Introducing BEAM: Bridging Employment, Ability & Momentum

This year, we launched BEAM, a new pathway that helps employees move toward open employment through real work experience, tailored job coaching, and strong partnerships with local businesses.

Building Partnerships with Local Employers

Through BEAM, we connect candidates with employers and provide provide one-on-one support and inclusion training. Businesses gain access to skilled, motivated people and build more inclusive workplaces, while individuals gain valuable experience in new teams and environments.

The Role of Individual Learning Plans (ILPs)

BEAM builds on our Individual Learning Plans (ILPs), an internal career coaching tool that helps each person set goals and work towards the kind of job they want, within Kilmarnock or in open employment.

Sam’s Journey: An Exciting Start

Sam, one of our employees, recently completed a work experience placement with ENI Manufacturing—an early example of BEAM and ILPs in action.

Sam joined Kilmarnock after high school and has spent four years in our Employment Pathway Programme. At Kilmarnock, he has completed a health and safety foundations course and gained skills across food packing, e-waste recycling, labelling, and rework jobs.

In his ILP discussions, Sam expressed a desire to try new roles, meet new people, and explore new jobs that might suit him.

Thanks to our close industry partnerships, we were able to connect Sam with the team at ENI Manufacturing who welcomed the chance to give Sam a work experience placement.

With support from our job coach, Sam worked on the discovery phase of his ILP – recording the things he’s good at and what he’d like to learn.

Success Starts with the Right Support

Often, employers may feel unsure about hiring an individual with an intellectual disability due to misconceptions about capabilities, productivity, and safety risks. Work experience placements through Kilmarnock can help change that by giving employers the chance to see the skills, reliability and potential of our candidates first-hand, with the support of a dedicated Job Coach.

Before Sam’s placement, our Job Coach worked with ENI to ensure everyone felt prepared. We delivered a workshop for managers, supervisors, and staff on cultivating an inclusive culture, and shared practical ways to tailor jobs to support employees with disabilities.

The Job Coach also helped introduce Sam to the team, shared information about his strengths and interests, and was available for feedback and on-site support throughout the trial.

At ENI, Sam was assigned a workplace buddy to show him around the site and train in manufacturing and assembly tasks.

Sam shared that while he was nervous at first, he enjoyed the experience of being a part of a new team and growing his independence. We’ve also received positive feedback from ENI, who said it has been a rewarding journey.

It’s an exciting start and a great example of the opportunities BEAM can create for employees exploring what’s next after Kilmarnock.

We are now looking to connect with businesses across Canterbury who would be interested in offering a work experience opportunity.

Whether you can offer a few hours, a short placement, or simply want to start a conversation, we would love to hear from you. Your involvement makes a lasting difference.

Together, we can build an inclusive and thriving workforce in Aotearoa New Zealand.