Fundación ONCE

Fundación ONCE was formed from the Organización Nacional de Ciegos de España ONCE (the Spanish National Organisation for the Blind), which was set up in 1938 to provide support for blind people in Spain. In 1988, ONCE decided to set up a foundation which was publicly presented as an instrument for cooperation and social responsibility, by which blind people pledged their support for other groups of people with disabilities, with the aim of improving their quality of life.

Mission

The main objective of Fundación ONCE is to carry out job-training integration and employment programs for persons with disabilities, and global accessibility, promoting the creation of environments, products and services that are globally accessible.

Geographic Focus

Spain and Europe

Programme Areas

The foundation works to establish agreements and general frameworks for agreements with public and private institutions to benefit disabled people, assisting their personal development, integration into society and employment. It supports general welfare activities which support these objectives in the following areas:

– Employment and Training
– Universal accessibility
– International Area
– Regulatory Impulse and other Initiatives
– University and Disability

Employment and Training
The main objective of Fundación ONCE, bearing social reality in mind as well as the specific needs of persons with disabilities in Spain, entails job promotion for these persons, as an intermediate step that is essential for their complete social integration. In order to effectively fulfil this goal, Fundación ONCE invests each year at least 60% of its budget to the Training and Employment Plan

Universal accessibility
The mission of the Directorate for Universal Accessibility is to promote the Design for All and achieve universal accessibility as an essential condition for equal opportunities of persons with disabilities. The directorate organizes its management structure into three areas: accessibility of physical resources, culture and leisure (sports and tourism) and new technologies.

International Area
Guided by its commitment to improve quality of life of persons with disabilities and its facilities, the foundation follows closely the trends in Europe with regards to this group, both in the scope of European Institutions and any forums were work is carried out to defend the interests of the 50 million European citizens with disabilities.

Regulatory Impulse and other Initiatives
The foundation commits to support the adoption of any regulatory initiatives that benefit them and their families.

University and Disability
Fundación ONCE has developed a University and Disability Strategy in order to work with the Spanish University System in fulfilling current legislation, as well as to promote actions that encourage the involvement of persons with disabilities at Universities.