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11959 Educators providing BA courses

AS Mentoring

as mentoring

Ealing Green,

Aeryn Priyanu , Employment Consultant Aeryn has always had an interest in language and communication. Starting her early career in teaching English as a foreign language, she went on to shadow a Speech and Language Therapist and this started her interest in working with people on the autism spectrum. She worked in primary schools as a Learning Support Assistant then moved on to work for the National Autistic Society in a day centre. Aeryn started off as a Support Worker, moving up to become Deputy Manager of the day service. She supported individuals in their daily life and helped them gain work experience and vocational skills. As well as working as a consultant with AS Mentoring, Aeryn works in a college for young people with autism, facilitating individuals with functional and social aspects of life, supporting students to meet their targets and maintain long life independent living skills. Photo of Alan Alan Castellaro, Employment Consultant Alan's interest in Autism began when he attended St Andrew's primary school in Chinnor, Oxfordshire, one of the first schools in the country to teach Autistic children one to one. In 2009 he volunteered on a project for Kith and Kids supporting a young man with Autism and they have remained in regular contact ever since. He then worked for 4 years with Dimensions as an Assistant Service Manager of a residential home for adults with severe physical disabilities and Autism. For the last 4 years he has worked for Ambitious About Autism starting off as a Learning Behaviour Specialist and moving up to become a Learning Support Co-ordinator, and was instrumental in helping set up Ambitious College, London's first College for young adults with Autism. He has a BA Hons in Writing and Publishing and has a rich and varied employment history to draw upon. Photo of Alice Alice Mitra-Hall, Employment Consultant Alice previously worked for The National Autistic Society where she ran a Day Centre and facilitated a weekly social group. During this time Alice supported adults on the spectrum to develop their independent living and social skills, as well as supporting service users to apply for and attend college and work schemes, CV writing and interview practice. Alice has a BA Hons degree in Psychology and has also worked in a number of schools supporting teenagers with autism and has provided specialist individualised support for a family for over 10 years. Photo of Amira Amira Hassan, Employment Consultant Amira has been a mentor at AS Mentoring for 4 years. Amira has a variety of clients for both workplace and job-seeking support. After completing her PhD in Neuroscience from Imperial College London, Amira decided to be involved with AS Mentoring full time and is currently managing the Workshops Programme, overseeing the development and online delivery of workshops and group events throughout the year. Amira is warm and friendly, providing individual, autism-specific support and advice. Photo of Anna Anna Roads, Employment Consultant Anna spent 24 years in the investment management sector, working in sales, marketing, product development and client relationships for a number of blue chip firms including Lazards, Fidelity and Goldman Sachs. She developed successful business relationships with large corporates, consultancies and public sector organisations. In her leadership roles, she also enjoyed coaching and developing careers for younger team members. These are skills and contacts she brings to ASM clients. Over the past 6 years she has developed a number of voluntary roles; relaunched the local NAS branch as Chair (2011-2015), served on a local parents special needs forum (2012-2014), been elected a parent governor at a special needs school and worked as a volunteer mentor on a Research Autism Project. Her focus has been on education and now employment, both as a parent of a young person with ASC and through the influence of autistic colleagues she has served with before. Before joining the City, she gained a law degree from Cambridge University, an MBA from Cranfield Business School and qualified as a solicitor. Photo of Charlotte Charlotte Leighton, Employment Consultant Charlotte specialises in providing workplace support for individuals as well as working with organisations to provide autism specific support and advice. This experience has been honed through her work at ASM and her previous role as an Employment Support worker and trainer at The National Autistic Society. Charlotte has subsequently worked for HAIL in Haringey for two years managing social enterprises staffed entirely of employees with autism and learning disabilities. She has also worked as an Appropriate Adult supporting vulnerable individuals whilst in police custody. For the past ten years Charlotte has confidently designed and delivered social skills groups and workshops for adults with autism. As well as working for ASM she is also employed part-time for Resources for Autism in Barnet managing their adult services. Charlotte is able to support individuals emotionally as well practically as she holds certificates in Person Centered counselling and a diploma in Cognitive Behavioural Therapy. David Perkins, Director