A hands-on, subscription-based toolkit designed to support adults with learning disabilities and ease pressure on carers has officially launched across the UK.
Created by Rochdale-based social enterprise PossAbilities, with support from the GM Business Growth Hub’s Innovation Service, YourGo is the first product of its kind in the UK care sector.
It is a monthly or annual subscription box that is looking to help carers deliver meaningful, skills-based activities that promote independence, confidence and quality of life.
Each YourGo box contains printed materials linked to the Life Skills Framework developed by PossAbilities – a set of 48 essential skills like managing money, safeguarding and self-care.
The box also includes step-by-step activity guides and access to an online library of videos, co-created by adults with learning disabilities both in front of and behind the camera.
The activities are designed to require no specialist equipment and to fit into daily routines or personalised support plans.
The toolkit was developed with input from carers, service users and academic partners – including Professor Chris Hatton at Manchester Metropolitan University, who now chairs the YourGo advisory group.
It also received a grant from Greater Manchester Combined Authority’s Foundational Economy Innovation Fund.
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“I don’t know of another toolkit that’s so easy to use for both carers and service users, or one that connects skills to activities in such a practical way,” said Michael O’Keeffe, special advisor at PossAbilities.
“Carers often don’t have the hours in the day, or the resources they need. Adults with learning disabilities tell us they want to do interesting things – not just day-to-day tasks like going to the shops, but bigger goals like getting a job or meeting new people.
“The help we’ve received from the Growth Hub and Manchester Metropolitan University has made a world of difference – it’s turned a great idea into a product that can improve care across the UK.”
To bring the idea to life, PossAbilities worked with the Greater Manchester Business Growth Hub’s Innovation Service, who helped shape the project and connect the team with partners including Hatton.
The organisation also helped with accessing funding, including a £4,992 innovation grant for early-stage development, and £68,000 from the GMCA’s Foundational Economy Innovation Fund to prepare the toolkit for wider rollout.
Steph Stafford, innovation delivery manager at GM Business Growth Hub, added: “PossAbilities had a brilliant idea, but they needed our help to take it from concept to commercialisation. That’s exactly what our innovation team is here to do.
“From the very start, it was clear YourGo had real potential to make a difference – not just to the people using it, but to the way care services approach activity planning altogether.
“It’s a brilliant example of innovation rooted in the real world: co-designed by people with lived experience and solving everyday challenges for carers. We’re proud to have played a part in bringing it to life.”