WayMakers Devon

A great opportunity from Parental Minds Support for parents, carers and other loved ones. 👇

Supporting a loved one through a meltdown or shutdown can be challenging and emotionally demanding. Understanding what is happening beneath the surface can help us respond with greater confidence and practical support. This online Skills Workshop will explore the reasons these experiences occur and provide strategies to help families navigate them more effectively.

📅 Monday 22nd June 2026
⏰ 7:15pm – 8:45pm
💻 Online via Zoom

Sign up here: https://bit.ly/PMSWMeltdownsJune26

💫 Loving this available on the website for the newly opened Quentin Blake Centre for Illustration - what a great tool for improving and to support visit planning. 👏

It might seem like this lends itself especially well to a or other space, what's stopping us having sensory maps in workplaces, schools, transport terminals etc...?

Let us know if you already have a sensory map - we'd love to see.

We are so grateful to .j.adams.art for her serenity and support throughout our recent project for young people at .kind.

are often described as "the heartbeat of communities" - showing up, generously giving their time, attention, ideas and effort. Izzy - you are one of those and we are so grateful to you for being involved in this! Thank you. 🙏

Izzy says:

"I volunteered with WayMakers at their art workshops at Studio Kind, working alongside a team of professionals to facilitate a creative, neurodivergent-friendly space. As an artist myself, working towards becoming an art psychotherapist, taking part in a project like this, where artistic thinking is actively encouraged, was great experience for me. I learned a lot from watching Nikki (the lead artist) teach, and of course, the highlight had to be taking part in the final exhibition; seeing how much hard work everyone put in and how it all came together."

If you couldn't make it to the gallery, why not view the virtual exhibition of 'Becoming Visible' - https://my.matterport.com/show/?m=Tonchvrzhas

We're not even going to try to remove the blur, add a filter or crop this - it's unbridled contentment and appreciation.

We are so lucky to have Sian working with us: as well as facilitating both of our peer support circles (one for teens, and one for parents), she also delivers 1-to-1 mentoring for us.

And she really gets results. I'll soon share some glowing feedback and life-changing outcomes achieved by a client to illustrate that.

Today we put our heads together to talk work, a conversation made straightforward and purposeful because there's mutual trust, honesty and appreciation. The connections in our team are what make work work, and make work fun.

This is one of our most successful offers for our adult clients.

It's designed to:
To build understanding of your experiences and processing,
To begin reframing some of this through a neuroaffirming lens.
To reducing discomfort and friction.
To co-creating environments, strategies, support systems and patterns of work or study that support your wellbeing.

It blends the autonomy and independence you need to influence the future that is good for you, with suggested adjustments you can discuss with your line manager.

Can be paid for privately or funded by Access to Work.

Submit a booking form from our website if you're interested.

We don't need the Millburn Review to Remind us how important recruitment practice is.

And putting real at the heart of the process, so we can then evaluate their potential for the job, is what matters.

A striking 1 in 8 young people are currently Not in Education, Employment or Training in the UK.

Many adults are also facing hard times in the jobs market. Some are the jobseekers, others are the employers, wondering how to fill the skills gap, or replace the departing staff...

And older generations might forget that not too long ago, securing work may have been about answering an ad in the paper, having a conversation and being given a trial run.

Going through a hefty selection process (or not, if it's not ), some of it automated by technology, and meeting reams of criteria to jump through hoops disadvantages many.

have heaps of ideas, are socially engaged, innovative and hungry to make their way in the world.

Consider what questions we're asking, how we ask them, and how we can be more flexible with options, and we'll find gold in what we get back.

Year 2 is going to be 🎉 smashing 🎉 as we see an expansion of the model within RISE. ✨

workshops - Raising Inclusion Standards for Everyone - are designed and delivered by the RISE Leaders themselves. And of course, they are also involved in designing materials, collecting data and negotiating future plans.

This week's gathering took it further - looking at all more of the administrative and communications parts of the project, RISE Leaders put their names beside additional tasks that they'd like to take on, indicating where they'd like to through additional .

We have exciting plans for developing the original workshop - a day in their lives at secondary school - to include primary school settings and healthcare experiences... Watch this space!

It's hard to believe we're approaching the end of the first year of funding from the Paul Hamlyn Foundation . And fabulous to have this committed team of CoDesigners to take it forward.

One said, "Before getting involved, I was unsure how much impact RISE would have. It's shown me that the workshop can make a real on professionals' understanding of the experiences of autistic young people." 😁

(Sadly missing one RISE Leader and Anna this week!)

Once we see why this makes sense, we can't unsee it.

Setting up new systems and environments can feel like "front loaded" work. But it reaps rewards.

And many of us do it in other parts of our lives for good reason - think about:
- 'zoned' areas for different heating adjustments in your home.
- differently sized, shaped and designed cutlery for different hands and dishes.
- salt, pepper and condiments on the table for people to add to their own meal.

Common sense, when you think about it?

...remind me why I started WayMakers.

They are those who are building - and rebuilding - their lives, with the fiercest determination and warmest orb of hope for their futures.

And they are those who don't see how much stamina it takes to power that engine of determination and hope.

Both are the reason. And they often sit side by side. My own story became relevant only once it became apparent to me, and it will probably always feel like a footnote.