David was Head of Services at Prospects, the National Autistic Society's specialist employment service, from 2007 – 2013; he left in June 2013 to set up AS Mentoring. He has extensive experience of supporting people with an ASC into employment across the UK and abroad, and of providing a wide range of training, assessment and consultancy services to employers and other organisations in the UK, Europe and the US. He has worked continuously with people with autism since the early 1980s. David has spent the bulk of his working life in the voluntary sector and prior to the NAS spent many years running a group of specialist adventure playgrounds in London for over 1200 disabled children, (some 30% of whom were autistic). He has a BSc (Hons) in Operational Research from Lancaster University. Photo of Emma Emma Hills, Employment Consultant Emma has been teaching psychology and health related subjects to adults since 2009 with the majority of her work focusing on providing social purpose education in the community to hard-to-reach groups, including those with disabilities. Much of her work focuses on supporting learners through transition and has led her to develop herself as a coach as well as an educator. More recently she has found herself key-working with learners with disabilities in a transition college as well as training and supervising the staff who support them. Emma mentors and tutors a diverse range of learners including learners on the autism spectrum in her continuing work in the community. Emma works part-time as an Employment Consultant with ASM and finds her knowledge and experience gained from facilitating community courses such as 'confidence building', 'communication skills' or 'interviewing skills' compliments the role well. She has a BSc Hons Psychology, PG-dip Social research, PGCE in post-compulsory education and is a registered health and social care trainer as well as a full member of the Association for Coaching. Emma is also currently studying for an MA in Education: Culture and Identity, at Goldsmith university. Photo of Eve Eve Riches, Employment Consultant Eve Riches is an employment consultant for AS Mentoring, where she provides one to one support and workshop creation and delivery. Eve has a background in teaching Psychology and has been involved in mentoring for her whole career. She has a lifetime of lived experience of neurodiversity. Outside of ASM, Eve works as a life coach and mentor. Photo of Gurleen Gené Wyrley-Birch, Employment Consultant Gené is committed to raising awareness and understanding of ASC to improve social inclusion, acceptance and understanding; to making a real difference to the lives of people on the autism spectrum and in broader society. Over the past 12 years, while caring for and advocating for her son, Gené has developed an in-depth knowledge and understanding of autism as well as related challenges including ADHD, PDA, Social Communication Disorder and Sensory Processing Disorder. She has a creative, positive and flexible approach and is determined to combined her personal and professional experiences to help clients into work and successfully retain their jobs. Throughout her previous roles in both Investment Banking at JP Morgan and UBS Warburg and Commercial Conferencing, Gené had an active role in recruiting, training and mentoring new team members. Gené has worked across many sectors, including Finance, Pharmaceuticals, Defence, Utilities, Aviation and Telecommunication. Gené Holds a BA degree in Industrial & Organisational Sociology and Industrial & Organisational Psychology from the University of Cape Town. Photo of Gurleen Georgia Thursting, Employment Consultant Georgia has worked with autistic adults and children in a variety of settings including education, play and social settings for the past year. As a support worker with Resources for Autism, she continues to support her clients in achieving their personal and work goals and loves to get creative with her approach. Georgia also works for Share Community in Battersea as a music tutor/ therapist, building the confidence of adults through music and artistic expression. She also enjoys planning and delivering online workshops for adults with Autism, focusing on well-being, physical health and emotional expression through music making. Outside of her work in Autism, is a trained musician, singer/ guitarist and enjoys performing at events across the UK. Photo of Gurleen Gurleen Manku, Regional Employment Consultant Gurleen has 18 years' experience of autism. She has a sibling on the spectrum, and has previously worked in primary education for children with Special Educational Needs (SEN), and has been a SEN Secondary School Govenor. In 2015 Gurleen volunteered at Autism West Midlands to support adults with autism to find employment. She then worked for Enable, Shropshire Council as a Job Coach in various workplaces supporting adults with autism and learning disabilities. Gurleen is highly experienced in delivering Pre-employment support, mentoring and Workplace support at AS Mentoring across the West Midlands since 2015. Gurleen holds a BSc in Business Psychology and is a member of the British Psychological Society, within the Division of Occupational Psychology. She has also completed her Masters in Occupational Psychology. Photo