This month we’re delighted to share the good news that catering student Fatima has secured an apprenticeship working in a café run by Unity Works, a specialist organisation supporting disabled people to get jobs.

Fatima has worked hard at Share in our catering programme, and gained CIEH (Chartered Institute of Environmental Health) Food Safety Level 1 and Level 2 qualifications. She then worked with Terry, Share’s Employment Specialist, to apply for the apprenticeship, carrying out practical assessments and an interview, before being one of six successful candidates selected out of 71.

We’re so proud of Fatima and everything she’s achieved, and wish her continued success as she moves on to this exciting new venture.

Fatima said, ‘It’s taking a step forward, as a reward for all the effort I’ve put into getting a job...I feel active and energetic, happy and excited, [the new role is] something to occupy me and focus on.’

Read more

Summer football sessions with Chelsea FC

We’ve had a fun-filled active summer of football, taking part in six training sessions with Chelsea FC Foundation. A total of 18 Share students took part, improving their confidence, fitness, and overall wellbeing. We’re particularly grateful to Tony, a qualified coach with Chelsea FC, who created a welcoming and inclusive environment, taking care to encourage and support each student, and adapting sessions to suit the abilities and needs of the group. One student said, ‘I really like Tony, he knows how to speak to me’.

The sessions culminated in a tournament and awards ceremony, and to top it off we were also treated to a private tour of Stamford Bridge complete with goodie bags!

Find out more 

Enjoying London’s green urban spaces

Earlier this year our horticulture students took part in Historic Royal Palace’s Superbloom Communities Project, planting donated wildflower seeds at the Share garden to reflect the main flower display at the Tower of London.

All summer the Tower of London's moat has been flourishing into a spectacular field of flowers. We love a trip out, and we’re passionate about urban green spaces that support pollinators and other wildlife. So recently, horticulture students Nigel, Peter, Andrew, and Daniel went to the Tower of London to see the moat display. They had a wonderful time enjoying the new natural landscape in a space the public aren’t usually allowed.

‘It's lovely! They’ve got different flowers and colours.’

Find out more about the Superbloom project

Social inclusion initiative I Choose My Friends going strong

Alex and Vincent are big Marvel fans, so a visit to the Marvel 4D exhibition at Madame Tussauds was top of their list for a fun-packed day out. As part of our new I Choose My Friends scheme, and with help from volunteers Terry and Michael, we supported the pair to meet up and enjoy a pizza before visiting the exhibition and immersing themselves in the world of Marvel. This involved a show with 3D glasses, chairs that punched you in the back during fight scenes, blew air at you and sprayed water! Alex is well-known at Share for his Spiderman moves and both he and Vincent had an excellent time.

I Choose My Friends launched earlier this year as part of our established Go Anywhere, Do Anything social inclusion programme. The aim is to identify and nurture friendships at Share by helping people go out and socialise together. Going out with a friend to relax and have fun is something many of us take for granted, yet it’s important to encourage positive mental health, develop healthy relationships, and help people feel less lonely.

We always need people to support ventures like these, so do get in touch or pass this on to anyone you know who may be interested in volunteering their time.

Find out about volunteering to support the scheme

Latest results showing Share students' progression  

We use the Outcomes Star to measure and track our students’ progress and achievements, across nine different areas. Dealing with the longer term effects of the pandemic, and an increase in referrals for younger people with more complex needs, means we've had a challenging year.

In response, we added more health and wellbeing programmes. And as a result, our latest annual student star report shows a slight increase in the area of wellbeing. We also saw an increase in our students' work readiness scores thanks to more investment in our employability support.

Enhancing our independent living skills programme with the introduction of our new My Life My Way sessions, saw three further areas, (practical skills, learning skills, and living skills), remain stable. Unfortunately, four areas (communication and social skills, friends and relationships, social responsibility and physical health) decreased slightly. We’re working hard to address this, launching schemes like I Choose My Friends to nurture new friendships, and support social skills. We've also added new financial digital life skills sessions to help students understand digital payments and be more financially independent.

Read more about our student star tool

We need befrienders!

Could you spare a couple of hours a week to meet up with one of our students, provide companionship and the chance for them to get out more in their local community? We need volunteers to match with our students to go for walks, coffees, or even go bowling or do the shopping, whatever your befriendee chooses.

If you’re reliable, patient and a good listener this could be the perfect opportunity to give something back to your community. It’s rewarding, good fun, and you’ll learn something new. We provide comprehensive training and support to all our volunteers so you’ll be part of a friendly and welcoming team.

‘My favourite thing about being a befriender is being able to positively impact on someone's life.’

Find out more and apply

Make a regular donation to Share 

You could make a big difference to our work with just a small monthly gift.

Just £5 per month means we can buy seeds for five students to create a salad garden as part of their horticulture course.

£10 a month pays for two students to create hygiene and safety portfolios as part of our catering course.

And £30 pays for the examination fees for an accredited course for one student.

Regular giving in this way is vital to help charities like Share. Guaranteed income from monthly givers means we can plan and invest in our services longer term, providing more training and support for disabled people and their families.

Donate now

Support Share if you shop at Amazon Smile 

If you shop Amazon deals, you can make a difference: Shop at smile.amazon.co.uk or with AmazonSmile ON in the Amazon Shopping app, and AmazonSmile donates to us at no extra cost to you. 

Sign up now

Vacancies

If you're interested in joining our friendly committed team and helping people with learning disabilities and/or autism to live more independently, then we’d love to hear from you. If there’s nothing suitable for you but you know of someone else who might be interested, please do spread the word and encourage them to get in touch.

Bank staff vacancies:

Chef trainer BANK STAFF

SEN tutor BANK STAFF

Classroom and community assistants BANK STAFF

View all vacancies

Connect with us on social media

Did you know Share has active Twitter, Facebook and Instagram accounts? We also share our videos on YouTube. 

Join us on your favourite networks and be part of our online community.

You are receiving this email because you have had previous contact with Share Community, a registered charity based in SW London that provides training and support for disabled adults. To find out more about our services visit www.sharecommunity.org.uk.