"The ILLICO project is a direct continuation of the Erasmus + project “Unlocking Freedom through Adult Education: The role of adult education in supporting the de-institutionalization of people with disabilities in the community” (2015 -2018). The project aimed to support the deinstitutionalization of people with disabilities through adult education. The project facilitated the autonomy and social inclusion of people with special needs at different stages of the deinstitutionalization process through the innovative development of new learning and training resources.The ILLICO project was developed as a logical continuation of the Unlocking Freedom project. The partners of the group were all members of the previous consortium. The ILLICO project focuses more precisely on the skills needed to access independent living and explores a set of skills needed for people with disabilities to be independent in their daily lives.As mentioned above, the key objectives of the project are:-To empower people with disabilities to live independently and achieve their full inclusion and participation in the community;-To foster the leadership skills of people with intellectual disabilities living in the community and invest in them as experts-by-experience who would become advocates/representatives of independent living;-To challenge the institutional culture of organizations; to maximise their support to integrate people with intellectual disabilities fully into the community; to involve them in a close relationship with families;-To empower families with the process of de-institutionnalization and the future of their child; to especially help them understand the role in supporting the transition period from institution to independent livingTo achieve these objectives, the consortium has realized 5 Intellectual Outputs:-IO1 by UPEC: Study on developing the conditions and transferable methods for an effective peer-learning program in the field of independent living skills;-IO2 by ICSS: Step-by-step videoclips and training for people with disabilites, staff and parents on ""How to develop independent living skills"";-IO3 by Stewarts Care: Peer-mentoring program and network to raise awareness of the role of mentors in supporting independent living;-IO4 by Centre de la Gabrielle: Study on obstacles, challenges and opportunities faced by family members in the field of intellectual disability in supporting independent living;-IO5 by KVPS: Toolkit on how organizations/service providers can develop family cooperation.Moreover, a training event was organized by KVPS around the topic of family cooperation from 24 till 26 may 2021. The learning, teaching and training event is targeted for the developers/experts/frontline staff in disability services who are committed in developing family cooperation and family leadership in their own organisation.The project mobilized different target groups in Finland, Bulgaria, France and Ireland, namely: people with disabilities, their families and service providers. A total of 397 participants participated to the activities.Although the implementation of the project was heavily impacted by the health crisis, the intellectual outputs were still able to instill reflection on independent living.The consortium organized different multiplier events to disseminate the results, online due to the Covid-19 crisis, namely:-30 october 2021: “Families and staff supporting a good life” workshop by KVPS for the family members to discuss on their wishes and dreams on how the service providers can support a good life together with the family members and what kind of skills and competencies frontline is needed to ensure good family co-operation.-10 june 2021: “Learning together” seminar by ICSS to present and disseminate the video clips and the common step-by-step approach of learning, cooperation and practicing independent living skills of the key stakeholders – people with disabilities, staff and parents.-10 june 2021: “Making mentoring work” workshop by Stewarts Care with presentations and interactive sessions. During this event Service Users and staff will provided training and interactive exchanges about their experience of mentoring and how to make the system work. -21 june 2021: Final conference by Centre de la Gabrielle to disseminate and exploit the results of the project. This was an opportunity for the project partners to showcase the outcomes from the activities. People with disabilities who were trained as trainers also were key note speakers."

