What’s the project all about?
This project began in June 2004 and was mainly for young adults with learning disabilities from minority communities moving through the transition to adulthood. The aim of the project was to work with young people to establish what information would be useful on the website, what would work for them, their families and advocacy groups. Developments in the project so far
Combined with the National Learning Disability and Ethnicity Network this has enabled the development of a comprehensive forum for people from minority communities who have a learning disability, and those who support them.The information gathered from young people enabled us to build the Moving on Up website with useful information on education, health, housing, citizenship, finances, benefits, leisure and any other important aspects of moving from being at school to being an adult. The website is easy-read and has been specially designed (and tested) so that navigation is easy for someone with a learning disability. The website is designed to be a source of information and something that families, carers or teachers can work through with a young person together.
We have developed two publications from the Moving On Up project:
Moving on Up: a Guide for Professionals. This publication is aimed at Connexions staff, youth workers, transition leads, school advisors and service providers whose remit includes young people with a learning disability from a BME community. 
Moving on Up: a workbook. This publication is for young people and their families from BME communities planning transition into adult services. - We also send out an e-newsletter every month. The Moving on Update contains useful information and news on t
ransition, issues of interest to BME communities in England, developments in strategies and policy as well as interesting and important meetings, conferences and events.
Expected outcomes for the future
The Moving on Up website will be further updated to reflect the various changes that have taken place over the past 5 years, more images will be added to the site to improve the style.ARC successfully applied to the National Transition Support Programme and the focus of the Moving on Up project will move on to Local Authorities (LA) and the development of a framework and guidance pack for LAs. A BME/transition event is scheduled to take place in January 2010.
Moving on Up Together is a project that has come out of Moving on Up. Moving on Up Together was a series of fundays developed to provide information to young people with learning disabilities who are from a BME community about to, or currently going through, transition. The fundays were developed to give information about various aspects of transition.
This project is ongoing although the fundays have come to an end. It is hoped that more events will be developed and a report is being written about the successes of these days. Find out more about Moving on Up Together.
Useful Information:
- For more information on the Moving on Up project contact Bridget: Bridget.Fisher@arcuk.org.uk, Simon: Simon.Neider@gmail.com or Pam: Pam.Smith@arcuk.org.uk
- (Funders – Vodafone UK Foundation, Diana Princess of Wales Memorial fund, Department for Children Schools and Families)
