Savas Rock
Name of practice: SavasRock
Organisation: Savas Foundation
Country: Savo region, East of Finland
Funding: SavasRock is mainly funded by grants and money donated by local companies, as well as admission ticket income. The Savas Foundation gives working time to the employees to organise the event. Savas Foundation provides financial support.
Description of the Organisation: Savas Foundation (in Finnish: Savas-Säätiö sr, Savas) is a Finnish non-profit organisation operating across the Savo region, dedicated to providing housing and day activity services for persons with developmental disabilities, autism, mental health challenges, and others requiring support. Savas emphasises person-centred support, offering tailored services that promote autonomy and community inclusion.
The Foundation's mission is to enable individuals to lead fulfilling lives by recognising and nurturing their unique strengths and needs. With a workforce of approximately 330 employees, Savas continues to develop and deliver services that enhance the well-being and participation of those they support.
Description of Practice: SavasRock is an inclusive rock festival aiming to raise awareness on intellectual disabilities, break barriers and remove prejudices. Moving away from events exclusively for persons with disabilities, this event gathers everyone to enjoy music in a friendly atmosphere, providing a real festival experience with top artists and restaurant services, alcohol and street food.
People's special support needs have been taken into account in every aspect, for example, the environment has been illustrated using Picture Communication Symbols (PCS) images and the event has a quiet space where participants can calm their senses if needed. Sign language interpretation of the music is also available.
Scalability & transferability: The event concept is both transferable and sustainable. The employees of the event are the foundation's workers and experts in the field of intellectual disabilities and thus know the needs of the target group and their special needs. The event also receives volunteer workers from social and health care students.
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