Bristol Workways and Spectrum Day Services are proud to be part of

the ACCEPT II Abilities into Work Transnational Group

The Social Firm Initiative is an innovative programme to introduce Social Firm/Social Enterprise type structures, based on existing projects, into the Bristol region of the South West of England for people rehabilitating from severe mental health problems or with severe learning difficulties and develop a University accredited course to train trainers working with people with learning difficulties..

Worker involvement has been a key element of The Social Firm Initiative. Regular worker meetings and other processes have been in place to ensure bottom up communication as well worker/trainee involvement at Steering group and other levels. Equal status has been an important aim within the emerging Social Firms/Social Enterprises that have been formed.

An overall Business Plan for the project was produced at the start of the operational phase of the programme in 1998 and The Social Firm Initiative, has continued to progress substantially to plan and operational targets are planned to be achieved into 2000, with eleven emerging Social Firms or Social Enterprises having been established - the plan being monitored by a Steering Group mechanism. Bristol Workways as local lead and deliver partner, in conjunction with our other local delivery partner Spectrum Day Services (Phoenix NHS Trust) plan for operational work to carry through to end March 2000, with a further three months for final dissemination and it is hoped that the structures formed will have a long term future.

The University accredited Train the Trainer course has run successfully in 1998 and 1999 and is planned to continue into 2000.

Finally, The Social Firm initiative has included independent University evaluation, which has been published on the web. The current evaluation covers the 1997/1998 work and can be found on. www.socialfirmsgroup.free-online.co.uk/evaluatn.htm and a further evaluation of the 1999/2000 work is in progress for publication in the 2^nd quarter of 2000.

To quote the March report from the Employment Support Unit (based on their 28/1/99 monitoring visit), 'the workers monthly meeting within the Social Firms is innovative and demonstrates a bottom up approach. The meeting represents a breakthrough for Social Firms.'

We have developed a strong communication process, including bottom up, middle and top down communications systems. We will be disseminating and publishing our innovative work, particularly in respect to bottom up communications and worker empowerment that, has potential for national and transnational impact potential.

Again, supported by the Employment Support Monitoring visit report, the collaboration between learning difficulties and mental illness local providers is an innovative step forward locally and adds to national and transnational good practice. Our final Social Firm, in catering, is planned in collaboration with the local mental health NHS services and this will add to this collaboration potential.

Bristol Workways and Phoenix work with the most disadvantaged workers rehabilitating from severe mental health problems or with severe learning difficulties. This, with our variety of Social Firm options across different levels of severity of disability demonstrates innovation and potential for dissemination of results particularly via the Independent University evaluation of The Social Firm Initiative. The first stage evaluation, completed March 1999 (of the programmes 1998 progress) is published on the internet via: freespace.virgin.net/bristol.workways/index.html.

The development of Social Firms in the South West Region of the UK for psychiatrically disabled and learning difficulties people is innovative (ERMIS European Economic Interest Grouping database 1997) and builds on the UK and European wide development work on social firms. Having established the first ten Social Enterprises/Social Firms as per plan in 1998 and 1999, the project is continuing from this platform to establish essential, centralised management, administration and support systems that will be innovative nationally and transnationally.

The University accredited, entry level qualification for Learning Difficulties staff is innovative, nationally and transnationally. Having piloted the course in 1998 and running this again during 1999 we now plan to run a compressed course in the 1st quarter 2000 (the course has initially been 1 day per week over ten weeks but we are now planning a compressed course to run within two weeks) which may allow it to be more accessible to trainers and assist mainstreaming of this innovative course.

The Operational Work of the innovative project, The Social Firm Initiative, has continued to progress substantially to plan and operational targets are planned to be achieved. Bristol Workways as local lead and deliver partner, in conjunction with our other local delivery partner Phoenix NHS Trust plan for operational work to carry through to end March 2000, allowing a further three months for final dissemination including publicising the results of the independent University evaluation that will be available end march 2000.

We are on target to the agreed Workplan and four transnational meetings/visits have already been carried out, with substantial opportunities for transnational dissemination and two more transnational meetings are planned in 1999 and further transnational work up to June 2000.

The Project Overall Business Plan, developed initially in 1998, has been monitored and updated by Project Management and the Steering group established for the project. This Steering Group includes Bristol Workways, Phoenix, The Co-operative Development Agency (CDA) , Social Services, the Health Service, Employment Service and User representation, and has met quarterly as planned.

A local network has continued to be developed for mental health providers, a learning difficulties network has been established and Bristol Workways have joined an additional Midlands region Employment Horizon network. The development of a Train the Trainer Course in conjunction with the University of the West of England for learning difficulties staff has been followed through, a 2nd course has already been run in 1999 and a 3rd batch of trainers are starting a 3rd course in August 1999.

