Dr C. J. P. Lee, Director, Evolution Film, de Montfort University, Leicester (YDP0019)

Evolution Film (EF) has 500+ members in 6 continents advancing employment for young people with disabilities entering the creative industries, so this inquiry fits our remit. We were created as part of a British Academy Innovation Fellowship (BAIF) held by Jason Lee (C.J.P. Lee), De Montfort University, with Jones Bamber Productions. Below is under 3,000 words (6-pages) from members. We are happy to give oral evidence.

1. Barriers when leaving education? Does this differ? In education for disabled people, if there is an EHCP, adjustments and appropriate provision are a legal requirement. This is not always the case for employers – they may have quotas but there are often ways round them. Some disabilities may be easier to understand and adjust to than others. For example, if there are mobility issues providing a ramp is relatively straight forward, whereas the needs of someone with a mental health condition (which legally is a disability if had for a year) may be harder for an employer to understand. One barrier for young people with a mental health condition entering the workplace could be a lack of training for employers in exactly what reasonable adjustments need to be made (G. Cooper). The main difference is between physical and unseen disabilities, I think the physical ones have advanced in their inclusivity, whereas I feel unseen ones, such as neurodiversity and deafness, are still behind (N. Foley). From conducting research for our BAIF I was shocked to learn that even outwardly inclusive organisations state in webinars when applying for a job do not mention your disability. Today physical disabilities are often being catered for, but if a potential job applicant was e.g., to declare they had schizophrenia, this would not be looked on favourably. Barriers then are stigma. Many jobs now require masters degrees. During our BAIF research we found a low percentage of students doing a masters had disabilities; this rose from two percent (the same number as those working in the film industry compared to the 20 percent average of the UK workforce), to six percent over the 5-year period within our survey (C.J.P. Lee). With disability, the issue is how young people express their needs in environments that are increasingly hostile to difference, no matter that our language around issues has improved, actual action to support people has not. The vast difference between physical and neuro divergent disabilities in approach and support is problematic. Attitudes need to change, and that is not down to the young people but to those previous generations and attitudes of those in positions who could do something about the right support. This is a constant battle about disclosure at application stage and how that impacts your likelihood of gaining interview. Not enough employers are disability confident or know how to support people from diverse backgrounds. Many do not see neuro divergent people as disabled, anything to do with the mind and its operation is more challenging in some respects, fear of stigma, and disbelief in symptoms and ways of being are the underlying root cause. Accessibility for physical impairments is also another challenge. Overall, far better communication and education of employers and our young people around rights, responsibilities and support is needed to tackle this and improve outcomes (A. Surtees).

2. 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? Teachers and other education providers tend to be trained and have more empathy with the needs of young disabled people. When they enter the workplace, they no longer have professionals co-ordinating and supporting their health and care. This means the young disabled person faces more responsibility when daunting life changes can make them particularly vulnerable (G. Cooper). I think they are hugely relevant, with schools and other public services letting down disabled people constantly, this has to filter through to the employment market (N. Foley). We know the current economic situation is impacting health provision, on top of the years of underfunding, cuts and punitive approaches to disability and resources, especially in the Universal Credit area, where people may be trying to access support through PIP. Access to Work is also another barrier. Many do not know what they can access, how to access it and how to ask for support. Again, another area of education for employers and young people. The system is set against rather than to support people in these areas. If you have an impairment that affects your ability to navigate this minefield, this will compound the impact and lack of support, often leaving many young people adrift. Navigating the PIP system is a nightmare, the nature of its set up and the situation of private entities running things with no knowledge or expertise is awful for anyone to do but imagine this with a neuro divergent young person. Across all disabilities you are made to feel like a problem not a person in need of support (A. Surtees).

3. We have not focused this inquiry specifically on the experiences of young people with an EHCP when they leave education and enter employment. Qualifying for EHCP is very simplistic – often based on rudimentary criteria which is a ‘yes or no’. Maybe a more focused approach could work better, for example focusing specifically on neurodivergent, physical, sensory or learning needs, since these diagnoses are significantly different in terms of transition from education to work (G.  Cooper). Those with EHCPs are those with the greatest needs; the inquiry could focus on people with the greatest needs, i.e., those with EHCPs (C.J.P. Lee). I think it should include everyone with or without a plan, my experience of having plans in place has made no difference to how people are treated and has not helped in any way. I think all young disabled people should be included in the inquiry, but they could be split into two categories to see if you think there is a difference between young people who have a plan and ones who don’t (N. Foley). It needs to be a whole system approach. Nothing works in isolation; this is what leaves so many falling through the gaps of support. If we only focus on those with care plans in place, we miss thousands of others who do not have one. Education institutions are not routinely supporting disabled people, they do not have resources, so many are not even acknowledged as in need of support (A. Surtees).

