Discussion Point

Summary Detail

Proposals

Curriculum:

Qualification requirements – assessment options for young people with SEND.

Jobs that require minimum qualifications/levels can be more challenging for young people with SEND to access. The way that qualifications are assessed can be a barrier for young people with SEND however they can still develop the day-to-day skills and knowledge to be successful in employment. Assessment using practical/observational assessed methods are more inclusive that written assessments.

The Shaw Trust report documents how the Public Sector should be ‘leading the way’ in accessible and equitable employment, however anecdotal evidence from our partner organisations (including the NHS and Local Government) suggests that rigidity in role ‘banding’ requirements, prevent capable applicants from obtaining paid employment (for example, an experienced gardener unable to obtain employment, due to National Banding requirements needing a L3 qualification for an entry level job). Whilst at a local and individual level, employers verbalise being ‘frustrated’ and unable to bypass their own company (sometimes at National Level) recruitment policies (specifically around essential qualifications).

There have been recent reviews of qualifications which continue to review/reduce/remove Entry Level, Level 1 and 2 qualifications open to young people. While there is a stated recognition of the importance of qualifications below Level 3 the reality is that reductions in funded options will impact on young people with SEND who can make a significant contribution to the economy when employed and supported in suitable employment.

Schools/colleges would be well-placed to support qualification routes with a greater emphasis on practical assessments and assessments that understand the literacy barriers that may be present for young people with SEND.

Employment routes where successful completion of traditionally assessed qualifications could be a barrier include:

• Childcare/Early Years: Check early years qualifications - GOV.UK (www.gov.uk)
• Social Care Core and mandatory training (skillsforcare.org.uk)

We welcome Inclusive Apprenticeships supporting access to Apprenticeships for young people with SEND. This is an area which again lacks a visible, national presence; this (along with Supported Internships) should be given the same promotion and support as T-Levels and more traditional pathways such as GCSE study.

Whilst Access to Examination arrangements are available to young people with SEND, these do not consistently adjust the assessment methodology where written assessment methodologies can pose a barrier to young people with SEND.

Proposal:

Practical Assessment routes for young people with SEND providing assessment of practical skills and knowledge to support access to employment including Care and Childcare.

Review requirements v. desirable for employment routes.

Raise profile with a consistent promotion of routes together as opposed to separate – for example diagrammatic representation of pathways

Routes into Employment: role of schools/college – Supported Internships and Work Placements

An improved national Supported Internship programme is key for young people with SEND. The government is currently funding a two-year programme ‘Internships Work’ to increase the number of supported internships.

While the Government programme is seeking to address the known barriers to Supported Internships, these barriers are significant and will need ongoing funding and action to address:

1. Identification of employers who will facilitate Supported Internships programmes (and work placement opportunities) is time-consuming. Although Employer Engagement is embedded into the ‘Internships Work’ this continues to be a significant barrier – specifically where schools/colleges have limited time resource to allocate to the relationship building process.

(Also covers - What are the barriers to arranging and accessing quality work placements for young disabled people in education? How could these be addressed?)

2. Access To Work/DWP system for meeting costs of Job Coach. Model is cumbersome and inequitable where some programmes are not being paid in a timely manner. At Newfriars College we have not yet received funding for 22/23 and we are required to resubmit paperwork.

Agreements are between intern (or their parent as their representative; which is the case for many young people). This requires signatures and unnecessary bureaucracy. In Supported Internships young people with capacity must have an ‘appointee’, usually a parent, when they are capable of completing their own paperwork and signing timesheets, etc.

The challenges with DWP/A2W funding are a significant barrier, especially for a specialist provider. There are examples of larger GFE who utilise ESFA funding only and do not access A2W or DWP due to the challenges and financial risk.

Proposal: Can SI be included in the ‘Apprenticeship Levy’ programme to allocate funding to establishing SI.

Can there be a national incentive programme (employer receives £500 per intern for example). Saving comes from reduced benefit support needs for young person when in employment.

Can large organisations commit to joining a national register to offer supported internships and placements and specify where – a commitment which will deliver a through-put of well-trained, committed employees. Part of any bid or tender process requiring public funding.

It would be more cost effective for DWP and for providers for the provider to submit evidence for Job Coach support directly – contract between provider and DWP.

Accountability for DWP/A2W to pay within a specified window.

Fully automate the process, current reliance on paper copies (for some aspects of the process) is archaic and prone to error.

