster Adult Education Service is covering for Joanna’s maternity leave, and Lynne Hamer currently teaching ICT, is covering for Rachel. A new member of staff, Paula Edwards, is covering Lynne’s work. Whatever the changes, we can be sure that the strong commitment to, and support for, the trainees will be maintained. We would like to thank all the individual and charitable foundations who have given us donations and grants this year- Tottenham Grammar School Foundation, the City Bridge Trust, the Leathersellers’ Company Charitable Fund, the Garfield Weston Foundation, Haymills Charitable Trust, Hubert Blake Charitable Trust, David Solomon’s Charitable Trust, and the Jack Petchey Foundation. We would also like to thank Waitrose and their customers who produced three donations as part of Waitrose’s Community Matters programme. Finally we would like to thank Joanna and all the staff and volunteers who are responsible for the ethos that underlies the work done at the Harington. An ethos that puts the learner at the centre of the Scheme, and develops an individual programme to deal with his or her specific needs .Last but by no means least, we would like to thank our Fellow Directors for all their commitment and support over the last year. Tony Baker and Carol Burgess, Co-Chairs 2 Manager’s Report As the Harington enters its fourth decade it continues to provide excellent training and employment opportunities to people with learning difficulties. The hard work and dedication of volunteers and staff and the enthusiasm of our learners over the years has seen the Scheme grow and remain as relevant to the needs of today’s young people as it was in the early 1980s. The continued success of Harington is a testament to the sterling effort that its founders and others made to provide the Scheme with a solid foundation from which to grow. The last year has been one of consolidation and embedding of the major developments that took place in the previous year. We have seen the full implementation of the Foundation Learning programme, designed to tailor learning to individual needs and encourage progression to employment. This has given learners the opportunity to progress through different sizes and levels of qualification (Awards, Certificates and Diplomas) and so far this has worked well. Recruitment has remained successful and in the academic year to 31st July 2011, 73 young people and adults with learning disabilities benefited from the training or support offered by Harington, an increase of one on the previous academic year. Our sales at Christmas, in the Spring and weekly at Pond Square have continued to be popular, raising over £13,000 between April 2010 and July 2011, a tremendous achievement. The success of the sales relies on us producing good quality plants and produce and the learners and staff have really worked hard on this as well as keeping the site in excellent condition. The new computer suite in the portacabin, laptops and wireless network have quickly become essential facilities and allowed us to achieve our aim of providing new learning opportunities and access to new qualifications. 85% of leavers achieved one or more qualifications as part of their training in the year that ended on 31st July and the one 3 Assistant Gardener who left in this period went on to study for a Level 2 Horticulture qualification alongside voluntary work. 67% of learners who left during the 2010/11 academic year went into a positive destination (i.e. further training, work or learning). As well as working toward our new qualifications the learners have still managed to have fun and develop their life skills during the year. The trips and residential activity week funded by the Friends provided much enjoyment as well as the chance to develop personal and social skills in a more informal setting.