KITH AND KIDS
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Mission Statement
Kith & Kids is a London-based, user-led charity working with families who have children, young people and/or adults with autism or learning disabilities (many of whom have profound and multiple disabilities). From its set-up in 1969 by a group of parents, Kith & Kids’ aim has been to achieve empowerment and social inclusion for/with families who have children with learning disabilities. To achieve this, we support the whole family by providing information and support to parents and siblings as well as training and social development projects and activities for children, young people and adults who have a learning disability or autism. BlackRock and BlackRock volunteers have been supporting our Employment & Life Skills project with grants, cooking workshops, football training and tournaments and fundraising activities (marathons, bike rides etc.) and continue to do so to date.
About This Cause
In Kith & Kids we have a strong self-help ethos which means that families using our services put something back into the organisation, including supporting each other. We are a small charity, with only 6 full-time and 3 part-time employees but we help around 250 isolated families with disabled children and adults (the majority of which are on the autistic spectrum) with the help of about 250 volunteers. Our board is made up of 8 trustees who are either the parent/carer of a disabled person or a volunteer supporting a disabled person. Over the past 50 years, Kith & Kids has thrived by adapting our support services and activities in line with the needs of our families’ (growing) children and in recognition of their children's often unanswered need to learn, socialise and stay healthy outside and beyond school. Our focus on individual needs and adapting work models accordingly has ensured a rich diversity of participants in our projects, in terms of abilities as well as in terms of socio-economic, cultural and ethnic backgrounds. Most recently we have been making adaptations (and continue to do so) to ensure we can continue to deliver activities and support safely under COVID19 social distancing rules. On-line learning and leisure activities (via Zoom, WhatsApp, Facebook, Skype etc.) and delivering more support by telephone (rather than email) as our families have a real need for actual conversation with people outside their own immediate circle. In return for their time and direct involvement, Kith & Kids offers volunteers structured training, professional support and valuable experience for study or work. The work we do can be divided in three broad categories 1. Social Development Projects and Activities These consist of: - Social Development Projects during the main school holidays (5 days during spring and Xmas breaks and 10 days during the summer holidays). These offer creative workshops (music, art, drama, dance, video making...), sports and IT activities, as well as days out to places of individual choice. Each disabled participant is supported by 2 volunteers who ensure s/he can actively and fully participate in their chosen activities. - Weekend Clubs are mini versions of the Social Development Projects and take place fornightly during term time. - Our Summer Camp takes place during the last week of August and offers a fantastic week away from home in the company of lots of volunteers. Camp fires, shelter or raft building, climbing, pond dipping, walks in the woods, obstacle courses and seaside trips are just some of the many outdoorsy activities provided. In addition we do our own caterin and everyone is involved in planning menus, shopping, cooking, serving and (alas) washing up! At the same time the camp offers the parents of participants much needed respite. 2. Services for Transition into adulthood and beyond These consist of: - Employment & Life Skills Project during term time for young adults at the higher functioning end of the learning disability or autistic spectrums. This project combines classroom learning with work experience opportunities in order to help the participants access further education, meaningful employment and/or social/leisure activities. Volunteer mentors provide the required individual support. - Our 4-day Residential Projects are very popular and important motivators for more able adults with autism/learning disabilities (most of whom have few or no other regular activities outside their involvement with Kith & Kids) to develop discipline and reach the learning, attendance and punctuality targets set in their individual learning plans. The projects are great fun but also encourage participants to further their learning for independence. - Our Respite Weekends for (young) adults living with parents are designed for participants with more profound learning disabilities or autism and take place during two weekends per term. The weekends offer enjoyable learning and leisure activities again aimed at developing greater independence. - Our programme of regular Healthy Living Activities includes weekly football, health awareness and Sanjuro sessions, as well as fortnightly choir sessions. Volunteers are the lifeblood of all the above projects and activities and provide the sense of support and camaraderie upon which all our participants who have a disability thrive. 3. Family Support and Outreach Services These consist of: - Individual Support for Parents/Family Carers to help them meet the needs (educational, residential, medical) of their disabled sons/daughters. - Parent Groups which offer mutual support as well as platforms for parents to come together to help develop services to meet the needs of their disabled sons/daughters. - Telephone/Email Support Line which provides information and support for parents, carers and professionals in the disability and voluntary sectors throughout London and beyond. - KLASP (Kith & Kids Lifetime Advocacy Support Project) provides a much needed visiting and monitoring service for older people with disabilities whose parents are elderly or incapacitated. - Outreach Service which provides information/support/training for other families and organisations. The holistic approach Kith & Kids has developed to support families living with disability at all ages and stages of life is as far as we know unique. But we are keen to support others to develop similar projects and services and are equally keen to learn from their experiences and expertise. Over the years we have supported the setting up of quite a few other organisations like Contact a Family, Disability Law Service, WAVE club, Action 19+ and Netbuddy (latter two now integrated into SCOPE). Our open approach and the support of thousands of volunteers over they years have allowed our small charity to punch above its weight and we hope to continue to do so for many years to come.