"The IN-ORCHESTRA project is a strategic partnership supporting innovation: it intended to develop a ""MULTI-ART NETWORK"" characterized by the design and implementation of artistic paths as a tool for social inclusion. Specifically, the project promoted inclusive educational pathways of orchestral music-type (Italy), artistic and multimedia (France), and theatrical-body (Turkey) for pupils with intellectual disabilities. The partnership was composed by Fondazione Scuola di Musica di Fiesole (IT) as Coordinator, Fondazione Sequeri Esagramma (IT), Fondazione Spazio Reale (IT), Centre de la Gabrielle-MFPass (FR), the University of Usak (TUR). In the application, the consortium also included the Polish Association for the Intellectually Disabled (PL), which withdrew immediately after the kick-off meeting due to internal economic problems.The 3-year project was based on the general idea that ensuring the effective exercise of the right to study and training is one of the topics that most touches the world of the disabled, as an essential condition for their complete integration and inclusion in social and working life.The project was aimed at children with a medium / severe mental handicap induced (or complicated) by organic cerebropathies and psychotic-type outbreaks. The age of participants was slightly different among the countries involved: in general, participants involved had an age that covers the study cycle of primary and secondary schools.Project activities were distributed among Italy, France and Turkey. The project is structured as follows:ITALY: realization of Orchestral Music Therapy (MTO) and Inclusive Orchestral Education (EOI) courses based on Esagramma® Model. These paths involved musicians in training and young people with intellectual disabilities at the SMF and FSR with the use of specialized ESA teachers and supervisors. At the end of the three years, the first Participatory Symphony Orchestra was formed, which performed in front of the public at the end of the project on the occasion of the final multiplier Event ""European Festival of Arts for Young People with Disabilities"". The participants involved were 27.FRANCE: realization of educational multimedia artistic courses for the social inclusion of young people with intellectual disabilities. The methodology was based on art-therapy to reactivate psycho-affective development. The courses took place in the form of workshops on the use of multimedia and audiovisual tools. At the end of the project two short films were made (and not one as foreseen in the candidacy), entitled ""Ma Vie, Mon Regard"". The participants involved were 38.TURKEY: realization of educational courses based on theatre-therapy. The activities involved 30 participants with mental disabilities throughout the project life cycle. Specifically, workshops were conducted on sound in the first year, on gestures in the second year, on writing of the theatrical text ""The Bus of Hope"" in the third year. This text was the basis for the final theatrical performance, which, based on the narration of ""The Thousand and One Nights"", involved children as actors, musicians, narrators in front of public.At the end of the three years, we can state that IN-ORCHESTRA has succeeded in achieving its general purpose: to encourage the educational inclusion of pupils with intellectual disabilities through innovative methods based on the enhancement of different artistic forms (music, art, theater) as personal enhancement tool and improvement of learning skills.The objective is organized in a specific way: 1) learning capabilities of young people with special needs in order to enhance their personal growth, their intellectual capabilities and their interpersonal relations; 2) tested and validated training proposal to create specific formative pathways in the field of music Therapy, art therapy and drama therapy music-art-theatre therapy training courses in the school; 3) exchange of best practice between trainers and European organization which employ the music, theatrical and artistic education; 4) training of professionals able to work in different National and European context, to give value on the therapeutic and educational results and to disseminate reference therapies and action methodologies; 5) engagement of stakeholder and local communities through inclusive artistic events. The dissemination and exploitation of the results was carried out by the partners in all the countries involved with a multiplier event and small local dissemination events. It ended with the European Festival of Arts for Young People with Disabilities in June 2019 in Florence."

