New project to tackle travel barriers for people with learning disabilities launches today

Travelling with Confidence is a brand new project funded by the Motability Foundation to increase opportunities for people with learning disabilities in the North East and Cumbria to enjoy and benefit from the ability to travel.

The project is a partnership of six local charities, led by Your Voice Counts working in conjunction with Adapt North East, Bridge Creative, Darlington Association on Disability, People First and Skills for People.

Training and peer support are at the heart of Travelling with Confidence, which will see people with learning disabilities receive accredited travel training so they can deliver bespoke awareness raising sessions and become buddies to help others overcome their own barriers to travel.

A network of Travel Champions with learning disabilities will also be established to engage with the transport sector and provide opportunities to influence policy and practice among local providers.

Lindsay Henderson, Head of Communities at Your Voice Counts, said:

“We know from experience that people with learning disabilities often have transport issues and find moving around and travelling to be an overwhelming experience that they often avoid. This means they can miss out on opportunities that would have a positive impact on their lives.

“Through this project, we’ll be providing bespoke training and support to give people the tools and confidence they need to access different methods of transport. Not only that, we’ll be doing it in a way that empowers people with learning disabilities to share their experiences, support their peers and influence how decisions are made.

“At Your Voice Counts, we’re passionate about breaking down barriers and finding ways for people with lived experience to bring about change so I’m excited to get the project off the ground with our like-minded partner organisations and see what we can achieve across our region. Thank you to Motability Foundation for our funding!”

Lisa Jones, Director of Charitable Operations at the Motability Foundation, said:

“We’re delighted to award Your Voice Counts with this grant to work in partnership with local organisations to improve access to opportunities for people with learning disabilities in the North East and Cumbria.

“Your Voice Counts, together with its partners, will offer travel awareness training and peer support, supporting people with learning disabilities to travel independently and confidently. Awarding grants to established and local organisations like these helps us to make an immediate difference to the transport needs of disabled people.”

For more information about the Motability Foundation, visit www.motabilityfoundation.org.uk.