4. How effectively do education systems provide careers advice, guidance and support which meet the needs and career aspirations of young disabled people? I think more understanding of specific disabilities and mental health conditions by careers advisors is necessary (G. Cooper). Education systems below university level have been sorely lacking in being able to guide young disabled people as to what would be a suitable and achievable career for them. Inclusivity is not really practiced as much as it is spoken about, and boxes are ticked. In reality, this never translates to practical or helpful advice that can the lead onto a career. Universities, whilst having many more support services in place, still have a real disconnect between what inclusion and advocacy services promise, and what they can actually deliver (N. Foley). At HE level, a module on disability and employment for all students, regardless of their disability, is a suggestion (C.J.P. Lee). Good role models to engage with and share their stories of success (A. Surtees).

5. Do staff in schools and other education settings providing careers guidance and advice have the appropriate training? Maybe more training in terms of the potential people with disabilities have to bring value to the workplace based on their specific condition. For example, people with autism can possess traits that give them better attention to detail and people with borderline personality disorder tend to be more creative. There is currently too much emphasis on making adjustments for the perceived negative aspects of a disability (G. Cooper). No, not even close and when they don’t fully understand what someone’s needs are, how can they possibly meet them (N. Foley). Some are good, but it is down to individuals. Also, the industries are getting better at providing good maps of education and experience required for roles (see ScreenSkills and the BBC). It is about thinking of their abilities and then working the route of access based on what additional support they may need (A Surtees).

6. How far do staff in education settings engage with employment support services and schemes such as Access to Work? I think this is much more likely to happen in specialist education provision as opposed to mainstream. Young people with disabilities in mainstream education can sometimes be ‘overlooked’ and engaging with employment supports services can vary massively at institutional and personal levels (G. Cooper). Even the careers advisers do not have adequate training on the complex range of non-visible disabilities that are currently around (N. Foley).

7. 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? There should be more collaboration between these organisations and staff in mainstream education to see how they can best work together to meet the needs of young disabled people entering the workplace (G. Cooper). They don’t! They could have proper training and as no one person can be an expert in the vastly differing array of disabilities, there needs to be specialists available in one specific type of disability and they should be responsible for only dealing with those students with those disabilities (N. Foley).

8. What is the first point that a young disabled person would engage with an employment support scheme? Young people find out about these schemes in the last years of secondary school, but they were not communicated well, and in some cases not at all (N. Foley).

9. What are young disabled people’s experiences of the transition from education-based support to employment-related support? I think this varies; sometimes it is good sometimes not. Support tends to be embedded in SEND education and more peripheral in employment related support (G. Cooper). The young people I know have had differing experiences of these kinds of transitions, but the overall and majority of these experiences have been negative resulting in the young person dropping out. The support is well assessed and noted, but then not acted on or implemented long term. If a person has specific needs, you cannot just support them through transition processes, the support has to be ongoing. They could be better linked by having one worker who continues to monitor the young person throughout the process and for as long as is needed later, so one worker could for example, be responsible for 10 young people for a much longer period of time, as that relationship is important to the young person (N. Foley). From knowledge of SEND education there is little transition support. Employers could go into schools and universities to learn from the students about support needs (C.J.P. Lee).

10. How accessible are careers in public services? Universities and some local councils are starting to really understand how productive disabled people can be if they get the right support and continued support. Also, a lot of the larger media companies are also starting to recognise the value in having diverse voices work for them (N. Foley).

11. What could public services employers learn from best practice elsewhere? There is a lot more money available in Sweden education systems for example. This allows people to be treated as complex individuals with multiple needs, and the money helps train staff and maintain staff to then have constructive relationships with the young people (N. Foley). Some parts of Spain, such as Tenerife, are ahead of the UK (C.J.P. Lee).

