Tag: Transitions

  • A Time of Change

    A Time of Change

    It feels to me like Finland is going through a lot of changes right now. When people in other countries told me they look to Finland for good practice, I don’t think it was misplaced. I’m finding evidence of that everywhere I go. There is creativity, and expertise borne of long experience. People agree entitlements…

  • You’ve Got to Have a Dream…

    You’ve Got to Have a Dream…

    Today I’m in Oulu – the biggest city in northern Finland, and about as far from Helsinki as Edinburgh is from London. Oulu is home to the headquarters of Luovi Vocational College, the biggest provider of vocational special needs education and training in Finland, with over 30 locations across the country.  Colleges like Luovi are…

  • Best job in the world

    Best job in the world

    Every so often, a day comes along when this feels like the best job in the world. Today was one of them. Don’t you love being around people who know their stuff, care passionately about what they do and are 100% committed to young people living their best possible life? I was at the Häme…

  • Surely this is in our gift

    Surely this is in our gift

    I love this image. Maybe you don’t get it at first glance? And that’s exactly the point. Check out the dungarees – hard-wearing clothes for tough jobs. And then look to the bottom right corner. The guy is in a wheelchair. It doesn’t yell: “Hey, look, this person is disabled!” He’s just someone doing a…

  • Start to Finnish

    Start to Finnish

    Apologies to Amy Woodhouse of Children in Scotland, who used a similar pun a couple of days ago in her latest blog (you can follow her fascinating Churchill Fellowship travels looking at children’s access to hobbies on LinkedIn or click here) – but I’ve honestly been planning this as my first headline for a few…

  • Transitions – what services need to know

    Transitions – what services need to know

    Leaving school is the beginning of a journey, not the end. Here’s what practitioners and policymakers need to take on board if young people with conditions like Autism, ADHD or Tourette’s Syndrome are to get the same life chances as their peers. Fifty young people with one or more of these conditions, and/or their family…