Over the last couple of years we have been developing an interest in what is happening in the care field elsewhere in Europe and have become involved with the Leonardo Programme. www.leonardo.org.
In 2007 our Head of Centre was on a European Study Visit to Poland. The title of the visit was "Ways to Enhance the Education of Adults". It was an excellent visit in which the hosts arranged an interesting and challenging programme for the participants. They went to considerable effort not only to arrange observation and participation of the educational structures and systems of Poland and the EU but also of some of the cultural aspects of life in Poland.
The group was a small group of six participants who represented countries at the extremes of the European Union, from the South of Spain, Northern Sweden, Portugal and Hungary, Slovenia and Scotland. The group participants came from a wide range of professional disciplines with one passion, the education of adults.
The main finding of the visit was that in spite of all the cultural and religious differences and coming from such diverse parts of the European Union that the group use similar techniques, forms and mechanisms to enhance their students experiences of continuing education. The participants come from a wide variety of backgrounds, experiences, different educational backgrounds, different professions and different countries. However all believed that the role and energy of the lecturer, teacher etc. was central to the students experience of education, the truism that a good teacher inspires learners continues to be the case in the age of distance learning and e-learning. This was affirmed by the groups experiences throughout the visit.
There were significant differences in the educational environments in which the participants worked. There was considerable expertise in the group in e-learning and in developing flexible systems for individuals to learn. There was differing experiences in working within schools and colleges and in developing systems of individual assessment. But there was a common theoretical understanding of adult learning styles.
This visit lead to a proposal to develop a European partnership proposal called the "Learning for Care Partnership", involving the Centre for Knowledge and Understanding in Suwalki, Poland (www.cdniku.pl) and the Regional Society for the Support of people with Intellectual Disabilities, a care provider in Vidin, Bulgaria (www.vidin.net/rdpluz).
Representatives from Suwalki came to visit Scotland in January 2008 to plan for the partnership and joined in the training with the Including Men group, which was great fun for all concerned. We look forward to meeting with our Polish friends again before too long. The partnership was not funded in 2008 but we have been encouraged to resubmit in 2009. As part of the resubmission process Jean and I visited Lubka and Ludmilja of the RSSPMH in Vidin in January of this year. The following is a report of our visit we prepared for Real Life Options
"Vidin is the poorest region in Bulgaria, Europes poorest country. Signs of poverty are everywhere. Bins overflowing with rubbish with people openly scavenging in them, dogs roaming around also scavenging, badly maintained buildings, shells of old soviet factories and churches. Horses and carts are common transport throughout Bulgaria
When we arrived it was cold, -17c and it had been that cold for weeks. The main roads were cleared of snow but the side streets were untouched and were treacherous to drive on. There was hardly anyone on the streets when we went out. In fact people stay at home and try to stay warm, many dont go to work because its too cold to work. But heating some of the old soviet style flats is also a challenge, most are heated from a single wood-burning stove in the lounge. Wood logs are the most common form of fuel even in Sophia, the capital. The flats run with condensation at this time of year since they are so poorly insulated and the roads in the schemes are like a battlefield, pitted with craters left by the builders forty years ago and never levelled or surfaced.
With that scene in mind imagine our relief to be met by Lubka and Ludmilja our hosts from the Regional Society for People with Intellectual Disabilities and find them gentle, intelligent and very caring individuals. They were keen to show us the services they run. We were visiting Vidin on a preparatory visit in order to establish a Leonardo funded partnership for the next two years. The partnership includes, a vocational school in Suwalki, Poland, RSSPMH in Vidin, and ourselves. Lubka had been an English and Russian teacher speaks excellent English, Ludmilja had been a nursery nurse in earlier times, but is now the driving force behind RSSPMH.
They took us to see the two day centres that are based in a couple of flats. Frankly the flats should be demolished but the day service provided in each of the flats was as good as circumstances would allow. Everyone was wrapped up against the cold and engaged in their own activities. Both these services are moving to new renovated premises shortly which will be a major improvement for the service.
Ludmilja and Lubka became positively animated when they took us to see the two group homes funded by Real Life Options staff. These homes are their pride and joy, and both women have a child with disabilities who live in the homes. We were impressed by the quality of the homes which would not be out of place in this country. They were warm, built to a high standard and there were photos and other evidence throughout the houses of the residents enjoying their accommodation. When we arrived one of the members of staff was celebrating her birthday, so there was a big chocolate cake and biscuits and coke, we were invited to join in the party.
All the residents had been raised in large orphanages which are still commonplace in Bulgaria and spent decades locked away from society. Some of the orphanages are in villages so remote they cannot be visited during the winter months because of the snow and ice on the roads. All the residents showed their appreciation of their new homes we didnt understand a word of Bulgarian and they had no English but we had no difficulty in understanding their expressions of relief at being in their new accommodation.
Ludmilja, Lubka and the rest of the parents running RSSPMH are fighting a huge battle and against all the odds are creating a service to be proud of. State funding is very limited so its never easy to make ends meet. EU funding of around 400 million euros has been withheld because the politicians have failed to tackle organised crime and corruption, so EU membership will not be an easy fix. RSSPMH rely on the funding from a small number of NGOs in other countries, like Real Life Options to survive. Our visit was successful and the Leonardo application will be submitted later this month.
For more information see
www.vagabond-bg.com/?page=live&sub=19&open_news=797 : www.vidin.net/rdpluz "
While we were in Vidin. We visited the orphanage in Vidin. It was very clean and well presented. There were 85 children aged from ten weeks to 7 years in residence. We had a lasting impression of silence. No one speaks or plays with the children. they are mostly kept in small cots. We saw a number of children rocking with boredom. Children warehoused in this kind of way will develop institutional learning difficulties. We were told that this was one of the best in the country. The orphanages in the villages are much worse and some cannot be accessed for months on end due to the snow and bad weather.
Since our visit we have been developing a programme with the RSSPMH to have some of the women who now live in the group home to go to the orphanage to play with the children. We propose to fund them to visit two or three times a week with a view to playing with the children, not to clean or feed the children, that is already well managed, but to play and talk with the children. Hopefully when we return we will be able to do a bit of training with them. The Director of the orphanage has agreed to the programme.
