Public announcement: Impact21 becomes part of Yooralla

Impact21 is an innovative program, originally designed to support individuals with Down Syndrome who are looking for work in open employment settings, through Customised Employment. It offers exploration, meaningful matching, and on-the-job training for participants to secure jobs with employer partners at the completion of the program.

The student curriculum was designed with large-scale employers. It focuses on creating work-ready graduates with skills, confidence, independence, and social connectedness to succeed in the workplace. A testament to its success is that 75% of the original graduates from the 2019 cohort are still in open employment.

“Given the success of Impact21, the Inclusion Foundation Board believes it is critical to make this leading approach more widely available. By joining forces with Yooralla, we can amplify our impact and pave the way for meaningful and matched employment for more people with disability," Chair of Inclusion Foundation, Laura Green said.

Yooralla has an established relationship with Inclusion Foundation. We have hosted Impact21 graduates in employment trials and have employed one Impact21 graduate in an administrative role in our head office (Adrian, pictured above).

“Impact21 is known in the disability sector and beyond, and has strong relationships with employer and industry partners,” Terry Symonds, Yooralla’s CEO said. “Yooralla will continue Inclusion Foundation’s great work in partnering with organisations and businesses to provide employment opportunities for people with intellectual disability. We are excited about the potential to broaden the reach of the groundbreaking program they developed,” Terry said.

The program has been renamed 'Impact' and is based at Yooralla's Learning Hub in Footscray, but will be delivered from various sites in the community, including on-the-job training at employer sites.