Supported Employment Programme in NHS Trusts for Young People with Disabilities: Piecing the Puzzle Together

Supported Employment Programme in NHS Trusts for Young People with Disabilities: Piecing the Puzzle Together, is a study commissioned by Health Education England undertaken by King’s College London. The report which can be read here, discusses the benefits of employment on health especially for those living with a physical disability and those with special educational needs. It explores the difficulties those with disabilities and special needs face when trying to obtain employment as well as the way in which the Covid pandemic has disproportionately affected those with respect to work and employment.

The study explores the different commitments and initiatives recently undertaken by NHS organisations, firstly recognising the role employment plays in the health of the individual and secondly offering practical assistance to those with different needs into employment so they may experience its positive health benefits.

The study aims to:

• Provide an overview of the literature on disability and employment.
• Explore established practice on supported employment programmes in NHS England.
• Examine how such programmes have fared during Covid and the plans made to take them forward in the wake of the pandemic.
• Present the challenges faced in developing and running such programmes and the measures taken to deal with them.
• Establish a repository of information and sources on supported employment programmes in NHS England. 

A Word version of the full report can be found here.

A shorter version of the report can be found here.