Sense College has given Luke the skills to thrive

At Sense College Peterborough, Luke’s caring nature and belting laugh have made him a popular character. He has cerebral palsy, epilepsy and severe learning disabilities. Hayley has worked with Luke since he enrolled and has seen his confidence, communication and connection with his community develop so much.  

Visual description of the video

Luke smiles as he sits behind a table with Hayley, his Sense Support Worker. They look at a tablet that Hayley is holding. Lukeis tapping on the screen.

Hayley: I feel really proud of Luke, of his time he’s had at Sense. What we’ve taught him will be with him for the rest of his life.

Luke and Hayley are now baking in a kitchen area. Hayley is pouring cake mix into cake moulds. Luke has a pronounced hand tremor as he picks up chocolate chips and spreads them on to the cakes.

Hayley: Baking has been really good for Luke for a number of aspects: fine motor skills, hand to eye coordination, things like picking up chocolate chips or gems and putting them onto cakes.

Luke carefully guides a spoonful of cereal into his mouth as Hayley looks on.

Hayley: With his development of his fine motor skills, it’s helped him do other things in his day-to-day life.

Hayley is talking directly to camera.

Hayley: Luke is 23 years old. He has cerebral palsy and epilepsy and has severe learning disabilities.

The scene switches to show two women, one in a wheelchair being helped to cut potatoes. 

Hayley: Sense college is an excellent service because not only does it provide the day care, it also has the education setting.

Luke is sitting outside on a bench with another lady. He’s pointing at his tablet.

Hayley: When Luke first started and since we we’re all new people too, he needed time to adjust.He didn’t always engage in tasks.

Luke and Hayley are sitting behind a table again. Luke takes the tablet from Hayley.

Hayley: One great example of Luke’s communication how it’s come on is it was his Gunda’s birthday and he went round and they independently went up to his granddad and said “happy birthday”.

His parents were so overjoyed that he’d come out with that.

The two women are chatting. Luke is laughing away.

Hayley: Biggest impact on Luke of coming to college? Definitely a social aspect.

His confidence has come on tenfold since he’s been here since he’s definitely enabled Luke to have the experiences to go out in the community.

Luke is walking outside and using a swing. He’s wearing a helmet.

Hayley: We go for walks in parks, through the woods, it’s good for his mental health and wellbeing, his physical health, he loves interacting with everything.

Luke has such a lovable personality. He likes singing, he likes puzzles, he likes getting messy; we try and do all these things during his days at Sense College. We want to inspire him and build trust so that he can get the most out of his time here. 

When Luke first started at Sense, he was quite anxious and needed time to adjust. He didn’t always engage in tasks and was very unsettled in himself – even encouraging him into a classroom was a major achievement. It’s been a journey to support Luke into feeling safe; now, he’s open to new experiences and able to take on new levels of independence. 

Learning skills to thrive 

Sense Colleges are a great place for people to come. Young disabled people, like Luke, can work towards qualifications and learn life skills like social awareness, communication and be supported to try new things in their community. We want everyone to keep progressing and developing, to have the best life that they can lead. 

Luke is on the ‘Take-Off’ programme, which is part of the ‘Preparing for Adulthood’ pathway. We support him to work towards his goals, which is to live as independently as possible. During the time he’s been here, he has moved from home to independent living, which is a big step. We’ve been involved in preparing him for that transition, and the skills he’s learning with us will really enable him to thrive there. 

Luke’s worked really hard in everything from cooking to IT skills. We’re really proud of him. Baking has been especially good for Luke, developing his fine motor skills and his hand-eye coordination through focused activities like picking up chocolate chips and putting them onto cakes. 

That’s important for Luke because he has quite a pronounced hand tremor. He really wants to be able to do things for himself but does find some activities difficult. The more he can strengthen his fine motor skills, the more he can do. 

Communication milestones and birthday surprises 

Luke’s confidence has come on tenfold since he’s been here. His communication has developed massively. He has this programme called Grid 3 on his iPad, which is a communication aid. The more he’s able to use his hands, the more he can use this. He’s become much more sociable and able to express his choices more. He’s able to tell us when he wants to drink and can help prepare his lunch – to be involved in that is massively important. 

Since coming to Sense, Luke’s also started vocalising. His family have been so excited about this milestone. It was his granddad’s birthday, and he went round for cake and to celebrate. Luke, completely independently, went up to his granddad and said, “Happy birthday”. His parents were so overjoyed, it really, really made their day. 

For Luke, one of the things he’s come to enjoy most about college are the opportunities to go out in the community. That just wasn’t an option when he started. He would be anxious and unsettled and would try to run away. Going out near roads or water just wasn’t safe. 

Now, after building up trust and taking things slowly, we’re able to go out twice a week. It’s really important for Luke to go out in the community, to have these experiences that prepare him for life beyond college. You can tell he enjoys it so much. He’ll pack the bag himself; he knows where he needs to stand when waiting for the bus. He loves seeing the trees, the birds, the dogs, the people, and interacting with everything. He’s really confident, which means he’s got so many more opportunities now compared to when he joined. I’d love to think that what we’ve taught Luke will be with him for the rest of his life, that he’ll keep progressing.