Visual impairment is touch because it substiantially affects ones orientation ability, social inclusion and paid employment opportunities. Aim is to provide innovative social services for visually impaired by involving professionals from Art Academy, creating products which would appeal to wide range of cosumers, encouraging the employment of visually impaired and their full inclusion in the society. It is planned to renovate premises for activities in Riga, Strazdumuizas Day Care Centre, organise experience exchange program (trip) to Lithuania, seminar for social workers and capacity building event for employees, organised publicity events and promotional campaign to raise society’s awareness of the rights and opportunities of visually impaired. Our partner – Lithuanian society for the blind will share the experience, ensuring expertise in employment incentives, work related skills impovement and professional rehabilitation development issues. Target group - 300 visually impaired people from all over Latvia and 18 employees of the Society.

Project results: The project aimed to provide innovative social services for persons with visual disabilities, to promote their skills development, the labor market and in society with a creative lesson help. The project aims to promote the visually handicapped, which is social exclusion and poverty at risk of creative skills and take steps to improve quality of life.
The project target group was the social exclusion and poverty and at risk population - 300 persons with disabilities. As well as NGOs representing the above-mentioned groups' rights and interests, including the 27 employees.
During the project we achieved the following results:
Lesson program development and implementation of regional centers, creative workshops block classes in partnership with the Academy of Art, where students were the ones who gave samples of different handicraft techniques, the classes were able to try out and test the later introduction of the lesson program.
Successfully organized and discharged Society capacity building seminar and social services training seminar, which resulted in a seminar participant received a certificate for the newly acquired knowledge and skills in working with people with visual impairments.
Organized 4 creative works exhibition four Latvian cities, freely available to the general public by informing it of people with visual disabilities opportunities and skills.
Renovation and adaptation - was launched Strazdu manor space 245m2 large quantities of partial renovation and adaptation for persons with visual disabilities. The building was replaced, new wooden windows, aligned walls, and changed the building interior doors and exterior doors, as well as ensuring accessibility for this building.
Organized experience exchange trip LNB employees and target group to Lithuania for the understanding and knowledge of the social business model for the visually impaired.
Acquired a variety of innovative skills, improved self-confidence of the target group, work skills and communication skills. Inform the public about persons with visual disabilities abilities and skills, as well as the Latvian Society of the Blind.
An important benefit of this project is collaboration with the Latvian Academy of Art, where co-operation has resulted in a variety of innovative art design functional interior objects and elements. After careful examination of people with visual disabilities skills and abilities were learned new craft skills and techniques that result were created these design objects. These skills will continue to be used in the rehabilitation process and various leisure activities within the club. All items are branded in design and packaging, as well as they have prepared an information brochure that fully contribute to the public understanding of the origin of the products.

Project activities, particularly in social rehabilitation services program, for which innovation ensured the cooperation with partners from the Academy of Arts, the work aimed at improving skills and experience exchange trip to Lithuania, to gain experience in vocational rehabilitation services in the development and social entrepreneurship development in the long run will contribute to the visually impaired the opportunity to participate in the labor market.
Project partners
Activities within the organization organized exchange visit work plan, which includes both the individual Lithuanian social rehabilitation center visit and a series of meetings with the vocational rehabilitation program developers and managers, as well as responsible for the Lithuanian state institutions and local government representatives and participating social enterprises. Association participated as a project partner in the implementation of project activities No. 2 and provided its expertise and experience in social enterprise development and vocational rehabilitation programs as a result of the partnership evaluation must be assessed as positive. Cooperation has developed an informative document on vocational rehabilitation services and linkage with the development of social enterprises in Lithuania.