The European Disability Strategy 2010-20 states that about 80 million people in the EU live with mild to severe disability with a 70% higher than average poverty rate. They experience many barriers to learning and employment including discrimination and prejudice, poor basic skills and education due to, for example, missing school due to disability or illness, lack of confidence, lack of accessible learning and work environments. InfoAble will develop an Information, Advice and Guidance (IAG) Mentors Toolbox, using the Europass model, for people working in a paid or voluntary capacity in lifelong learning and VET as support staff, trainers or tutors for disabled adults and young people. The materials will be delivered through a blend of self-directed and e-learning, face-to-face group seminar and professional structured support. Partners will establish local panels of disabled people and IAG practitioners to advise on the Toolbox development and will pilot it with 50 mentors (paid and volunteer - a minimum of 15 of these will be disabled people themselves) and 100 disabled adult and young people ‘mentees’ looking for work/training. Objectives include: • Needs analysis report outlining the status of IAG for people with disabilities in partner countries • Development of the Toolbox , self assessment materials • IAG Mentor Passport • Pilot of training, self assessment materials and framework • Green Paper ‘Lessons Learned’ Report The Toolbox will be designed to be delivered through 18 hours self-directed learning and 4 x 3 hour group seminars led by IAG practitioners and a range of pedagogical methodologies will be used to develop the materials including collaborative learning, explorative learning, game-based learning, virtual experimentation. The project will use a Prince II based project management methodology to ensure effective delivery against the specified workplan and targets underpinned by robust quality assurance. A key feature of the project is that it exploits an earlier KAICT3 project managed by some of the partners - Web2SEE (web2see.eu) which currently provides online information to disabled people. Experience from this project demonstrated to partners that there is a strong need for dedicated disability specific IAG mentoring and support in a range of media and settings, face-to-face as well as online. InfoAble will create a portal on the existing Web2SEE site for the public to download the IAG Toolbox and other project products. Project impacts and outcomes will include:Project impacts and outcomes will include: * Trainee IAG mentors will develop skills and competences and improved strategies to deliver IAG to disabled people – enhancing their professional development and increasing their competitiveness in the labour market. * Anticipated impacts on disabled mentees will include increased opportunities for inclusion and integration in education and/or the labour market through taking part in the project and benefiting from targeted IAG. * IAG and Learning providers will be reached through partners’ current networks and there is already interest in the project. They will be impacted through a range of project activities: the needs analysis in identifying barriers to inclusion and potential solutions and accommodating the varying needs of a range of disabilities; dissemination through their own networks; contributing to and reviewing the draft learning and self assessment materials and contributing to the post-project sustainability strategy. * Those IAG mentors who are volunteers will contribute to their local social capital and community cohesion, particularly relevant in 2014 which continues the 2013 EU Year of Citizenship. * Organisations employing/hosting the IAG mentors will benefit from an upskilled workforce and improved understanding of the needs of disabled people. * Partners will have gained mutual understanding of their working cultures and practices within the context of disability and the EU * The profile and abilities of disabled people will be raised across in partner countries and through the Toolbox launch event at the EU Parliament Building more widely in the EU. * At least one teacher/trainer from each partner will cascade learning from the pilots through * The project methodology is potentially transferable to other IAG practitioners working with socially excluded groups in other countries. * Widening participation for socially excluded groups is a priority for all partners. As lifelong learning, education or social welfare providers, all partners’ strategic plans include widening participation in learning, VET and employment by disabled adults and young people. * A significant contribution will be made to the development of training materials, framework and standards which partners are committed to promoting their adoption them in their own countries will have great potential to become common across the EU.