12. How effective are government programmes which support or encourage employers to employ disabled people, particularly young disabled people? They can be effective but education and attitude are key rather than legislation. Employers may have their ‘token’ disabled employees and be seen to pay ‘lip service’ rather than any actual commitment to government programmes (G. Cooper). More people than ever are more aware of physical disabilities and what support can be put in place to mitigate any challenges this brings. I think the problem can occur when there are less visible challenges going on for the young people and no one is quite sure how to address those challenges due to lack of funding and subsequently training of staff as a result (N. Foley). Work on ‘ability’ not ‘dis-ability’ what talent are we supporting and then how do we make that work accessible to the disabled person, what additional support is needed (A. Surtees).

13. What steps could be taken to improve awareness and uptake of relevant government support schemes? More understanding of the complexity of different disabilities and how to provide reasonable adjustments to specific mental health conditions need to be incorporated into government support schemes (G. Cooper). There needs to be government marketing campaigns, not just for these schemes, but to raise awareness of disabilities in general before any other change stands a chance of happening (N. Foley). Education, across the board, info sessions, introduce it into teaching about equality, diversity and inclusion, civil rights and personal rights (A. Surtees).

14. What actions could employers be taking without Government support? What barriers prevent them doing so? Employers should adopt a ‘top down’ approach to foster a disability-friendly ethos throughout the organisation. Attitudes need to become positive through education and understanding with emphasis on the positive attributes young people with disabilities can bring to the workplace. Employers could work more proactively with colleges and training companies to recruit disabled workers (G. Cooper). Money, everything always comes down to money, meaning no one gets any training on these disabilities, and no one can support anyone without at least a base understanding of how that disability affects them and what adjustments need to be put in place to accommodate those needs (N. Foley). Speed of the process of hiring often prevents time to do this properly. I recently worked on a tool kit with The Film and TV Charity ‘Fair and Transparent Recruitment Practices’, and this was a useful tool for employers to check how they recruit in the first place, what to think about and put into place. These tools exist, but unless people are using them, they won’t help in and of themselves. Often timescales are tight, no one is thinking about this and then it is a missed opportunity (A. Surtees).

15. How effectively are the rights of disabled people upheld and enforced in the workplace? There can sometimes be a sense of powerlessness – there are rights, but currently too many loopholes. Rights need to be strictly upheld but there also needs to be a change of attitude through education and the perception of young people with disabilities. There needs to be more of a ‘can do’ culture, and an appreciation that a young person with a disability could be good at the job because of their disability as opposed to in spite of it. E.g., someone on the autistic spectrum can possess exceptional focus and memory skills and be less likely to get distracted from tasks (G. Cooper). They are guaranteed an interview under certain schemes if they declare a disability, but they rarely go on to get the job. I know there are quotas that exist to take on more disabled people, but unless they are correctly catered for and are having their adjustment of needs accounted for, they cannot stay in a job (N. Foley). Again, this is about teaching the rights of young people and how they can go about seeking support to pursue cases. This is a challenge to adults, how on earth do we expect young people to navigate it? Advocates, unions and associations, charities and more offer some support, but there is a lack of overall knowledge of rights and what to expect, both for employers and young people. Instead of looking at enforcement, how about doing the work to show benefits of ‘talent’ of anyone regardless of disability, or any other protected characteristic. This is a process that will take time but needs investment to make the change happen (A. Surtees).

16. Is the present legal framework sufficient? The benefits system and current legislation is flawed in terms of creating barriers for young disabled people transitioning from education to work. For example, someone claiming ESA because of a disability may benefit from transitioning to employment through a full-time educational course. Under the current system they are unable to do this as they will lose their benefits. This means they can become stuck in a cycle of being unable to work or achieve the qualifications they need to build both their employability and confidence to manage the symptoms of their condition. It is also unacceptable that some private landlords can still have a ‘no DSS’ policy, which creates a barrier for someone transitioning from education to work in terms of the stability of their living arrangements (G. Cooper). Absolutely not. Discrimination cannot be proven if you are not getting a job in the first place as the employer can use a variety of reasons why you are not right for the position, without actually mentioning that they don’t have the money, training, or they don’t want to have to bother with those things, so it is currently incredibly hard to prove discrimination is taking place (N. Foley).

19 September 2023

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