The Independent Gateway Award was for members who did not have access to social care funding and were therefore not able to access the day service. They had a 1 to 1 meeting every one to two months with the Personal Development Mentor who helped them to find activities, courses and volunteering in their local community. This was for people who were quite independent or were looking for something to do with friends, a support worker or PA.
The Gateway Award encouraged people to gain new skills and experiences, become more independent, make friends, be active in the community and improve their health and wellbeing.
Benefits included an increase in confidence, making new friends and improving fitness as well as many more. Participants had a great time on the award and looked forward to coming in to complete their activities.
They achieved the award by taking part in fun and healthy activities that contributed to their personal development in the areas of.
| Section | Activities. These were just examples. Participants could do any activity that they enjoyed. | Timescale for Bronze Award |
|---|---|---|
| Hobbies | Arts and crafts such as drawing, model making, cooking, photography, pottery, textiles. Collections such as badges, comics or coins. Recreation such as music, dance, gardening, DIY and fishing. | 12 hours over at least 3 months |
| Fitness | Choose two new fitness activities. These could be at the gym but did not have to be. Examples included swimming, cycling, walking, boccia, dancing and football. | 12 hours over at least 3 months |
| Lifestyle | Choose two lifestyle topics including wellbeing, confidence, cooking, safety and communication. Examples included healthy eating, first aid, money and independence. There were many courses run by Wirral Mencap and Lifelong Learning. | 12 hours over at least 3 months |
| Volunteering | Choose an activity to benefit the community. Volunteer for a charity if possible. | 12 hours over at least 3 months |
| Gateway challenge | This could be personal such as trying a new activity that participants had not done before and were not sure about. Or they could work as a group to complete a project or adventure challenge such as visiting a new place, staying overnight or doing an outdoor project. | 2 days planning and 1 day on the activity or project. |
The award was broken down into three different levels which were bronze, silver and gold. When each level was finished, participants were presented with a certificate to show their achievement.
The award was designed to suit the participant’s needs and be as flexible as possible. They were supported to identify activity opportunities. Participants were given folders to complete along the way where they kept a record of their achievements including certificates and photos of the activities they had done.
The award required a level of commitment from participants in order to complete it, with the bronze award taking approximately six months to complete, followed by a further year each for the silver and gold awards.
The success of the award depended on the full commitment of the people participating, the Wirral Mencap staff and support workers, parents and carers or agencies.
It was free of charge to do the Gateway Award. However, there could be a small charge for some activities, particularly those done individually such as gym membership.
Further information about the Gateway Award could be found at. https://www.mencap.org.uk/gatewayaward
Case Study. Anita
Hi I am Anita. I had been a member of Wirral Mencap for a long time. I had a lot of friends who were members and I encouraged other people to join. I attended the Wirral Mencap AGM, several Christmas parties, One Wirral, the karaoke evening and the ferry party.
I completed my Bronze and Silver Gateway Awards with Julie and then worked on my Gold Award.
My favourite hobby was the drumming that I did with Rhythm Reaction and the Phab hub. It changed my life. I loved it. I also performed regularly with the Hands and Voices choir in Hoylake and Riversign.
For my fitness section I tried to walk more and I played badminton and basketball. I did a sponsored bike ride and raised £90 for Options.
For my lifestyle section I did many courses including English and Maths, bill management, BSL and a retail workshop.
I did lots of volunteering but my main placement was at the Phab shop. I was part of several groups and committees. I was a member of Voices R Us where we met every 3 months and discussed things. I was also involved in the Wirral Heritage Project where I interviewed the person in charge of Fort Perch Rock.
Doing the Gateway Award allowed me to get recognition for the things that I did. I became more motivated to stick with things. I was not sure that I could get through it but I was very proud of myself for achieving it. I attended every appointment and completed every section of my award. My challenges included two sponsored silences, one to raise money for Rhythm Reaction and the Phab Club as a thank you for letting me be part of the group and the other for Hands and Voices. It was really hard but I was glad I did it. I performed at an open mic night and the Options Oscars, delivered presentations, ran a meeting for Voices R Us and I also took on more responsibility with Rhythm Reaction and helped to teach other people including several Gateway groups.
I gained more confidence. I knew that I could do things. I felt part of something and I had the motivation to do the next stage.
I definitely recommended the Gateway Award to people because it helped them to learn new things. I introduced other people already.