Community Connecting

When Community Connecting receives your referral you will be allocated to a Community Coordinator, who will meet with you to register you to our service. Your Community Coordinator will ask you what type of volunteering or leisure interest you wish to pursue.

We will support you to explore opportunities in your community; working with you to identify your existing skills and help you to develop any new skills needed. When found we then plan with you how you are going to get to your chosen activity/voluntary position and will support you in this for the appropriate length of time. We will review our work with you regularly to ensure you are able to sustain your chosen activity/voluntary position.

Friendships can be supported for all sorts of reasons, some examples may include: Gym sessions, fitness classes, swimming, café visits, meeting in each other's home, cinema visits, pubs, evening classes, and dog walking.

They would be supported in the same way as voluntary positions and activities.

Once you have settled into your new friendship your Community Coordinator will have a chat with you to review it and then fade away to leave you to it.

Alongside the Wiltshire supported internship Community Connecting can offer a 12 week programme of one session per week (four sessions with a focus on the community, followed by eight sessions on preparation for paid employment). Sessions include:

SEND Service referrals:

• young people 14 to 25 years of age with an EHCP.
• young people with Autistic Spectrum Condition (ASC) not meeting the above criteria and between 16 and 25 years of age (funded from Aiming High budget)
• resident in the county of Wiltshire (local authority boundary area).

Adult Care and LDAS referrals:

• 18 years of age and above
• has an assessed eligible need for this service (Care Act 2014)
• identified under the following Reported Health Conditions
• PI: Long term health condition - physical (acquired physical injury)
• N: Long term health condition - neurological (Stroke, Parkinson's, Motor Neurone Disease, Acquired Brain Injury)
• SI:  Sensory Impairment (visually impaired, hearing impaired)
• LD: Learning, development or intellectual disability
• ASC: Learning, development or intellectual disability (Autism, Asperger's Syndrome/High Functioning Autism).

In all cases approval is required before making the referral.

Customers are not eligible if they are working with another Wiltshire Council supported employment service or supported by a universal service such as a Work Programme provider.

Referrals can be made by: 

• Special Educational Needs or Disabilities (SEND) Worker
• Wiltshire College Tutor
• Wiltshire Supported Internship Job Coach
• Social Worker
• Wiltshire Specialist School Teacher
• Adult Autism Diagnostic Service
• Wiltshire Council: Social care advice and Information 0300 456 0111 (from an assessed care act eligibility)
• Adult Care
• Learning Disability and Autism Service