Current model of one provider funded to deliver post-16 programme creates a binary system – GFE or Specialist Provider

For young people with SEND with moderate learning difficulties there are regular cases where a learner would benefit from specialist provider programmes for aspects of their programme but where GFE (industry standard training) would provide a more appropriate programme. A GFE has industry standard equipment and staffing expertise that cannot be (or rarely can be) provided by a specialist provider due to size. Currently funding is given to one provider. Any aspect of programme delivered by another provider is managed as a ‘sub-contract’. The complexity of sub-contracting is a barrier to offering dual-setting provision.

For example, a learner with autism finds a large GFE over-whelming. However, could access GFE IT sessions with support for specified sessions. If funding could be allocated (Element 1, 2 and 3) on a pro-rata model, rather than sub-contracting (so each provider responsible for their % of the programme) this would support the learner and reduce barriers to employment as the learner is accessing the right industry standard programme for them:

3-day offer; 1-1 support.

• 2 days in Specialist College (English, Maths, Employability skills at Level 2) with 1-1 support. Embedded Independent Living Skills including social communication skills.
• 1 day in GFE attending only the IT sessions at Level 3 with 1-1 support.
• Funding is split 1/3 to GFE and 2/3 to specialist providers.

This is limited numbers of learners but could remove barriers for learners who may otherwise not have access to.

For example, a young person with social anxiety due to Autism cannot access a full programme at GFE. They need a Level 3 course meets their educational needs/employment ambitions. The local specialist college cannot deliver a L3 course but can provide the nurture and wider programme the learner needs, as well as supporting underpinning skills. With funding for 1 day a week the learner can access just the IT sessions: potentially some via online engagement.

With this training/qualification the young person can secure a job working online/working from home. We are educating young people for a new world with regards to employment which does not necessarily mean being part of an office environment.

Proposal: establish a system to allocate funding on a % model where a learner is attending GFE and specialist provider – meeting different needs.

Disability barriers to accessing workplace – not being able to access the physical workforce.

Even with Access to Work and reasonable adjustments some young people cannot (or not willing) to access a workplace. There is significant scope to support young people to be self-employed and set up an online business for example.

Set up a system for young people to access mentors to set up their own business.

Establish national programmes to deliver to young people to learn the skills to set up and run their own business.

Establish support for disabled people running their own businesses.

Careers Advisors need access to information about options post-16/employment routes and to being the planning from Year 9 embedded into EHCP Annual Review cycle

Not all EHCP annual review documents have sufficient tools for planning from Year 9. Statements are made about preparation for adulthood, but the step-by-step planning is not detailed.

Routes to employment are about placement planning and more than ‘I want to work with animals…Be a nurse…Work in a supermarket…’

Require all EHCP paperwork to include a step-by-step planning section on Preparation for employment (or adulthood where learner’s goal is not employment/volunteering). This to be part of current SEND and AP review.

Careers Guidance in Schools and Colleges must be delivered by advisers with disability awareness training and knowledge of options

Not all advisers have a comprehensive understanding of the needs of learners and may limit what options they offer to a young person.

Training should be a mandatory requirement.

SEND learners need careers advice that is delivered a person who knows the young person and their needs, and to build the relationship. External advisors (or a pool) are not suitable for many young people with SEND. There needs to be a staff member on site or a careers adviser with a smaller pool of settings to go in regularly. A young person with SEND (and their teachers in school/college) need additional, personalised careers advice to have maximum impact.

Current pools of careers advisers in our local authority are not trained to work with young people with SEND. They do not understand funding for example. There needs to be specialist staff in each setting or local authority.

Learners with SEND need additional meetings and support beyond the minimum time allocation. A small allocation to staffing costs will secure the right pathway for more young people reducing government benefit costs as fewer young people will rely on benefits as employed. Being employed also impacts on health and mental health reducing stress on NHS services.

Nationally created disability awareness training that must be completed and refreshed as a mandatory requirement to deliver school/college careers advice.

Strengthen the Local Offer (detailing SEND services) in each area to have specific routes into employment section which is up to date.

All Local Authorities to ensure that all schools/colleges have access to careers advisors (either at a setting or a pool responsible for a small number of settings each) who are trained in disability awareness.

Links Careers Services in Schools and Career Support

There are challenges ensuring Careers Services in schools understand the role of GFE and specialist colleges in supporting young people into employment.

There needs to be examples of pathway planning embedding visits to next step settings as part of the journey to employment. Visualising the future options and planning in Year 9 I will…In Year 10 I will… will support (see above comment on EHCP annual review, although not all young people with SEND will have an EHCP).

National set of resources for Careers Services staff to support planning of the journey of a young person into employment (one source of resources e.g. NCS).

Skills assessments adapted to the needs of learners with SEND Skills assessment | National Careers Service. 10 assessments that take 15-30 minutes on the NCS guide. An adapted version for SEND? Accessible, easy read formats?