| answer text |
<p>Increasing disability employment is a key part of the government’s aim to achieve
full employment. That is why this Government has an ambition to halve the disability
employment gap by creating the opportunity for a million more disabled people to work.</p><br
/><p>The Government has a variety of initiatives and programmes in place to support
and encourage people with special learning needs to find and retain work. Performance
statistics are published for a number of these.</p><br /><p>For example:</p><ul><li>Access
to Work provides on-going personalised in-work support for disabled people who are
in work or about to start work on a full or part-time basis. Access to Work has had
a Hidden Impairments Specialist Advisory team since September. We are also considering
whether the Mental Health Support Service model of support could benefit those with
hidden impairments other than mental health conditions. Last year Access to Work supported
record numbers of people with a Learning Disability or Dyslexia recorded as their
Primary Health Condition (6,580 people supported – 520 more people than in 2013/14).</li></ul><br
/><ul><li>The most recent Access to Work statistics are attached at Annex A.</li></ul><br
/><ul><li>Work Choice is a specialist disability employment programme which provides
tailored support for disabled people who face the most complex employment barriers
to find and stay in work. DWP has improved the referral process for Work Choice to
ensure that information about candidates’ hidden impairments is shared with Work Choice
providers. In 2014/15, 5,670 people with a Mild or Moderate to Severe Learning Disability
recorded as their Primary Disability were referred to Work Choice. Since 2010, 19,410
people with a Mild or Moderate to Severe Learning Disability recorded as their Primary
Disability have started Work Choice, of whom 8,600 have started work – giving a job
outcome rate of around 44% for this group.</li></ul><br /><ul><li>The most recent
Work Choice statistics are attached at Annex B.</li></ul><br /><ul><li>The Government’s
Disability Confident campaign works with employers at a national and local level to
help them to understand the benefits of employing disabled people, and promote good
practice in recruitment and employment of disabled people, including people with special
learning needs.</li></ul><br /><ul><li>DWP also works in close partnership with the
Hidden Impairment National Group (HING), a national network of disabled people, medical
professionals/ academics and disability specific organisations. This collaboration
has produced an ‘Uncovering Hidden Impairments’ toolkit, which supports organisations
in both the private and public sectors to confidently recruit and retain talented
individuals with hidden impairment conditions, such as special learning needs.</li></ul><br
/><ul><li>Jobcentre Plus continues to offer a range of support, including a free helpline
for claimants who have difficulty making claims for benefit online because of dyslexia
or similar conditions. DWP is working in partnership with Autism Alliance UK to build
an autism network across Jobcentre Plus by training nominated autism leads, including
Work Coaches and DEAs.</li></ul><br /><ul><li>We have worked with Community Service
Volunteers to introduce the Job-Shadowing Work Placement Initiative for young disabled
people, including those with special learning needs. The first tranche had a 65% participation
rate for young people having autistic spectrum conditions</li></ul>
|
|
