Funding win for DCU Ability enables continued support of young adults with disabilities
Dublin City University has received funding of €200,000 from the Dormant Accounts Fund - Measures to Support the Employment of People with Disabilities for the DCU Ability programme which supports young adults with disabilities to gain the skills, competencies and experiences needed to be career-ready.
This Government investment will allow DCU Ability to continue for another 16 months to promote participation in further and higher education and further collaborate with employers to promote work experience, internship and employment opportunities for young adults with disabilities.
Dr Deirdre Corby, DCU Ability Project Lead and Assistant Professor in DCU’s Faculty of Science and Health said:
“Interest in DCU Ability has been sustained during Covid-19 restrictions, and there is currently a waiting list in place for our future courses. As many of our participants have been introduced to the concept of work through our courses, this investment will help us to build on this, and to support these students on their journey to securing paid employment.
This funding will also help us to continue offering courses which capture and reflect the learning from evaluation and feedback received to date. Promoting sustainability we want to embed the project within DCU by maintaining, developing and expanding upon our activities.”
Dr Ger Scanlon, Assistant Professor in DCU’s Institute of Education, added:
“The funding has also provided us with the opportunity to extend and develop a cross faculty collaborative project to strengthen the rights of people with disabilities to access further education and employment opportunities.”
About DCU Ability
Established in 2018, DCU Ability promotes the employability of young people (eighteen to twenty-nine) with disabilities to gain the skills, competencies and experiences needed to be career-ready, by creating meaningful and tailored pathways into education, training and work placements, using a person-centred approach.
Working in partnership with organisations such as St. Michael’s House and other service providers, it offers structured training programmes, work experience and reflective learning review as well as longer term support and career mentoring.
To date, DCU Ability has worked with 117 participants from across Ireland and with 15 different employers. The success of the programme was recognised by receiving a DCU President’s Award for Engagement in 2020, and highly commended in the Aontas adult learning STAR awards in 2021.