What Next ? - Event Follow up

The what next? events which took place on 20 October and 3 November were a great success and appreciated by all those who attended.

The idea of the events was to help young people with LDD and their families find out about the range of support and provision available to help young people with LDD make a smooth transition to adult life. It was also an opportunity for those of us who support young people to update our information on the services that are out there.

We had nearly 30 different exhibitors at each event, including Mencap, Adult Social Care, various FE colleges and training providers, Carefirst, Autism West Midlands and many others.

Well over 300 people attended the events including a large number of young people, some of whom were brought by their school or college.

The feedback we received showed that people really valued the events. Young people reported that they didn’t think there was anything we could do to improve the event. When asked how useful they found it, 94% rated it Good to Excellent and the majority said they would come to a similar event again.

For most parents and carers, having the range of organisations and agencies available under one roof was what they valued. They felt it was useful to be able to talk to the professionals on the stands and collect a range of information to take home and look at.

There were a few comments saying that people felt the event helped them to put the decisions they were trying to make into a wider context, while others mentioned the presentations and workshops as the most useful part of the event.

Connexions Birmingham was one of the organisations that were specifically mentioned as being helpful. 100% of the parents/carers and professionals who completed the feedback form said that they would recommend the what next? event to others.

Professionals also valued the networking opportunity provided by the event. The professionalism and enthusiasm of the people on the stands was particularly commented on. Some professionals brought young people with them to the events and commented on how it helped them to understand what the young person was interested in and exploring options.

Once again Connexions Birmingham was specifically mentioned as being helpful. When things are difficult for us it is good to be reminded that what we do is valued and appreciated by the people we work with and running an event like this helps to demonstrate that to others.

Grateful thanks to all of those who helped make the events such a success.