Following the establishment of 4 Social Enterprise/Social Firm structure for people with mental health problems and two Social Firm/Social Enterprise for people with learning difficulties in 1998, we have started one more mental health related Social Firm and three learning difficulties based Social Firms. Bristol Workways are able to plan a start-up of a catering Social Firm for mental health workers which will meet and exceed our target of 10 Social Firms for the complete programme.

A Bristol region Conference/Seminar on 1999 progress is planned for 8th November with regional, national and transnational involvement. The 2nd and final phase of the independent evaluation by the University of the West of England starts in September 1999 with an interim report due in November to be presented by the University at our November Conference and then a Final Report due in March 2000.

In 1999/2000 we are planning for 177 beneficiaries, in line with our 1999/2000 targets. The Bristol Workways and Phoenix NHS Trust combined Social Firms are planning for 76 workers/trainees to achieve Basic qualifications at pre-NVQ and NVQ Level I, which is marginally lower than the 1999/2000 budget of 90 This is part of a 'learning process' with the most disadvantaged groups that we work with, as gaining qualifications is taking longer than originally planned and completion is being assisted by extending operational work into 2000.

In addition to Workright and Foundation Training Award pre-NVQ qualifications, we have agreed with our European funders that we can consider NPTC (National Proficiency Training Council) and CLAIT (Computer Literacy & Information Technology) and other recognised training courses as pre-NVQ's. Of these 76 workers planned to achieve basic qualifications, 16 are working towards NVQ Level I standards and some of these will still be in progress in the first quarter of 2000.

We are planning for 20 or more trainers to successfully complete our University accredited Train the Trainer course in 1999/2000 which will exceed targets. Additional trainers have completed a module within the course. 3 supervisors have already achieved either a D32/33 Assessor qualification or D32 Assessor award and 3 are working towards achieving this planned qualification.

Other outputs are on target with some to be achieved in 1999/2000, as per the original plan. These include, formalising of a regional network, including mental health and learning difficulties people and agencies - the mental heath network is established. For 1999, Studies/Research will be published on the results of the Bristol Workways and Phoenix innovatory work in developing Social Firms in the South West Region including the necessary management framework and a second paper on the development of the entry level University Accredited Course for staff working in Learning Difficulties.

Publicity material about the overall project and materials relevant to pilots of Social Firm structures and the development of a Learning Difficulties Train the Trainer course, all with ESF logo, have been regularly disseminated locally, nationally and transnationally both in papers, via presentations and electronically. This will continue in 1999/2000. We have established and regularly updated Internet materials relevant to The Social Firm Initiative, covering regional, national and transnational material - this can be accessed from the Bristol Workways index page on: freespace.virgin.net/bristol.workways/index.html

The Transnational Work, which has been active and particularly beneficial through sharing expertise, has been primarily through our signed partners and the support of the powerful ACCEPT II Abilities into Work transnational group that we are part of.

The transnational work continues to plan. We have visited four transnational venues, encompassing six main meetings in 1999. As well as ongoing communications, we attend a Social Firm transnational group where we have regularly carried the duties of chairperson and also secretarial work. We have published on behalf of the Social Firm transnational group internet pages of minutes, agendas, overall themes and other materials. We also attend a transnational group related to training and other themes to assist developments of the University Accredited Train the Trainer Course which has also developed a number of products. Additionally, we have participated in the Steering Group for the ACCEPT II Abilities into Work.

We have contributed to transnational evaluation materials that are planned to be published late in 1999. As well as extensive dissemination at transnational meetings we have presented on behalf of the Social Firm group at Steering Group meetings and presented at the Social Firm Group and Training Group meetings.

Dissemination has been through a variety of planned sources. We have continued to develop networks - in the region, a mental health network has been supported and a learning difficulties network established. We are also part of a Midlands Horizon Employment network.

We have published, maintained and will develop extensive Internet pages, including ones related to The Social Firm Initiative and the Social Firms established and contributed to pages on the ACCEPT II Abilities to Work transnational web site. Additionally, we have written (through 1998 and into 1999/2000) and updated and maintained a web site for the Midland Employment Horizon network and a web site for our local region mental health network. We have published on the internet the interim and final reports of the 1st independent University evaluation completed in March 1999 of the 1998 work.

We have presented at the Paris steering group transnational meeting, the Turin and Helsinki ACCEPT II Social Firm transnational meetings and at the Paris train the trainer related transnational meeting. We will present at our Bristol region Conference 8th November 1999, where we have a local, UK and transnational audience and will also present at the ACCEPT II York Conference in November.

