Autism Fundraising for a better future: Mark’s path to independence and giving back
Let’s meet Mark! He moved from his family home to one of our Derbyshire supported living services in 2022.
Mark has always dreamt of being fully independent, but his learning disabilities, autism and epilepsy mean he requires some additional support with daily living skills.
While on the lookout for support options for Mark, Voyage Care caught his mum’s eye! After doing some research, Mark’s mum understood how our support could help him access opportunities and achieve the independence he desired.
Compassionate to his core, Mark also loves helping others! Not only is his independence now thriving, since moving to Voyage Care, Mark’s been supported to fulfil his dream of giving back. He’s a real-life fundraising superhero!
Making the move to Voyage Care
Before Voyage Care, Mark enjoyed a joyful life with his mum and stepdad. Unfortunately, a tragedy struck the family when Mark’s stepdad passed away. With emotions running high, Mark and his mum were struggling.
With the days ticking by, Mark’s mum knew she needed some extra support with Mark. She had concerns about him living alone but knew it would help him reach his goals and live the fulfilling life he deserves.
Mark has specialist needs and requires some extra support… but this does not hold him back! He’s a very independent man and loves venturing into the community.
Mark has many good deeds up his sleeve too. He’s always loved helping others, and wanted an outlet to be able to fundraise for charities close to his heart.
Mark’s mum knew she had to find somewhere to let his personality and passions shine! She wanted Mark’s independence to grow further and knew the move to supported living would make this a reality, while giving them the chance to rekindle their mother and son relationship!
After sourcing the right home with Voyage Care, Mark and his mum were starting to feel more at ease. 28 November 2022 came around quickly, and in the blink of an eye, Mark was moving in to his new home.
After his initial assessment, Mark began on 40 hours of 1:1 support. This gave our team the dedicated time to get to know Mark, his needs, likes, and dislikes, creating a person-centred care plan tailored to him!
Reducing Mark’s support hours
The more time the team spent with Mark, the more they understood his needs. After a short period of time with Voyage Care, our expert team knew Mark didn’t need the initial level of support specified.
His independence was increasing, and with every day his confidence grew further. After a risk assessment and a review of his needs alongside his wider support team, Mark’s 1:1 support was gradually dropped to his current rate of 21 hours.
Now, Mark gets support to develop his daily living skills, including making meals, checking for food, doing laundry, and managing his medication. He is also supported to maintain his tenancy and keep on top of his bills.
While Mark’s support hours have decreased, he will always need a level of support due to his epilepsy and risk of seizures.
Mark’s autism means that he can often be impulsive without fully understanding risks. By working with him and giving him choices, he now feels in control and valued. Our person-centred approach has reduced Mark’s impulsivity and given him the opportunity to spend even more time doing what he loves… being out in the community!
Acknowledging Mark’s successes
With Mark thriving, the team wanted to help him gain even more confidence out and about. They did some training with Mark on how to access public transport and catch the bus safely. They supported him into the community, listening to what he wanted to do and only intervening when necessary.
With a heart for music and a love for playing the guitar, last year our team supported Mark to watch Kiss in concert. They helped him book travel, accommodation, tickets, and supported him to the event. This helped ensure the trip was safe and enjoyable. With our team’s support, Mark ticked this goal off his bucket list!
With Mark’s enthusiasm to be more independent and our team’s everlasting support, Mark’s mum is feeling at ease. Thanks to Voyage Care, she is able to live her daily life without a constantly feeling of worry about Mark.
Fantastic fundraising
With Mark’s caring mind set on helping others, it was now time to fulfil his dream of giving back!
Mark loves getting creative, and he’s a real artist at heart! His passion for artwork has provided the foundation for what he wanted to achieve next… selling his artwork to raise money for Red Nose Day and Children in Need!
Fuelled by this desire, Mark’s mind was full of ideas and driven by the excitement to bring his dream of becoming a fundraising superhero to life.
Our team worked with Mark to get a market stall permit from Chesterfield Borough Council, and with this secured, Mark got to work on making posters, calendars, and other items to sell for the charities of his choice.
Over the last year, Mark’s passion for fundraising has been well and truly alive. He’s worked hard all year round to raise money for Red Nose Day and Children in Need – two separate causes requiring much dedication, time, and effort.
From dressing up as Pudsey and Spiderman, to selling his goodies and giving sweets to children visiting his stall, Mark’s raised a whopping £722.69 for Children in Need. An incredible outcome for both Mark and the community.
Mark’s next steps
Mark’s mission to help others doesn’t stop here! He’s assured us he wants to continue raising money for Red Nose Day and Children in Need each year.
Keen to achieve even more independence, Mark has a goal of saving up enough money to go to Florida on holiday. The team have no doubt he will achieve this!
He also has his heart set on being a flight attendant one day. With this on his radar, he’s already contacted Virgin Airways to see if he can seize this opportunity – we’ve got everything crossed for him!
Our team will continue to support Mark no matter what he chooses to do next in his life. If Mark can dream it… he can do it!
Find out more about our learning disabilities support
To find out more about our learning disabilities support and how we can help you, a loved one, or a client, fill out our simple enquiry form and a member of our team will be in touch.
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