In response to barriers young people with special educational needs and disabilities (SEND1) were facing in finding jobs and work placements, Middlesbrough council sought to create more employment opportunities for this cohort through its Preparation for Adulthood and Supported Internship programmes. Through successfully bringing services together across the council and by aligning SEND objectives with wider economic objectives (such as vacancy filling in shortage areas), the council has played a role in supporting 330 young people with SEND into employment since 2019. Participation rates of 16 and 17 years old with SEND in employment and training has also risen above the national and regional average over this time period. Alongside aligning services, the council has developed its offer through direct engagement with and feedback from children and young people (“you said, we did”). Robust tracking of children and young people with SEND has also helped to shape the offer further and to ensure no young people with SEND slip through the cracks at crucial transition points.
The SEND Effective Practice Evidence Framework considers that the “strength of evidence” of this case study is promising – the work has been evaluated and shared internally, but has been sustained for over 5 years. The “breadth of impact” of this case study is promising – there is evidence of impact in terms of lived experiences of young people with SEND and families and long-term outcomes for young people with SEND.
[1] For ease of reading, we use the term ‘SEND’ to refer to disabled children and young people and children and young people with special educational needs.