Staff at the Mid Atlantic Wellness Institute (MWI) in Devonshire have been given the opportunity to gain a vocational qualification through training in the workplace.

The MWI has gained approval to become a City and Guilds Centre of Learning.

City and Guilds is the leading body in the UK offering vocational qualifications, and now that MWI has been given the green light, staff will become the first in Bermuda to hold a qualification to work with people with learning disabilities.

The aim of the Learning Disability Programme that they are following is to enable these people to live as ordinary a life as possible.

Many staff members have completed nearly half of the necessary assessments, and are expected to complete their external examination in June 2006.

?We are delighted to have been given status as a Centre of Learning,? said Patrice Dill, Director of MWI.

?Approval will benefit staff and clients as we continue to promote the well-being and independence of this population in Bermuda.?