Only 5.1 percent of people with learning disabilities are in employment. This KMTV special looks at how SEND educators in Kent are set to change that and support young disabled people into their dream careers.
00:00Hello, I'm Charlie O'Loughlin and welcome to a Kent Tonight special.
00:24We'll be taking a deep dive into the struggles of those with special educational needs and
00:28disabilities face here in Kent when trying to access employment. We've visited a range
00:33of local businesses, schools and colleges who champion real world experience for those
00:38of additional needs and just proved how beneficial this can be for both workers and employers
00:43in the long run. And now our reporter Zach Smith has been along to Canterbury to see what residents
00:48have to say about employment struggles for students.
00:51We're here today in Canterbury to talk to members of the public about disabled students
00:55entering the workplace.
00:56I have a friend who recently graduated university and during her study she was diagnosed with
01:02a few conditions including one Covid. She hasn't had any support to be able to break into the
01:08workforce. She feels as if there's no support to help her make that transition as a disabled
01:14person. I really feel for her.
01:15I've worked with people with mental disabilities before and it's not always been so straightforward.
01:25Sometimes you do need to explain something a second time but they are still competent.
01:31It's not that they can't do something.
01:33I don't think there's nearly enough being done to help people on the autism spectrum and with
01:40other neurodiversities getting to work. I think that there's an awful lot of just one size fits
01:47all and I think that there's not enough personally trying to help them with whatever they particularly
01:53struggle with.
01:54Some of it I think has to come from the government, from local authority and some of it is funding
02:02because obviously if you're in a workplace where there is no accessibility then that requires
02:10a certain amount of money to be spent.
02:12As many of those on Kent's High Street told us, issues with securing employment for those
02:17with additional needs is a particularly hot topic matter. But it's not just disabled people
02:22that are struggling to get a job. As figures suggest one in five Kent residents are currently
02:26unemployed. Reporter Elena Gonzalez can paint us a wider picture.
02:31Almost a million young people in the UK are now classified as NEET, meaning they're not in
02:35education, employment or training. Of those, more than half have a health condition which involves
02:40special educational needs and physical disabilities. More than 13% have a learning difficulty such
02:47as autism and one in six have a mental health condition. Analysis from the National Centre
02:52for Social Research found that having a disability was one of the most significant risk factors
02:57along with not having an academic qualification above level one, having a mental health condition,
03:02having been identified as having special educational needs and having a limiting disability.
03:08In the latest budget, Rachel Reeves set out a commitment to NEET within the Youth Guarantee to
03:13support getting more young people into employment. However, there are worries that young disabled
03:17people might be left behind by this policy.
03:20Now we've been to one SEND school in Luce which has been trying to pioneer ways to ensure
03:25their students get a head start in the job market. As Kit Taylor has more.
03:29It's a weekday morning at the largest SEND school in the UK. And for 12-year-old Stanley,
03:34it's his first day at work.
03:36It's a dream come true really. My dad showed me about it. I was like, oh that's school.
03:42And he showed me that people can work on there. And I was like, one day I want to be on there.
03:47And today's finally, it's time!
03:50Five Acre Word are aiming to tackle unemployment for young disabled people by teaching them
03:55skills in industry settings, like this coffee shop on a train carriage.
04:00Only 5.1% of adults with a learning disability are in paid employment and we really, really
04:05need to change that. We're not sat in a sterile classroom learning skills that aren't transferable.
04:11We are learning these skills. Our pupils are in a community cafe. It's a realistic environment.
04:17It's not a simulation. They have to learn that if they don't turn up with the correct uniform,
04:21they will not work. These are the skills that they need to be able to apply and learn in the real world.
04:28But this coffee shop is just the beginning. Soon there will be an entire high street of businesses
04:33behind me where students can learn the skills they need to get into employment.
04:38We know how to use the machine. We've learned how to make drinks popular, clean the tables
04:42and we've learned to be a good team.
04:45It helps my confidence and my communication.
04:48It's always good to manage money like using a till.
04:51The futures of these young people has been part of a national conversation,
04:55with Rachel Reeves announcing the Youth Guarantee as part of the Autumn Budget
04:59to support young people into work.
05:02And funding our new Youth Guarantee, providing Ā£820 million over the next three years.
05:08But she didn't specify any measures for young disabled people in particular.
05:13I went to Parliament to ask Kent MP Lauren Edwards more.
05:16We have almost a million young people who are not in education or work.
05:21And a lot of them, you know, do have SEND needs.
05:25It's really, really important that we're supporting people into the right job for them
05:29and not just trying to get them off the sort of job seeker books into any old role
05:33because they'll just end up back there again if it's not the right role.
05:36So I think we need to really listen to people about what they feel they can do,
05:41what they think they'd be, you know, well placed to do,
05:44and then give them the support so that they can really thrive in that role.
05:48Back at Five Acre Wood, Stanley is looking forward to his new job.
