Careers and Employability, University of the Arts London – Written evidence (YDP0017)

Evidence - inquiry into employment and career support for young disabled people leaving education and entering the job market and workplace

Provided by:

Careers and Employability at University of the Arts London

University of the Arts London is the largest specialist provider of Creative Arts and Design Education in Europe. Currently 15.3% of our students have a declared disability. We also see a gap in positive outcomes between students with a declared disability and those without a declared disability. This was as much as -8% in 2018-9 and has narrowed to -2% in our most recent 2020-21 data set.

We have a particularly large percentage of dyslexic and neurodivergent students, and we understand this to be a particular challenge in the creative and cultural sectors.

Careers and Employability at UAL actively seek to support disabled students with their transition to employment and further study. We are working to develop an inclusive practice model as opposed to employing named disability specialists. In doing so we work to increase the confidence and knowledge base in disability issues of all staff within the department, but at the same time liaise with and signpost to wider disability services both inside and outside the institution when appropriate.

General

What barriers do young disabled people face when leaving education and entering the job market and workplace? Does this differ between different conditions or disabilities, and if so, how?

Visible disabilities appear to receive more attention, and have the greater outcome gaps, however there are greater numbers of neurodivergent students also facing challenges such as:

• Application processes that depend on large amounts of writing
• Interview practices which reward memory skills, quick thinking, and confidence.
• Decisions as to whether to declare or not to declare a disability

Disabled students on graduating can lose the intensive support offered by careers or disability services within their institutions just at the crucial point at which they are most needed.

As work experience becomes increasingly important to evidence in gaining employment, and indeed is often used as a recruitment tool by some employers, access to work experience as much as access to work becomes an important consideration.

For neurodivergent students the transition from education to work often needs to be navigated in a more graduated way, in terms of support and timescales for action taking. This is likely to also impact metrics around progression for disabled students. The barriers may also be different depending on how they intersect with race, gender etc. E.g. international students who may get a diagnosis during study may find the cultural and professional landscape that they enter post- graduation does not support or recognise this diagnosis

How far do barriers to young disabled people accessing other public services, such as health and care services, present a barrier to young disabled people accessing the workplace?

For many disabled students it is not so much a case of individual barriers, so much as trying to find a way forward on a set of ‘penrose stairs’ - forward momentum often looks possible (especially from the vantage point of an institution or advisor) but effort is expended on a never-ending series of steps which take you nowhere. This explains longer progression timelines and why some never make it into graduate level roles. e.g. Work may rely on knowing where they will live and worries about housing can decrease capacity to healthfully apply to work.

The need to have the agency to apply for so much public help can be a barrier. Holistic understandings of the cumulative journey is important, rather than HE and govt looking at individual moments of access or application.

Support for young disabled people

How effectively do education systems provide careers advice, guidance and support which meet the needs and career aspirations of young disabled people? How could this be improved, and what examples of good practice are there in the UK and abroad?

Access to Work is viewed as particularly helpful, and their offer to self-employed individuals, although less well publicised, is very valuable as many of our students will be freelance or self-employed in the creative sector during their careers. However it is worth adding that Access to Work can be taxing to apply for, tough to interpret and require a lot of effort to get right, which is why the DAO guide is so valuable. The opt-in nature of things like this can often put students and grads off.

Where employability is embedded in the curriculum, teaching staff may not have the knowledge and also require training in this area.

More support longitudinal IAG support for the transition out of university is needed. Specialists who can support students considering housing, funding, work and access could be useful. Not everyone needs this but for those that do it would do a lot to address the precipice of graduation and the burnout caused by the compartmentalised nature of applications, assessments, and disclosures.

Do staff in schools and other education settings providing careers guidance and advice have the appropriate training and resources to support the needs and aspirations of young disabled people?

Compartmentalisation of skills within institutions and agencies can create problems when students with a disability can be ‘bounced’ between teams when careers teams feel under-equipped to understand their needs and Disability services feel under-equipped to understand employment issues.

Extracurricular and individualised support is ‘opt-in’, yet not all students have the confidence and agency required to seek out this support.

How do far do staff in education settings engage with employment support services and schemes such as Access to Work, supported internships, or disability employment advisors in order to support young disabled people?

Access to Work has presented at Careers and Employability staff training days and will be invited to present directly to students in the coming year.

Outside of Careers knowledge of these schemes may be patchy and would benefit from staff. particularly those responsible for courses with placements and work experience, to receive more training in this area.

How far do employment support mechanisms such as Access to Work or Disability Employment Advisors meet the needs of young disabled people entering the job market for the first time? How could these services be improved?

Accessing each of these things relies on confidence and energy which can be in short supply, especially in the summer after graduation when students feel cut adrift. Some students may struggle to believe it is worth the effort, that they are 'disabled enough' or that it has a chance of succeeding.

What is the first point that a young disabled person would engage with an employment support scheme, and how are such schemes communicated to young disabled people?

Most students don't know these exist often until long after they have struggled. Many staff don't have enough knowledge or connection to make meaningful referrals. An ideal time for students to be connected with these organisations would be as early as summer of second year and supported from that point, as for many this is when recruitment activity begins.

5) What are young disabled people’s experiences of the transition from education-based support to employment-related support? Do young disabled people face barriers to accessing support during this transition? Could these services be better linked, and if so, how?

Partnership agreements between universities and external agencies would help

15 September 2023