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UEL’s Rix Centre receives £30,000 Petchey Foundation grant for learning disability projects

Friday 28 March 2008

The University of East London’s (UEL) Rix Centre for innovation in learning disability received a £30,000 cheque from the Jack Petchey Foundation at a ceremony held at UEL’s Docklands campus on Friday 28 March.

The grant will enable the Centre to continue developing an innovative range of projects aimed at supporting local people with learning disabilities, including the Newham Easy Read website, www.newhameasyread.org, launched in November 2007 to ease the transition from school to work for young people with learning disabilities.

Chris Bullock, Grants Officer at the Jack Petchey Foundation, said: “One of the questions I always ask myself when assessing a project is whether or not it adds significantly to the lives of young people.

“In the case of the Rix Centre,there was neverany doubt in my mind. This is the second year we’ve supported the Centre and it’s wonderful to see how our funding has helped. £30,000 is an unusually high grant for us to offer, which goes to show how highly we rate the Centre’s work."

There are at least 1.5 million people in the UK with a learning disability. The Rix Centre, based in the Knowledge Dock Centre at UEL’s Docklands Campus, aims to improve their lives through developing the use of new media technologies.

Andy Minnion, Director of the Centre, said: “We believe that with the right help a large number of people could become much more independent and self-supporting, relying less on their parents and the Social Services and enjoying a better quality of life.

“With the crucial support of organisations like Newham Council and the Jack Petchey Foundation, we’re developing a wide range of multimedia tools to encourage engagement with the wider world. Computers are generally seen as anti-social, but they can actually provide a tremendous platform for social interaction and communication.

“It’s been wonderful to see how projects like the Newham Easy Read website have already inspired real enthusiasm and engagement among local people with learning disabilities.”

TheNewham Easy Readwebsiteis supported by Newham Council and much ofits designhas been undertaken by local residents with learning disabilities. Ajay Choksi (29), of Forest Gate, has worked as a technical assistant at the Rix Centre for over a year, updating thesite with simple advice and guidancefor other people with learning disabilities. 

Ajay said: “I’ve really enjoyed building the site and sharing the things that I’ve learnt in my life so that other people can aspire to live more independently. For example, I recently achieved my driving licence; visitors to the website can follow simple guidance about how to approach both the theory and practical tests.”

Zeeshan Naseer (27), of Manor Park, helped to develop the Firstline section of the site, which aims to assist people with learning disabilities in finding rewarding employment.

Zeeshan said: “I’ve really enjoyed working on the project. I first came to the Rix Centre to learn multimedia skills, so it’s been great to put them into practice. I’ve now found a job as a receptionist at Stratford Village; I’m really looking forward to starting and hope that the siteI’ve helped to create can enable many other people with learning disabilities to find work.”

Lord Rix, Chancellor of the University of East London, is President of Mencap and has campaigned tirelessly for people with learning disabilities for over sixty years.

Lord Rix said: “At a time when 73% of all councils in the UK are planning significant cuts in their services for people with learning disabilities, the Rix Centre provides a far more positive example throughour pioneering projects and community support.It’s wonderful to see howour work is making a major differenceto people's lives in Newham and beyond.”

The Rix Centre is committed to developing teaching and learning, research and multimedia production for people in the learning disability community. For further information, visit www.rixcentre.org.

For details and pictures contact Daniel Cherry: 020 8223 2194

Notes to Editors

The University of East London (UEL) is a global learning community with over 28,000 students from over 120 countries world-wide. Our vision is to achieve recognition, both nationally and internationally, as a successful and inclusive regional university proud of its diversity, committed to new modes of learning which focus on students and enhance their employability, and renowned for our contribution to social, cultural and economic development, especially through our research and scholarship. We have a strong track-record in widening participation and working with industry.

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