05:51Any person that's got disabilities, no matter what, it's OK.
05:56Because when I was younger, I wasn't confident to show myself to the world.
06:01But now that I've got older, I can finally let that go and I can show them who I am.
06:07Kit Taylor for KMTV.
06:09Now, Disability Assist are a Kent-wide charity who aim to help disabled residents
06:14to live their lives more independently.
06:16They're run by disabled people for disabled people.
06:19And they know exactly how hard getting into the job market can be.
06:23Sophie Fornell is their CEO and she spoke to me earlier on.
06:26My name is Sophie Fornell and I'm CEO of Disability Assist.
06:31What are the next steps for you in Disability Assist? What's coming up on your radar?
06:36So we are looking to work with organisations providing connect-to-work services.
06:42There are a lot of people who are the furthest from the employment market.
06:47So to do that, I am on the Kent and Medway Connect-to-work steering group
06:53and I will be making sure that those people are not left behind.
06:57Some businesses are quite hesitant, aren't they,
06:59to employ people with disabilities with additional needs.
07:02Why do you think that's the case, Sophie?
07:04People may require additional supports to be able to carry out their jobs.
07:09And the support that is out there for people, mainly access to work,
07:13which is a government initiative,
07:15there's currently 30-week waits for new claimants of that.
07:20And so if you're offered a job, waiting 30 weeks to be able to get the support you need to start
07:27isn't feasible, isn't realistic for a lot of people.
07:31There is a risk that disabled people are kind of being shoehorned into jobs
07:35that might not be a right fit for them just because they feel like they need to get a job.
07:39There's a very big difference between just work, bad work and good work.
07:44If you have something that you are interested in that you want to do
07:48that you feel has a purpose, you're going to be much more empowered and keen to remain in there.
07:57Whereas if you're doing something that, you know, you are just sort of shoehorned into, as you say,
08:03then I think, you know, the resilience to remain in that job would be really quite difficult.
08:09Quite a big question now, but what changes would you like the government to make to ensure disabled people are supported getting into work going forward?
08:16Is there anything that stands out to you, Sophie?
08:18I think that there needs to be a lot of emphasis on access to work and giving people the support that they really need to be able to sustain work long term.
08:30Also working with employers, encouraging employers, providing training or real life insights into working with disabled people,
08:41but also make the environment one that they can speak quite openly and be quite honest about it,
08:48because there's a lot of people who don't disclose disabilities for fear of discrimination.
08:53Thank you, Sophie. No, it's been some really insightful chat. Thank you so much for spending your time with us today,
08:58and hopefully we'll see you again soon. Take care. Thank you.
09:01It's all well and good getting disabled students into the workforce, but how do they actually get there in the first place?
09:07Grow19 are a college in East Morling supporting their pupils in accessing employment opportunities by simulating working environments.
09:14Our reporter Emily Doughty has been along.
09:18For 19 year olds, the first step into the world can be very daunting, especially for young disabled people.
09:23But one college is hoping to change this.
09:26Grow19 was started because we identified a need for the young people in Kent that they weren't getting.
09:33Our hospitality learners are all barista trained. Our construction and horticulture learners have completed health and safety courses.
09:39It opens up those opportunities that might not ordinarily have been there.
09:43About 60% of our leavers last year left to go into supported employment, employment, or left to go into volunteering.
09:50Nationally, we're at about 5% as a country, which isn't great, so we're kind of smashing through that.
09:56Grow19 helps over 50 students, including Cian, who studies construction.
10:02It's very good being outside, being in the fresh air, and just be you, just come and try and work.
10:10Another key part is offering students work experience. However, this wasn't easy.
10:15So it used to be really difficult to get them placements. They would just be reluctant.
10:19So if you mentioned that you had a learner with SEND needs or learning difficulties, they felt that it might be more work for them.
10:28So I think with, you know, sort of social media and the videos, our learner stories, and then them employers seeing them, learners in action, has helped them to sort of get more placements.
10:41I'm here at Maystown Gender Dillery, where some of the students from the college come to train. Let's go inside and find out more.
10:48A small local business to sort of give back to the community. But equally, it's just nice to have their help, really. They're very, very useful, very helpful.
11:00I'd say to other businesses to really encourage them to think about getting involved in a scheme like this.
11:05It's actually hugely rewarding, beneficial, and I think all businesses should honestly think about doing it. It's really, really good. Good thing to do.
11:14A new student has just joined the distillery. Matt is excited for the rest of his placement and his future.
11:20I do like it here. Yeah, it's like, it's like calm and relaxing, doing like, like packing bottles and just knowing, like, people that work here.
11:33Yeah, I'm pretty excited to work here, and I know, get a job in the future, I guess.
11:39Emily Doughty for KMTV.
11:42That's all we have time for. Thanks so much for joining us on a Kent tonight special. Goodbye.
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