of Gurleen Mahlia Amatina, Employment Consultant Diagnosed with autism as an adult, Mahlia has first-hand experience of the challenges that can arise from a range of workplace settings, but more importantly; how to overcome these. Outside of AS Mentoring, Mahlia works as a visual artist, where she raises awareness and understanding of neurodiversity through different art forms. With a special interest in autism and work, Mahlia is keen to combine lived workplace experience with her mentoring skills as an employment consultant to support clients. Photo of Helen Mark Blake, Employment Consultant Mark has a broad range of experience across social care with several client groups and in varied settings. Following an arts degree he spent a couple of years on voluntary projects with disabled adults living independently, and with homeless men in an emergency night shelter in central London with subsequent paid roles including community support work with disabled adults moving back into the community following long periods in residential hospitals. Mark has also spent time as a residential care worker in adolescent residential units. The last 30 years has seen a focus on Adults and Children with Disabilities in a both a Day Service and Residential Home setting. As a Manager of services in these fields Mark has increasingly focused his support to children and adults on the autistic spectrum and has become keenly aware of the challenges faced by them and their families in achieving independence and realizing their potential. It is this interest that has led to an involvement in a mentoring role with AS mentoring and employment. Photo of Helen Mike Leat, Employment Consultant Mike comes from a background in advocacy, design and communication. Through his own business he previously ran an Easy Read design service which employed people with a learning disability and autism. In 2015 he co-produced a DVD on Autism and Mental Health for the Autism Partnership Board in Surrey. Mike previously worked for The National Autistic Society Assist service providing one to one support/mentoring sessions, and facilitating social and support groups for autistic adults. After completing an undergraduate module in autism with The Open University, Mike went on to complete a Postgraduate Certificate in Autism and Asperger syndrome. Mike also works with a project called ‘Autism by Experience’ which is a team of mostly autistic adults providing Understanding Autism training to staff in a variety of roles including health and social care. Photo of Laura Lauren Moore, Employment Consultant Lauren has a number of years experience of supporting people with autism as well as additional needs. Her main influence for working with people on the spectrum is her younger sibling who was diagnosed with autism at a young age. Over the past decade she has worked in a school specifically of young people with social, emotional and mental health difficulties, starting as a Teaching Assistant and then working as the Intervention Co-ordinator for the secondary department. Lauren also worked in a specialist autism college as a Learning and Behaviour Specialist, moving up to become a Learning Support Co-ordinator. She studied History at undergraduate level and has more recently graduated with a Masters in Intellectual and Developmental Disabilities in July 2018. Photo of Rachel Rachel Pearson, Senior Regional Employment Consultant Following a successful 13-year career in the City Rachel moved into HR and Business Consultancy specialising in organisation restructuring projects involving (often large scale) job review, recruitment and redundancy programmes. She has extensive experience of working with SME employers and large organisations in the public and private sectors around all aspects of the employment relationship. Rachel previously volunteered with the National Autistic Society's Prospects Team and she now works as an employment consultant specialising in supporting people with an ASC to find and retain work. She also works with the NAS's Employment Training and Adult Services Teams supporting students and employees, and providing advice and guidance to employers. With a close family member on the autistic spectrum, Rachel also volunteers with her local NAS branch in Surrey. She holds an MSc in Human Resource Management and is a Member of the Chartered Institute of Personnel & Development. Photo of Siobhan Siobhan Pauley, Employment Consultant Siobhan has first-hand experience of supporting someone with Asperger’s Syndrome and ADHD as her son has moved through various life transitions, experiencing the hurdles faced by people on the autistic spectrum. She spent 30 years working within Human Resources of a large financial institution attaining her MCIPD status, where she became the company’s Reasonable Adjustment Officer. It was her responsibility to ensure that employees with disabilities were able to receive the right workplace accommodations to enable them to access various roles in the company. This has given her considerable insight to enable her to support our clients. Following a career move, Siobhan is setting up AS Mentoring services in and around Poole, Dorset- as well as working part time to support an individual with profound learning difficulties within an independent living service.