We have been actively involved in transnational meetings, written minutes for various transnational meetings and developed products within the Social Firm and train the trainer course meetings. Our 1999/2000 work will contribute towards publication of results, on a project basis and in conjunction with our transnational partners during 1999/2000 - we would anticipate developing not only individual research papers but a combined publication (booklet and/or internet publication) synthesising the innovative work and good practice identified and highlighting the value and impact of the transnational aspects of the projects in the transnational group.

Whilst the Social Firms established by Bristol Workways and Phoenix are anticipated to require ongoing but different levels of support funding, both Bristol Workways and Phoenix are targeting to maintain the Social Firms established on an ongoing basis after the Horizon funding ceases in 2000, effectively mainstreaming them although this cannot be guaranteed.

The train the trainer course, developed through our local delivery partners Phoenix, is anticipated to be part of the local Universities ongoing syllabus to allow this to be mainstreamed. The planned work to test a compressed course in the 1st quarter of 2000 will assist this mainstreaming process, as it is believed this will allow access from trainers outside the region and make the course potentially more portable.

The video produced as one of the planned outputs of the Train the Trainer course will provide an opportunity for regional, national and transnational dissemination of good practice.

A significant amount of pre-planning went into the structuring of The Social Firm Initiative. Detail improvements from ongoing experiences, monitoring and the results from the 1st evaluation by the University of the West of England have been implemented and agreed with the Employment Support Unit. As The Social Firm Initiative progresses through 1999/2000, our overall plans, targets and eventual outputs effectively remain at our budgeted levels.

However, it will significantly enhance the project to allow operational work till 31/3/2000 and then further dissemination through to 31/6/2000. This will allow for completion of qualifications for our workers/trainees. Bristol Workways and Phoenix work with the most disadvantaged people and part of the 'learning process' for the project is the additional time required for people to progress through pre-NVQ and NVQ programmes in the severe mental health and severe learning difficulties fields.

Whilst there will be an operational stage to end March 2000, the majority of individual salaries for supervisors/managers will be completed from December and certainly prior to end March, many roles being charged to The Social Firm Initiative on a part time basis or accepted as complete, but we would plan to continue this operational phase in the 1st quarter.

With this extended 1999/2000 programme, the 2nd, and final, university evaluation process is now planned to commence in September 1999 with an interim report to be available for our dissemination Conference 8th November 1999. The final report from the University of the West of England is planned for March 2000 completion. This will allow a further three months to 30/6/2000 for dissemination of The Social Firm Initiative, with the results of the final university report as a platform for dissemination. We will publish the University evaluation on the internet.

Another key advantage will be the inclusion of an additional compressed university accredited Train the Trainer course. The current successful programme is planned over 10 weeks of direct study, and then a mentoring period. We wish to run a compressed version of the course, the direct taught element being compressed into 2 weeks, with a mentoring period after this. This will be implemented in the 1st quarter of 2000. It is proposed that this compressed course will have the attraction of allowing trainers from other areas than local based personnel, as it will be logistically easier to attend and there is the potential for this to be accessed by transnational personnel.

This type of compressed course presentation was trialed successfully by Bristol Workways in their university accredited course from the previous Horizon programme (1996/7), which normally also ran for 10 weeks. This course was used in outline to assist design of the Learning Difficulties trainers course that has been developed by Phoenix NHS Trust as part of their contribution to The Social Firm Initiative.

This final development of a compressed version of the course would assist preparing it for mainstreaming, most probably through being taken into the universities own syllabus. This would also add to the dissemination potential for this Train the Trainer course in the April to June 2000 period. This will also increase the outputs (qualifications achieved) for trainers which was more limited in the original 1999/2000 Budget.

An important product being finalised is a video, established as part of the learning difficulties Train the Trainer course but also available for regional, national and transnational dissemination.

Allowing operational work to extend through to end March 2000 will allow the catering Social Firm planned to start up in October 1999 to have a 6 month operational phase with Horizon funding support. This catering Social Firm is planned to be established with the local mental health NHS Trust and will be a further innovation and dissemination opportunity.

On an overall basis, Bristol Workways and Phoenix anticipate that the Social Firms established will need support funding to continue. However, although this cannot be guaranteed, the intention would be to endeavour to maintain these on an ongoing basis, effectively mainstreaming the Social Enterprises/Social Firms developed. This establishment of the support levels required for the variety of Social Enterprises/Social Firms in this area of severely disadvantaged workers is another opportunity for dissemination of good practice.

The extension into 2000 will allow the innovative communication processes - 'bottom up', 'middle' and 'top down' - that have been established in The Social Firm Initiative, to be fully disseminated. This dissemination will include internet publication of the three processes, which encompass facilitated Workers Meetings for bottom up communication and empowerment, a Running Agenda process for 'middle' communication and a Steering Group structure for top down communication.

A key feature of The Social Firm Initiative has been the successful worker empowerment programme - this will be published (most probably as an Internet publication).

