THE National Centre for Persons with Disabilities (NCPD) recently received a boost from Scotiabank towards its beauty culture and agriculture programmes.
A release from the bank on Wednesday said these programmes are part of the centre's focus on enhancing the lives of people with disabilities through vocational rehabilitation training by providing them with an opportunity to learn skills that could improve their employability options.
The programmes are a key part of the NCPD’s skills training programme, as trainees are educated in both theory and practical applications behind creating beautiful hair, skin and nails.
Students learn how to correctly analyse the client, the required techniques, and how to use the specific equipment and products.
The module also covers the reception and preparation of clients. In this part of the course, students learn the correct ways to greet clients, give advice, book appointments and recording, methods of making the client comfortable and the required protective aids.
Each of these aspects of the curriculum is geared towards preparing trainees or the National Examination Council (NEC) exam.
In the agriculture programme, trainees learn the production of quality saleable products and services. The class also focuses on developing and maintaining land, cultivating crops, maintaining fruit trees, organising tyre cultures, and preparing compost material.
There are 11 people enrolled in the beauty culture programme and 24 in the agriculture programme.
The centre's CEO Stephen Creese said, “disability is not a curse for it is really a glorious challenge with which a select few have been blessed.
"At the NCPD, our staff are happy to help our blessed trainees with disabilities to overcome these challenges. After all, our mission is to educate and train persons with disabilities and contribute to a disability-inclusive society.
“To provide our trainees with the best education and skills, we need the proper tools and equipment. Hence, we are grateful for Scotiabank’s contribution to expanding and upgrading our beauty culture and agriculture programmes.
"Moreover, the skills gained at the centre can be pursued as a profession. Overall, our trainees are highly excited about this project given the fact that internationally, cosmetology is one of the areas in which physical disabilities are least likely to limit their employability and general financial independence” he concluded.
The bank's senior VP and managing director of TT operations, Gayle Pazos, shared its focus on changing lives through financial enablement.
“The NCPD has, for many years, helped empower persons with disabilities, in particular, youth to lead more fulfilling and independent lives. Our contribution to these vocational training programmes aligns with ScotiaRISE, our global community investment platform.
"Under ScotiaRISE, we are committed to investing in initiatives that remove barriers to advancement and increase access to opportunities for under-represented and disadvantaged groups, thereby creating a more inclusive and resilient world for everyone, and for every future.”