Bemis (Scotland)

bemis (scotland)

London

BEMIS is the national umbrella body supporting the development of the Ethnic Minorities Voluntary Sector in Scotland. BEMIS was established in 2001 to promote the interest of minority ethnic voluntary organisations, develop capacity and support inclusion and integration of ethnic minorities communities. It is a member-led and managed organisation with an elected board of directors. The major aims and objectives of BEMIS are to represent and support the development of the ethnic minority voluntary sector across Scotland, and to support the diverse communities and individuals that this sector represents, especially those who are under- represented and disadvantaged. BEMIS aims to address inequalities by empowering communities, working towards an inclusive society by establishing structures, which recognise diversity and empowers ethnic minorities, and ensuring that they are fully recognised and supported as a valued part of the Scottish multicultural civic society. Initial Key aims and objectives: To strengthen the capacity of the ethnic minorities voluntary sector. Raise the profile of the ethnic minorities’ voluntary sector and its needs at strategic, local and national levels. Have a coordinating role for the voice of the ethnic minorities’ voluntary sector, ensuring pertinent issues are raised with the relevant bodies. To take a lead on policy issues and debate which are of concern to minority ethnic communities at both local and national levels. Work in partnership with all stakeholders and the diverse Ethnic Minorities communities in support of equality and a multicultural Scotland. Key Strengths Of BEMIS as identified in the HMIE review: a highly committed board of directors and staff who brought with them a good range of professional skills and a clear understanding of their responsibilities; the organisation had been successful in uniting a diverse range of stakeholders; BEMIS was highly valued by stakeholders and was making a positive impact on individuals, organisations and communities; strong commitment to inclusion and diversity; and strong commitment to ensuring grass roots organisations have a voice rather than acting as a spokesperson for EM communities. The above is complemented by the following notions stated by HMIE: A sector leading organisation/ excellent rating. BEMIS made a significant difference in local communities and to the organisations it supported. 93.6 % of questionnaire respondents rated the overall service provided by BEMIS as good to excellent Active involvement in research work with other organisations [which] enhanced understanding and removed barriers to BME involvement in local and national democracy Organisational efficiency and effectiveness for stakeholder organisations had been improved BEMIS gives grass roots a voice rather than acting as mouthpiece for EM communities BEMIS had been instrumental in securing a significant increase in the EM responses to consultation processes making effective use of its network both nationally and across a diverse range of ethnic communities/ BEMIS was making a positive contribution to policy development and had been instrumental in ensuring …‘engagement’… directly with EM organisations/ BEMIS had a strong track record of consulting its target communities, identifying needs and responding quickly with programmes and projects. Their commitment to capacity building ensured that local projects were self sustaining and no longer required significant support from BEMIS staff The comprehensive range of accredited training opportunities offered including a BA in community regeneration and HNC working in communities ensured EM people in local communities had the skills to better engage with local structures and partnerships Managers and staff at BEMIS were highly motivated, energetic and committed to the purpose of their work. They worked very effectively as a team, providing high levels of mutual support. The very strong commitment of BEMIS to diversity and inclusion was reflected in its diverse membership. Participants in the professional development courses came from a range of ethnic backgrounds The organisation had made very good efforts to target specific communities with its work, and to involve them in its management the organisation was not fully capitalising on its excellent work. It should develop better means to communicate and celebrate its successes so as to raise its profile. There is a strong commitment at both board and staff level to ensure that the diverse voluntary sector and communities this sector represents are fully recognised and supported as a valued part of civic society and a multicultural Scotland. BEMIS enjoys a high proportion of fundamental Strengths that are essential for the development and delivery of our role and remit. The opportunities for developing and delivering our strategies and objectives are ample and remain to be explored and exploited to the full in support of the diverse EMVS as well as government policies and initiatives around equality and social justice. Within the above context, BEMIS has and continue to be a major partner in supporting the equality agenda in Scotland and in supporting the diverse communities within the framework of equality, diversity and a cohesive multicultural Scotland. We envisage this role to be enhanced and promoted enabling us to function and deliver at several levels in empowering the diverse EM voluntary sector and the communities this sector represents as well as assisting national policies and objectives of the government in their endeavour to promote an equal multicultural Scotland.

