TARGET GROUP:
PEOPLE WITH A VISUAL IMPAIRMENT
It's about visibility
VISIO FOUNDATION
Seven out of ten people with a visual impairment are sidelined. That's why we invest not only in the adaptation itself, but also in telling the story.
Nearly seven out of ten have no paid work. To do something about that, Visio Foundation visits employers together with the Oogvereniging (the Dutch eye patients' association) and the Bartíméus Fund, under the title Wij willen werken (We want to work). "Most employers aren't unwilling, they simply don't know. They see a disability and think of risk, while it's often about 'an extra lamp'. Or software, or a different way of organising the working day."
Take Laure. When her employer, Digitaal Toegankelijk, moved to a new building in Utrecht, it turned out within a week that the lighting there caused her such problems that she couldn't work at all. Months of searching led nowhere, until Visio recommended lighting with a daylight spectrum. Everyday Heroes covered part of the adaptation, and Laure is back at work. Neither UWV nor the municipality had a scheme this fitted into.
Visio Foundation works with projects, funding rounds and accountability, and not every request fits those forms. "We fund projects, and we're glad to. But sometimes no project or programme is needed. There's just one person with one obstacle, and something has to be sorted this week. A fund like ours isn't built for that. Everyday Heroes is."
Sabine Fijn van Draat | Board Secretary, Visio Foundation
Success stories
INVESTING IN THE DUTCH ECONOMY
The impact of the last 1,000 people who took a step forward.
€2,544
average investment per person
12 MONTHS
average contract length
29 HOURS
average hours per week
40 YEARS
average age of candidates
€16,000,000
expected savings on social costs