More and more opportunities have arisen for people with learning disabilities to work, train for work or broaden their education.

Working or training can help you make new friends, make you feel better about yourself or help you get new skills to help you find a job. 

Depending on your situation work or training may be in a paid or voluntary unpaid capacity.

Your Local Job Centre Plus can help you with this. They can help you to:

• look for a job
• prepare for work
• support you while in work
• advise you around working and your benefits

They have special Disability Employment Advisors. They can help you:

• to apply for jobs
• tell you what training is available
• what support there is to help you once in work

For more information about what Disability Employment Advisors do and where your local Job Centre Plus office is see links.

Local colleges can advise you on what courses may be available and there are a number of local and national organisations that help people with lots of different disabilities to find work, training or further education.

We have put together an information sheet with contact numbers of useful organisations. You can print a copy. 

People who attend Wakefield Family Services Day Opportunities can take part in something called 'work style opportunities'. This includes work experience and accredited training in catering, gardening, making cards and other crafts, woodwork and furniture recycling. 

Volunteer trainees learn new skills which can then be used to support future employment plans.

These include:

• Phoenix Home and Garden Furniture
• Shopping Service
• Café Frobisher
• Corner Shop
• DIY SOS Gardening
• Sparkle Cleaning Service
• Rainbow Creations Jewellery
• Made by Us Gifts and Cards
• Work experience at a farm, charity shop and  a school nursery

Some of these are now run as 'Social Enterprises'. These are organisations that are set up more for 'social' reasons. Things like getting people into work who may have been unemployed for a long time. Specific jobs for people who have a disability or other illness who may be finding it difficult to get work.