Iva Troj

iva troj

London

A Balkan mountain child and a young arts protege who grew up to become a world renown contemporary artist with a PhD in art history. Iva Troj grew up in the outskirts of Bulgaria’s Romani slums in the last decade of communism – a world full of sexual predators, communist propaganda, censorship and no path to artistic livelihood other than what she could imagine in her wildest dreams. Today, she is a Gerety Award winner and 3 times Cannes Lions nominee for her Halo Masterpiece [biggest ever launch in the Halo franchise’s history, with more than 20M players, 520M reach], Towry Best of England Award winner, and 2 times Contemporary Art Excellence Artist of the Year award winner. She has exhibited both nationally and internationally and her work is in collections in the UK, France, Ireland, Sweden, Norway, Germany, China, United States and Japan. In 2021, her epic painting Halo Infinite Masterpiece was exhibited at Saatchi Gallery and The Louvre. In 2020, her paintings were included in a number of permanent museum exhibitions in South Asia, among them Haegeumgang Museum 해금강테마박물관 in South Korea. And in Sept 2022, she was invited to exhibit a body of work at The Louvre in Paris. Troj obtained her first fine arts degree when she was just 17 years old. After completing two BA degrees and a master’s degree from the United States and Sweden, she was awarded an art history PhD title. She is widely known for her fine art pieces which seamlessly merge Renaissance aesthetics and techniques with postmodern praxis. Her intensely detailed oil paintings achieve astonishing tricks of light and shade, as practiced by the great masters. Exhausted by a society in which women often feel vulnerable, threatened, or powerless, Troj recasts the fairer sex as powerful creatures, freed from the oppressive male gaze and placed within Edenic settings where they can revel in their own beauty and potential. Blending abstraction with figuration, the natural world with the urban landscape, dream with reality, Troj’s breathtakingly beautiful artworks achieve something truly unique, both in terms of aesthetics and concept.” 22Blocks Agency Artist Statement As a child, I was taught to question one-dimensional narratives, which grew from a survival technique to a development technology of the artistic self. The foe I so often portray almost always represents the normalisation of one or more dysfunctional discourses. Like many artists, I discuss personal experiences. At the same time, I strive to escape the self, an urge that partially stems from crossing borders in the last years of the Cold War. Living through cultural starvation in my childhood’s Eastern Europe has made me restless and hungry for honest creativity. In that sense, nothing I discuss is strictly personal. Sexual abuse, violence, trauma… I may present an unusual perspective on these topics stemming from the self, but only as an outset. The work needs to keep changing, relive itself, challenge its own conformity. There is a point in every artist’s career when one is tempted to choose a tested and proven path. I’m constantly trying to resist this temptation by containing the “paths” in series where I can explore a motif or a theme without succumbing to the comforts of one visual style. The artists that I look up to for inspiration have one thing in common – constant renewal. Traditional elements are very central to my body of work. It’s not so much a need to keep it” traditional”, but rather the way I speak. I grew up in a communist country. We sang songs about machines being superior to man and praised modernity while destroying nature and killing creativity and the human spirit with it. At the same time, my summers were spent in the mountains with my grandmother who had hanging gardens, thousand stories and no TV. These two realities are inseparable in my mind. My style and inspiration come from the techniques of The Old Masters, not just Western but also Eastern European, Russian in particular. As a child I would often look at art books from the Renaissance, Baroque, Rococo and even Modernism and wonder why the women in them were so powerless and passive, always laying there nude like they lost the will to live, combing their hair and undressing, etc. I grew up wishing to become good at painting so I could change the stories in classical motifs. My technique resembles the Flemish method of layering thin veneers of paint between layers of varnish. Beautiful imperfection and constant renewal are themes that flow throughout my paintings. Awards: 3 x nominee for Cannes Lions Award for Halo Infinite Masterpiece 2022 Art Excellence Award 2020 해금강테마박물관] Haegeumgang Museum South Korea. CAF Artist Of The Year 2019 (2d) Contemporary Art Excellence Artist of The Year 2016 2016 Palm Award Winner 2013 Towry Best of England Award Winner