History

From SPAN to SkillWise!

SPAN (Special Persons Alternative Needs) Charitable Trust was established in 1991 by a group of parents at a time when deinstitutionalisation was moving from a discussion to becoming reality. Deinstitutionalisation brought uncertainty to the lives of many people living in institutions and their families. Hence some parents were proactive in ensuring there were meaningful options and opportunities for their sons and daughters.
The focus in the early days was work supervision and training for adults with a mild to moderate intellectual disability in a sheltered workshop environment.At that time the centre was divided into three main work orientated activities:

Woodwork Manufacturing - producing planter boxes, letter boxes, BBQ tables and more.
Pottery Kiln - producing bread warmers, name plaques and key tags and more.
Fabric Room - dusters, soft toys and floor rugs.

By the late 1990s the centre had expanded, both in terms of the number of people supported and the activities provided. The organisation was now divided into four sections;

General Contracts - including assembly work, mailouts, folding and packaging.
Electronic component assembly - including the wiring and soldering of circuit boards.
Shrinkwrapping - packaging and sealing a diverse range of products.
Woodwork - producing a wide range of products from wine boxes to gift trays.

The next and arguably most significant change for the organisation was the transition from sheltered work to community participation.
The planning for this began in 2003 and became a reality in April 2004. The government's policy Pathways to Inclusion (2001) provided the impetus for this significant change.

Community Participation is a new approach to disability support and is based around the principle of inclusion and supporting people to experience an "ordinary life". In essence community participation involves providing training, education and support to ensure people are able to integrate in the wider community through the facilitation of a range work, education and leisure and recreation opportunities.
This equates to a model of support based more around facilitation and "brokerage". In other words, people receive training, education and other activities directly from SkillWise but are also supported and encouraged to take advantage of opportunities in the wider community. This may include further training and education within a mainstream education setting, leisure and recreation pursuits within the wider community as well as employment opportunities. A number of organisations previously operating as sheltered workshops have embraced this new approach to disability support.

Currently, SkillWise supports 83 people in over 50 different training, education, leisure, recreation and employment related programmes, activities and initiatives!
As you navigate your way around our site you will develop a real sense of the diverse range of areas in which SkillWise clients are participating.