It is priority of the European Union that adult learners of all abilities have the right to access quality life-long learning opportunities. However, despite this fact, people with disabilities do not have an equal chance to avail of adult and community education because more often than not, mainstream provision is not tailored to meet their needs. This is most poignant for people with intellectual disabilities who continue to live in institutions, or who may have already moved into the community but remain institutionalised and socially excluded from society. This project is clearly linked to the objectives of European policies relevant to the field of adult education and disability. The European Agenda for Adult Learning highlights the need to increase the participation in adult learning of all kinds (formal, non-formal and informal learning) whether to acquire new work skills, for active citizenship, or for personal development and fulfilment. Most importantly it recognises that learning is essential for social inclusion and active citizenship which is paramount to this project. The policy of de-institutionalisation is also a priority of the European Union, identified in the European disability Strategy and Article 19 of the UN Convention of the Rights of Persons with Disabilities, already ratified by the EU. There are three key objectives of this project. - To improve the life-long learning opportunities and social integration of people with disabilities through adult and community education. - To bring local adult education providers together with local community based services/facility operators with the aim of devising or adapting curriculums to support their new role in including people with disabilities in their activities.- To address the formal education needs of staff moving from institutional to community based provision in order to challenge the institutional culture of the organisation and to maximise their support to integrate people with disabilities fully into the community. The target group and activities are framed around the three central objectives noted above. They include people with disabilities, primarily intellectual, adult educators and community leaders and finally, the support staff. In the first objective, the most excluded will be targeted. Some have been living in their community for a long time while others are at an early stage of moving from an institution to community living. These people, who often have profound and significant disabilities, are less likely to have the capacity to attend higher level institutions. Therefore it is within adult and community education settings that a real difference can be made in supporting their re-integration into society. The second and third objective target the circle of support around the person such as their support staff and adult educators themselves. The project proposed aims to support the de-institutionalisation of people with disabilities through the medium of adult education. Through the innovative development of new learning and training resources it will facilitate the independent living and social inclusion of sample groups of people with disabilities at different stages of the de-institutionalisation process. The design and delivery of the project is aimed to ensure the full inclusion of disabled participants and will have a meaningful impact on people with disabilities in service delivery, their circles of support, adult and community education providers and the communities where they are living. It will be possible to replicate and use the training resource templates delivered through this project, using open source methods.

Our modern European societies are characterised by diversity: diversity of social background, of origin, of language, of potential. While integration gives access to the mainstream education system, it expects the learner to fit into the existing mold, and doesn’t change the fundamental structure of the education system. In an inclusive education system, the framework changes to adapt to and welcome every learner, who is welcomed and valued as able to contribute to the learning environment. Moments of transition are always the most difficult for individuals - transition from daycare to school, from school to employment, and from specialised to mainstream environment. The latter is particularly difficult for all actors involved, from the learner him/herself to his/her family, the special school staff, the mainstream school staff as well as the authorities that have to overview such a transition. Effective inclusive education depends however from such a successful transition from specialised to mainstream education, and particular attention and efforts should be given to that make it as smooth and positive for all involved stakeholders. With a consortium omposed of seven service providers coming from Belgium, France, Finland, Austria and Portugal, the 'To Inclusive Education and BEYOND' project aims at providing tools just for that. Even with a legal framework supportive of inclusive education, it is often difficult to change the attitude and 'the way it was always done'. Service providers and special schools, with their expertise in supporting learners with special needs, have a key role to play to support an effective transition to inclusive education. The first step of the BEYOND project is therefore to develop a training which gives the theoretical and practical tools to service providers and special schools staff to be able to work with mainstream schools and other stakeholders to develop a more inclusive learning environment, such as the use of Universal Design for Learning. This in-person training will be tried and tested throughout the project to ensure the quality of the output, before being adapted to a Massive Online Open Course (MOOC) so that it can benefit as wide a range of professionals as possible throughout Europe. To complement this practical training, the consortium will develop study on the role of service providers in the transition towards inclusive education. This study will be a very strong tool to support policy reforms towards inclusive education. In line with the General Comment 4 on art 24 of the UNCRPD, it will provide tools to reform, adapt or improve support services and their collaboration with other stakeholders, and ultimately facilitate the transition towards inclusive education. Finally, the BEYOND project will develop a study on developing methodologies for an effective transition to inclusive education. Centred around the Coproduction methodology, the Output will look into the barriers, challenges and opportunities faced relevant stakeholders, such as academics, young people and their families, and how each can support the self-determination of pupils and the transition towards inclusive education. A report will be developed on how an effective network surrounding the student with special needs that include all the needed actor can facilitate the transition to inclusive education and empower support services as well as students and their families. This study will be crucial to support the development of effective methodologies that involve the whole environment surrounding the learning process and will give innovative tools to stakeholders that wish to improve their learning environment. The BEYOND consortium is confident these steps will support the work of teachers, support staff, authorities and other stakeholders in providing a more inclusive environment for the child's learning, and facilitate the movement beyond special schools to inclusive education throughout Europe.