Our Values
Providing top quality services is an obligation for any organisation serving people with learning disabilities, regardless of their religious or philosophical basis. And very many are doing so. The challenge for Prospects is to ensure that our Christian faith adds value to the services we provide in ways which make life significantly better for people with learning disabilities.
Prospects is committed to respect for the beliefs of all and supports those of religious faith and no specific religious faith. Prospects would never seek to impose a creed or belief on any. Prospects believes that spirituality is an element in the experience of what it is to be a complete human and therefore seeks to enhance the lives of those with learning disability by offering support for every aspect of life, including a spiritual life if desired.
The Principle of Personal Value (PPV - see below) has been devised as a concise expression of a universal and Biblical principle. It describes what all of us value as part of our being human. It affirms that people are to be valued and enabled both to enjoy and to express their full personhood.
The core principle
What does it mean to be human? The Bible provides the answer to the question by distinguishing human beings from the rest of creation.
'So God created humans in his own image. He created them to be like himself. He created them male and female.'
Genesis 1:27.
We can identify the following characteristics which are reflected in human beings:
- the capacity to control or influence our surroundings;
- the capacity to make and sustain relationships;
- the capacity to distinguish between right and wrong;
- the capacity to think and make decisions;
- the capacity to be creative and to appreciate beauty.
The degree to which these characteristics may be expressed may vary, however they are present regardless of ability or disability.
The Principle of Personal Value (PPV)
This humanness is real in people with learning disabilities. Prospects seeks to apply this principle of universal humanness through the PPV. The PPV would be applicable to all, regardless of physical, social or educational abilities.
The PPV includes:
- Individuality
Each person is to be affirmed as an individual and enabled to express and develop their unique personhood. - Integrity
People with learning disabilities should be free to initiate choices and at all times be involved in decisions which affect their lives. - Dignity
People with learning disabilities should be regarded with respect and treated appropriately, with recognition of their age and life experience. - Independence
People with learning disabilities should be encouraged and enabled to move towards greater independence. - Integration
People with learning disabilities should be enabled to participate fully in the ordinary life of society. - Spirituality
People with learning disabilities have spiritual needs and the capacity for spiritual understanding. They should have the opportunity for spiritual development.
