A STUDENT who was struggling at university before being diagnosed with ADHD (attention deficit hyperactivity disorder) has celebrated graduating.
Students who successfully completed Enable’s Breaking Barriers programme were alongside their peers at the graduation ceremony hosted by Edinburgh Napier University.
The programme, established by Enable in 2018, empowers young people with a learning disability to take part in university life while being supported to thrive.
The students also undertake work experience with a leading employer and gain a university qualification from a world-class academic institution.
Among the seven students who completed the programme at the Capital university was former North Berwick High School pupil Malcolm Duck.
The 25-year-old also completed a work placement with the course’s corporate partner, multinational professional services provider EY.
After completing the course, the students graduated with a Certificate of Applied Business Skills at the Usher Hall in Edinburgh.
Malcolm, from Aberlady, said: “I’ve always faced a lot of challenges throughout my life with ADHD.
“I was at university but had undiagnosed ADHD so I couldn’t structure myself to get work done properly and dropped out.
“In my second year, I ended up having a mental breakdown and was completely overwhelmed.
“The diagnosis connected all the dots for me.”
There are an estimated 175,000 people who have a learning disability in Scotland and only 45 per cent of disabled people are in employment, compared with 81 per cent of non-disabled people.
Only 8.6 per cent of school leavers who have a learning disability go into university education, compared with 45.1 per cent of all school leavers.
READ MORE: New chapter for Aberlady as Duck's Inn owners ‘Duck out’
Malcolm, whose dad, also Malcolm, ran Ducks Inn in Aberlady alongside his wife Fiona, said: “What Breaking Barriers offered me was such a good lifeline to bring my headspace back to what it needed to be and it galvanised me more to think about things like forward planning that I was struggling with before.
“I’m really glad I came and really enjoyed it.
“It was great to be part of Edinburgh Napier University’s graduation ceremony.
“The real benefit of Enable was having a structure and a person to collaborate with. It’s a big difference-maker.
“Enable has helped me to take the first step.”
Theresa Shearer, Enable CEO and co-founder of the Breaking Barriers programme, said: “Since 2018, the Breaking Barriers programme has made it possible for students who have a learning disability to access the life-shaping experience of university that is a rite of passage for so many, yet it is currently available to so few disabled young people.
“Breaking Barriers demonstrates how the public, private and third sectors can work collaboratively to help embed equity, diversity and inclusion in education and the workplace. I am delighted to see those opportunities extended to even more young people across Scotland.”
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