With dissemination planned to June 2000, we will organise a Bristol region Dissemination Event in June 2000, which will include members of the networks established as part of the programme. Two additional transnational meetings will be planned, with appropriate partners left in the programme in the first half of 2000. The specific goal will be dissemination of the results of The Social Firm Initiative programme and the Train the Trainer course.

We would plan to complete the Internet publication of the transnational meetings of the Social Firm transnational group. We already have approved a worker exchange visit with our French partners, although this will be carried out in 1999. We have an approval for a combined Social Firm/Supported Employment seminar, originally late in 1999, and this will now be moved into 2000.

We already plan to publish a transnational document in late 1999 (with contributing transnational and UK partners) including a forward produced by Bristol Workways/Phoenix and chapter/report(s) on Social Firm development and on the Train the Trainer Course. There will be the opportunity to review and develop this in 2000 with our dissemination.

• Piloting of a further four Social Firm structures (we are planning for five) - six having been established in 1998.
• Continued development of a 'Train the Trainer' course for staff working with people with learning difficulties.
• Development of a management structure for and consultancy service on the development of Social Firms. The additional period into 2000 will allow these to be more fully developed and dissemination to be more complete.

The Social Firm Initiative has 9 overall objectives, that are part of our overall Business Plan and are monitored by Project Management, the Steering Group and will form part of the independent evaluation by the University of the West of England that commences in September 1999. These Objectives are;

• Development of an innovative management framework to enable the successful establishment of Social Firm structures in the Bristol Region, supporting these with specialist assistance (legal, financial, managerial, quality or other required skills) from infancy to self-supporting enterprise.
• To continue establishment of initiatives based on the Social Firm model which will generate incomes and make them more self sufficient and sustainable and contribute to the provision of support and service to people with a mental illness or learning difficulties.
• To adapt and develop the train the trainer course operated under the previous ECHo Horizon Project (1995 to December 1997) to make it specific to learning difficulties trainers in Social Firms, including University accreditation, which is innovative nationally and transnationally. This will also be available to people working in the learning difficulties field in the local area from 1999.
• Promote consultancy services, systems and structures regarding operations of Social Firms within the UK and transnationally, which will also have a strong impact locally.
• Design, produce and promote documents, brochures and guidelines on operations of Social Firms. To disseminate locally, nationally and transnationally through these methods and electronic, seminar and conference platforms.
• To identify new markets for employment within the Bristol and surrounding area.
• To continue development of networks, principally of people with and agencies involved in learning difficulties and mental health problems, but with the object of improved regional networking with disadvantaged groups community wide.
• To ensure that service users are empowered in the establishment of Social Firm initiatives and their views and goals monitored and evaluated throughout the project.
• To maintain and develop good communications with our transnational and national partners and with other Social Firm initiatives to ensure that national and transnational good practice already established is transferred.

Qualitative and quantitative factors have been established and committed to within the approved European application and the Overall Business Plan for The Social Firm Initiative. These factors are;

The Social Firm Initiative is targeted to assist people who are termed disabled due to long term, severe mental illness and are additionally disadvantaged by long-term unemployment and people with severe learning difficulties who have previously been resident in long stay institutions and now live in sheltered community homes and who have extremely limited employment opportunities.

Bristol Workways and Phoenix have found great advantage in working together on an 'inter agency' basis in this programme of establishing Social Firm structures.

The initial models established through to mid-2000 will be either Mental Health or Learning Difficulties specific but there is the objective to move towards the possibility of integrated Social Firm structures, potentially community-wide, in the Bristol area. Additionally, we both perceive that the models developed will have many similarities in structure, for example worker empowerment issues and physical structures and systems, and the possibility to share particular areas, for example joint marketing of products.

The project aims to improve the employment prospects of the target group through the real work experience and enabling ethos of Social Firm structures. For some, these Social Firm structures will be a positive outcome in itself. For other individuals, the project will plan for these roles to be transient employment, providing a 'career' track record to assist a potential move into full employment.

The Social Firm Initiative will provide real work opportunities within the Social Firm models developed for this disabled group who, individually, may not be ready or able to move directly into the direct labour market. These structures and methodologies developed will allow and promote moves towards integration into open employment.

The Train the Trainers course is an integral part of the Social Firm Initiative, to allow successful implementation of the project and address the individual needs of this disabled client group. It has been identified that the programme planned addresses a gap in the market in the area of training in the Learning Difficulties field that will have transnational and national benefits in addition to regional.

For those workers who may wish to consider more open employment after a period in these Social Firm structures, a job placement function to assist workers to move towards this option is being resourced appropriately as workers progress to this stage of work readiness.

Bristol Workways and Spectrum Day Services are proud to part

of the ACCEPT II Abilities into Work Transnational Group