Background
Access to ordinary employment remains rare for people with Down syndrome. According to a study by the European Down Syndrome Association (EDSA), 95% of people with Down syndrome living in European Union countries are not in work. In Spain only 22% have a job, and just 10% of those work in the ordinary labour market.
'Paso Adelante' ('Step Forward') is DOWN ESPAÑA's response: a virtual and mixed reality application that lets people with Down syndrome and other intellectual disabilities rehearse the everyday steps that precede a working day — the journey in, organising what to take, and planning a schedule — in a safe environment they can repeat as often as they need. The federation launched it alongside VASS University and Fundación VASS, and the Zaragoza studio DeuSens built it.
The deployment
The app is structured as two modules: leaving home, and taking the bus. The transport module covers recognising routes and stops and using a travel pass; the daily-routine module covers dressing, checking that you have everything you need, and planning the day's timings.
Both are built from interactive 360° video filmed in real settings, with young people from Fundación Down Zaragoza appearing as the protagonists of the scenes rather than actors — a production choice intended to make the training feel close and attainable. The bus sequences were shot aboard Zaragoza city buses, with the operator Avanza and Zaragoza City Council credited in the app. Scenes pause at decision points and ask the user what to do next, with multiple-choice answers overlaid in the headset.
Pedagogues specialising in inclusion and in learning for people with intellectual disabilities worked alongside the developers so that the simulations would be intuitive, safe, and oriented towards practical habits and skills.
Hardware and interaction
The experience runs on Meta Quest 3 headsets and deliberately begins in mixed reality before moving to full virtual reality. In the mixed-reality stage the user keeps sight of their own room while a 3D bus and bus stop appear on the furniture in front of them; the full 360° video follows once they have adjusted. The progression is designed to avoid sensory overload in the first minutes with a headset.
Interaction relies on the headset's hand tracking, so no controllers are required — one less barrier between the user and the content.
Distribution and recognition
'Paso Adelante' is published free on the Meta Store, so families, schools, job coaches and social organisations can adopt it without cost or procurement. It was presented on 8 July 2025 at the headquarters of Fundación FUNDOWN in Murcia, where young people supported by the foundation demonstrated it live alongside representatives of DOWN ESPAÑA, Fundación VASS and the regional government of Murcia.
The app received the Global Tech Awards 2025 in the NGO/Non-Profit Technology category. In July 2026 it won the Discapnet Award for Accessible Technologies from Fundación ONCE, in the awards' eighth edition, in the category of best product or service already available on the market.
