The Exploitation of Young Disabled People Transitioning from Education to Work

ALLFIE has been campaigning against barriers that exist in the transition from school to employment for Young Disabled People, highlighting significant inequalities. Since 2009, they have campaigned for National Inclusive Apprenticeships and shared their successes.

In 2018, Inclusion Now magazine published an article titled ‘The Apprentice Chef’, sharing the experiences of 23-year-old Maxime Soret in the catering industry.

ALLFIE’s ‘Our Voice’ is a national collective of Young Disabled people who speak out against educational, and social inequalities caused by systemic barriers. Continuing previous campaign work, they collaborated with ALLFIE’s Young people’s project leads, Yewande and Maresa, to focus on the transition from education to employment, particularly Apprenticeships and Supported Internships for those with an Education and Health Care Plan (EHCP). This article discusses the opinions of Bethany Coles, Zen Adams, Tolu Soleye, Samuel Bartley and Lucy Wing about:

• Supported Internships and Apprenticeships​.
• Whether the current system is just.
• Whether changes should be made and what those changes might be.

Supported Internships: No legal requirement to be paid

Supported Internships are work based learning programmes. This means you can learn workplace skills while learning at a school or college. Supported Internships last 6 months and are 20 hours a week. You get enrolled in Supported Internships by your school or college. You can only be accepted on a Supported Internship if you are aged 16 to 24 and have an EHC plan. Earlier this year, Special Needs Jungle reported on a pilot scheme to test Supported Internships for those without EHC plans in 12 local authorities, noting:

“At present, you can only go on a supported internship if you have an EHCP, but with many councils keen to strip plans from disabled Young people as soon as they hit 16, many of those who could benefit miss out.”

Most of the Young person’s learning happens in the workplace and Young Disabled people also get a job coach to mentor and guide them through the process of the internship.

Supported interns are still in full time education, and the learning that happens on the Internship is viewed as a part of their education. However, ALLFIE’s Our Voice believes there are huge inequalities to Supported Internships. For example, the Department for Education (DfE) says that:

• There is no legal requirement for Supported Interns to be paid.
• Young Disabled people are not paid the national living wage.
• Young Disabled people are not guaranteed a job at the end of their Supported Internship.

Here at ALLFIE, we also believe that this is extremely unjust and that it adds to the discrimination that Young Disabled people continue to face. The DfE says that Supported Interns should feel valued in the workplace and develop confidence at work. However, Our Voice question how this can happen when the interns are not being paid for their time and hard work, unlike non-Young Disabled people who are. The difference between Disabled and non-Disabled Young people understandably makes Young Disabled people feel devalued and lack confidence in the workplace. Some Our Voice members shared their disappointment and voiced these concerns. One member in particular, expressed that it is “unfair.” Another member, named Zen, highlighted the issue of internships “not being paid” and Samuel echoed this sentiment, stating that “I too want to be paid”.

Considering the inequality of treatment between these two workplace training programmes, it is disheartening that the Government’s SEND and AP Improvement Plan proposes between 2022 and 2025 to invest £18 million to increase the Supported Internship Programme. The Young people at Our Voice want the Disabled People’s Movement, and the public, to be aware that segregation persists not only in education but also in employment, as highlighted by Young people participating in the Supported Internship programme. Despite all these concerns, the Government still hosts a National Supported Internship Day on the 27^th of March each year to promote awareness of Supported Internships and share what they believe to be positive experiences about them.

Barriers within the Apprenticeship Programmes

Another work-based learning option available to Young Disabled people are apprenticeships. An apprenticeship is like a Supported Internship where you learn while you are working. You are enrolled by your school, college, or apply through online portals. A significant difference is that:

• Young people are paid on apprenticeships.
• Apprentices get a qualification at the end of the apprenticeship which is recognised nationally.
• There is a lack of clarity regarding the type of financial grants available to support Disabled Young people partaking in (SEND and AP Improvement Plan, chapter 3, P48 – 49)

There are some apprenticeships where Young people need to have certain qualifications like GCSEs and A levels, or even a degree before they are accepted to be an apprentice.

Once more, members of Our Voice highlighted the injustices in the entrance criteria for apprenticeships, pointing out that these educational requirements discriminate against many Young Disabled people. This is because the Apprenticeship Programme fails to address the systemic barriers related to disablism, ableism and intersectional experiences within education, particularly around curriculum, assessments, and exams.

