What we do · Life transition planning

Getting through the big changes.

LiftOff is how we handle the big changes, at every stage of life, including the move from one of our programs to the next.

What it is
Who it's forAutistic and neurodivergent people facing a major life transition
What it achievesA successful move through it
How it worksWe prepare the person, brief the specialist team who will receive them, and stay until the handover holds
StagesEvery stage

What we believe

They know the process. We know the person.

The usual view

Most providers believe a difficult transition needs more support hours wrapped around the person.

What is actually happening

But in reality, every major transition already has an expert team attached to it, and most of them are free. Schools have transition teams. Universities have disability services. Employers have onboarding. What none of them have is any understanding of this particular person, so a standard approach gets applied, it doesn't land, and the record shows that the person didn't engage. Adding support hours around the outside doesn't change what the receiving team knows.

What we do instead

That's why we don't add hours around the person. We built LiftOff to do the handover rather than the job. We work out what this person needs the receiving team to know, we build the skills they will need on the other side, we find the team that specialises in it and make the introduction ourselves, so the first meeting is with somebody they already trust beside them. Then we stay until it holds, rather than closing the file at the referral. It also means that when somebody moves from one of our programs to the next one, the same person carries them across.

What changes

The change goes well, and the capability stays.

OftenThe support worker does the transition for the personWhat changesThe person does it, with the right team beside them, and the capability stays
OftenFree specialist services exist, and nobody told the familyWhat changesConnected to the team that specialises in exactly this
OftenThe receiving team knows the process, not the personWhat changesThey get a working understanding of the person before day one
OftenEvery new service starts from zero, and the family retells the historyWhat changesWe hold what matters and hand it over
OftenSupport ends at the referral, and nobody checks the person landedWhat changesWe stay through the handover, and don't leave until it holds
OftenMeeting a new professional is the hardest partWhat changesThe introduction is made by somebody the person already trusts

Straight answers

What LiftOff is, and what it isn't.

We are not a substitute for the mainstream service.

We are the reason the mainstream service works. The school's transition team, the university's disability service and the employer's onboarding all stay in charge of their part. We make sure they understand the person before they start.

We stay until it holds.

The handover isn't finished when the referral is sent. It is finished when the person is settled on the other side, and that is when we step back.

If there is no team on the other side, we'll tell you.

LiftOff is for changes with a mainstream service to hand over to and a skill to build. Where neither exists, what's needed is ordinary support, and we will say so plainly.

Take the first step

Let's talk about the change ahead.

Request a call back and one of our team will ring you at a time that suits. It takes about fifteen minutes, it's free, and you don't need anything worked out before we speak.