a4e meeting

• We discussed the Enham CAD course.
• contact was made with BCoT college, tried to get in touch with the disabled adviser there, their CAD course would start in September.
• Contact was also made to a private provider of CAD courses, at the moment the name escapes me.
• ask Sue 2 about next appointment.

As soon as I got home a letter came through the door, which confirmed the paperwork was being processed by the job centre for Enham CAD course.
I also got in touch with Enham earlier last week and they supplied me with the course notes,

We talked about systems to improve access for disability and that it can be as simple as changing the format of their literature
and this can aids many types of disabled access, whether that be deafness or blindness or even dyslexia.

There are a few simple rules to make a document readable by accessibility software!
A simple file format such as Rich text text or HTML. HTML is a good format because it works the same way as a website.
It is Important to have basic formatting. You can probably get away with a table, but images ain't good, why have a logo when text will do the same job. If you have to put a logo on a form, remember to label it, most screen readers will then be able to read it just as a word.( The process is called the screen focal point.)
Once literature has been changed into a standardised file type (for access ability) there is still the issue of application forms and such, however I have been told that there is help for me to fill these in.
I have no problem with the support for application forms, however anything that I need to complete involving my jobseekers allowance, I need to do independently.

We discussed how my behaviour can sometimes be misinterpreted, if you didn't know my issues with accessing information from reading below, and gave me the task to complete an application form, I would naturally get frustrated, this so often gets interpreted as lazy and/or angry. The same can be said about publishing this blog, but the truth of it is simply if a4e are as good at finding jobs as they say on their website, I am just changing the system so that I can access the program and feel part of the process. (Doing is better than just saying) The blog, is good for me to put my feelings down into words, and recalled my process of working. Up until recently I have lost my dictation software and I was getting very frustrated with organisations which said they understood how to work with me but I was unable to put across to them, how difficult it was for me to access their program. My blog has made me feel at ease with this whole process.

I was happy with how the meeting went . I felt I was not just being listened to, but that my issues were being heard, and although we are still at the very beginning of this process, I can honestly say I feel at peace with it.