It was stressed by the members that, although there have been attempts to address entrance requirements by introducing some exemptions (Young Disabled people do not need to have the required grade for Maths or English at GCSE and can have Entry Level 3 Maths or English instead, or can work to achieve this entry level during the time of the Apprenticeship), this must be agreed by the organisation that is providing the apprenticeship. What’s more, the structural and systemic barriers within the Apprenticeship Programmes haven’t been adequately addressed. The concern raised by the members is that it could be a barrier for the Young Disabled person, especially if they have an Apprenticeship provider that does not understand disablism, ableism and accessibility.

Denied Meaningful Work Opportunities

During one of its meetings, Our Voice member Tolu made a poignant statement; “I want a job where I’m not put in the cupboard alone”. This statement highlights the reality faced by Young Disabled people. Yet the Government promises in the SEND and AP Improvement Plan to “provide a ladder of opportunity to help Young people access excellent education and skills training and continue learning through adulthood, to secure good jobs and progress into their careers”. (p.44) However, the injustice remains.

This injustice has a deep emotional impact for the Young Disabled people. There isn’t enough public awareness about the barriers they face within the education system and employment.  Members emphasised that they do not have equal chances within the field of work and are denied meaningful work opportunities, such as:

• Barriers to entrance criteria.
• No right to be paid for their services.
• Barriers to support and equipment.
• Barriers to training and continuous professional development.
• Being valued.

National Inclusive Apprenticeship programme

As discussed throughout this article, ALLFIE has been campaigning for many years for a National Inclusive Apprenticeship programme. There is a pressing need for a framework of inclusive practices that offer all Young people meaningful professional development. Apprenticeships must offer invaluable opportunities to learn while working, providing a pathway to a fulfilling career. However, Young Disabled people experience barriers that impact their access and hinder their success in the workplace. Recognising and addressing these barriers is necessary for an inclusive workplace where every Young person can thrive.

Bethany, a member of Our Voice, has had countless negative experiences and expressed that “it’s hard because we get told to try and work but it’s hard to find places of work that understand us.”  Similarly, Zen emphasised the importance of understanding Disabled people’s experiences, stating, “If I am helped at work, I can do the job but need a little understanding that I work in my space, am shy to talk to customers and I just can’t rush.”

To be inclusive, it is necessary that every workplace:

• Allows every Young person to thrive.
• Recognises and addresses barriers. Adjustments must be made during apprenticeships to ensure accessibility for Young Disabled people.
• Provides adjustments that can include flexible working times, training for staff, assistive technologies.

ALLFIE campaigns that the whole apprenticeship programme should be inclusive anyway, instead of making different apprenticeship programmes for Young Disabled people. It is another way of segregating Young Disabled people and reinforces discriminatory practices and a notion of ‘otherness’. It also fails to address the deep-rooted issues that perpetuate exclusion. As Lucy, a member of Our Voice, says: “improve the accessibility of apprenticeships instead of putting us into a different category again. Segregation doesn’t help us.” Her words resonate deeply with ALLFIE’s sentiment for a National Inclusive Apprenticeship programme.

Our Voice has also been looking at the topic of systemic injustice. All Our Voice members agreed that having two different workplace training programmes is an example of systemic injustice towards Young Disabled people. Lucy commented that systemic injustices were accepted by people as “legally okay,” but she also said that they are “morally wrong.” Lucy speaks out about the status quo and demands accountability for the deep-rooted inequalities and inequities hidden within the two programmes.

Bethany echoes this point stressing the fundamental principles of fairness, “I think we all need to be treated fairly.” Clearly, the Our Voice message was very clear that having two systems of apprenticeship was a sign of systemic inequality.

Call for Systemic Change

Our Voice is campaigning for a radical commitment from apprenticeships programmes to dismantle disabling barriers and ableism, alongside other intersectional injustices within the transition from school to employment programmes and within workplaces.

Job coaches, additional support through Access to Work, and meeting access requirements should be part of an inclusive apprenticeship scheme for individuals with or without Education, Health and Care Plans.

Achieving inclusivity calls for systemic change that addresses the root causes of inequality, and embeds a culture of equity and belonging where every individual is treated with dignity and respect in all areas of life, including professional development.

More…

• Read and sign ALLFIE’s Manifesto: ‘Inclusive Education for All’
• Alt text for the Crippen cartoon: Supported internships