Disabled people will be able to work with a dedicated
key worker to get and stay in employment, the new Work and Pensions
Secretary has announced
today.
The support comes from a new £40 million fund and is expected to
benefit 10,000 people.
The Intensive Personalised Employment Support programme will
provide highly personalised packages of employment support for
people who are at least a year away from moving into work.
People will get coaching to help build their independence,
confidence and motivation, as well as work experience to help
boost their career prospects.
Secretary of State for Work and Pensions said:
Everyone, no matter what their background is, should have the
opportunity to thrive in the workplace, and having the right
support in place for disabled people is one of my greatest
priorities.
To truly help people transform their lives, there can be no
one-size-fits-all approach.
That’s why this new programme is designed to offer people, who
may think they will never move into work, tailored support to
help them overcome any personal barriers they may have in the
first instance, and then to focus on boosting their skills.
There are also huge economic benefits to improving disability
employment rates. More than half of disabled people are in
work, but in order to realise the full potential of disabled
people in Britain we want to go further and see one million
more disabled people in work by 2027.
People on the scheme will get a dedicated key worker who will
work with them to overcome complex barriers which may be
preventing them from entering work, ensuring they have a personal
support network in place.
The voluntary scheme will be rolled out across England and Wales
in 2019, and applicants will receive support for up to 21 months,
including 6 months of in-work support for those who get a job.
Neil Heslop, Chief Executive of Leonard Cheshire, said:
Many disabled people with complex needs face significant
barriers in accessing the workplace. It’s crucial that
specialised employment support is available and the government
responds to the challenges people often encounter.
A more tailored approach can help reach those who are not
currently receiving any employment support or skills
development. The experiences of disabled people must be central
for this support to meaningfully build confidence in an ongoing
way, reflecting their individual circumstances and aspirations.
The Intensive Personalised Employment Support programme will
support people living with a disability who are unlikely to move
into work within the next year or longer and may need additional
support.
Other government support to help disabled people get into and
thrive in work includes the Disability Confident scheme,
the Work and Health
programme, the Access to Work
grant and Jobcentre Plus services.
The Secretary of State also announced measures to reduce the most
severely disabled benefit claimants having their awards
unnecessarily reviewed.
Personal Independence
Payment covers some of the extra costs caused by long
term disability or ill-health.
New guidance will ensure that people who are awarded the highest
level of support under Personal Independence Payment will receive
an ongoing award, with a ‘light touch’ review every 10 years so
they no longer have to have their conditions re-examined.
Previously this was going to only be applicable for new claims,
but the Secretary of State has now taken steps to ensure this
also applies to existing claims.
This is to ensure that for disabled people who need extra
support, the system is designed to be as seamless as possible
while minimising any unnecessary stress or bureaucracy.