Social Enterprise and Employment Development

Work experience opportunities for blind and partially sighted people.

The Social Enterprise and Employment Development (SEED) Project, funded by the National Lottery through Big Lottery Fund, has been developed to provide work experience opportunities for blind and partially sighted people.

The SEED Project is being piloted in the north east of England, Yorkshire and the Humber and the West Midlands. The SEED team will be working with social enterprises in the three regions to provide valuable placements in a safe and supportive environment.

The three main types of placement are:

Work taster sessions - these will typically last for one day and will give you a chance to try out a job or vocational area that you are interested in. And if you don’t like this job, you can always try another one!

Work experience placements - these sessions will last for up to two weeks and will give you a more in-depth experience of a particular job and working environment.

Trainee placements - there are a limited number of six month, paid trainee placements available to provide a fully supported experience of work and access to work based training whilst engaging in a ‘real’ job.

Support from the SEED team

The SEED team’s dedicated employment support officer will provide you with help throughout the placements, this could include:

Holistic, practical and emotional support.
Support to improve general mobility.
Motivation to engage fully in the programme.
Support with managing finances.
Support to progress into the open labour market.
Support and mentoring within the work placement setting.
Signposting to other appropriate services.

Contact the SEED team

If you are interested in taking part in work experience placements or if you would like some more information please contact us.

Interested in providing work experience?

The SEED team can provide more information and help you organise work experience placements at your organisation.