At Outcomes First Group, we believe a workplace that prioritises wellbeing benefits everyone. That’s why we provide our employees with wellbeing support across a variety of areas: We’ve partnered with Able Futures to give you regular, scheduled access to mental health specialists. Fast, flexible and confidential help with work-related mental health challenges. We have access to our wellbeing partner Health@Work’s Employee Assistance Programme (EAP) for easy-to-access support with the pressures of modern living. The EAP is there with an array of free services for when health, family, money and other life stresses get on top of you. We provide colleague-led inclusion groups – including the race equality café, neurodiversity café, LGBTQ+ Café & menopause hub, a place where you can share experiences with colleagues, be yourself and find support in a confidential, inclusive environment. Find out more about our benefits by clicking the link below.
Outcomes First Group Certified as a Great Place To Work for Fifth Consecutive Year We are thrilled to announce that Outcomes First Group has been officially certified as a Great Place to Work for the fifth consecutive year. Chief Executive Officer, David Leatherbarrow, said: “I’m thrilled that we are once again officially certified as a Great Place to Work. Our recent survey results reflect the commitment, passion, and satisfaction of our team. At Outcomes First Group, we strive to create an environment where every colleague feels valued, supported, and inspired to grow. These strong results underscore our collective achievements and the meaningful progress we’re making together. While my team and I are proud of our successes, we’re committed to continually improving and supporting our people in every way possible. Thank you to our incredible team for their feedback and dedication to making Outcomes First Group a truly great place to work. We look forward to building on this momentum and reaching new heights together.”
Anti-Bullying Behaviour Week 2024 We are dedicated to developing a trauma-informed and neurodiversity-affirming anti-bullying culture, that emphasizes understanding, compassion and education. Several of our Education colleagues have been collaborating with Oxford University to gain insights on bullying within schools. This partnership will support the development of the first anti-bullying package tailored for specialist schools, which some of our schools will trial in 2025. Our Clinical teams are also working with volunteers across the Group to deepen our understanding of LGBTQ+ and racial sensitivities. Insights from these sessions will be used to make our Group an even better place to work and drive improvements within our services, empowering everyone to foster an open, curious and transparent culture.
This week is Occupational Therapy Week, a week dedicated to celebrating the life-changing power of Occupational Therapy. The work that our Occupational Therapists do across the Group makes a huge difference to the people we support, helping them to develop motor skills and independence in daily living activities. We reached out to Clinical Site Lead & Senior Occupational Therapist, Lene Vessey, to find out more about what it’s like to be an Occupational Therapist in the Group. “I have been a proud Occupational Therapist for 35 years. I’ve worked in multiple settings, systems and countries in my path to Outcomes First Group, but working here I’m able to draw on all angles of my expertise. This, combined with the Group’s service development, Evidence Based practice and creative delivery, is so exceedingly rare to find, and also very exciting. For the last 2 years I have had the privilege of working with enthusiastic teams, amongst colleagues who are dedicated to delivering the best Neurodiversity Affirming and Evidence-Based services, ensuring that the young people we support can be the best version of themselves and achieve meaningful outcomes. It has been so rewarding.” Thank you Lene Vessey , and thank you to all our Occupational Therapists who are helping deliver this vital service across the Group.
We are delighted to share with you our Annual Impact Report for the academic year 2023, which highlights our achievements and milestones. The report showcases our efforts to provide neurodivergent children and young people with access to high-quality education, and we are proud to say that it has been another successful year marked by both growth and an enhanced educational offering for our pupils. We have opened several new schools this year, increasing our reach to over 4,000 pupils. 98% of our schools were also rated Good or Outstanding by Ofsted, which is a reflection of the exceptional dedication and effort shown by everyone involved.
This month is Augmentative and Alternative Communication (AAC) Month so it’s a great time to spotlight the work that is happening across Outcomes First Group utilising AAC. AAC encompasses a variety of communication methods that people use to express their thoughts and needs such as gestures, expressions, communication boards and electronic devices including tablets. Accepting that everyone has different ways of communicating and helping the people we support to develop their communication styles is a vital aspect of delivering our Neurodiversity Strategy. Thanks to the skilled and inclusive way our teams embrace the use of the immersion room and the QT robot, Outcomes First Group has been shortlisted for the Harnessing Tech in Education Award at the inaugural Tech Impact Awards 2024. But that’s not all – the activity that’s happening across the Group to enhance our communication support further is outstanding. Here's just a small sample of the work that's underway: * Working in partnership with Widgit to ensure schools have the visual aids they need to support our pupils' learning experience * Developing core vocabulary guides, to help ensure consistency and simplicity for the people we support * Collaborating with Smartbox to equip our teams with the latest technology * Coming Soon - Regular bitesize British Sign Language learning, building knowledge across the organisation.
