A Supported Internship is a programme that helps to bridge the gap from Education into paid work by providing additional support to young people. The programme is designed to support young people with additional needs who want to gain paid employment but would require additional support to do so.
In order to be eligible to access the Supported Internship programme, you must be between 16 - 24 years old and have an Education Health Care Plan. There are no specific qualifications or grades required, however the young person accessing this programme, must want to work.
The main goal of an internship is to help a young person with learning difficulties to develop the skills they need to be able to gain paid work. We need to make sure we get the right young person into the right job role with the right employer.
The young person would be supported in their work placement by their job coach, who will help identify the job role you want which also fulfils the business needs of the employer. They will support you from your initial induction and settling in period and will support you through your internship, but as you become more confident and independent, their support will gradually withdraw, only when you are ready, but will still be contactable should any issues arise. You will also work alongside other people in the business who will be your managers who will supervise you as they would all employees.
The Supported Internship is an unpaid programme, but to fund the support of a young person by a job coach in the work place an application will be made to DWP Access to Work on your behalf. Either the young person or a recognised appointee will have to sign invoices at the end of each month to release the funds for the Job Coach support.
The aim of the Supported Internship is to prepare you for employment. As you will have been fulfilling a business need in the organisation, discussion will have been happening to secure you paid work at the end of the programme. This may not always be possible, but we are quite clear with an employer at the start that we are looking for paid work at the end of the programme. If you reach the required standards and they have a vacancy they should offer employment, whether this be full time, part time or hours discussed between the young person and the employer.
What is a Supported Internship and how do I access the programme?
A Supported Internship is a programme aimed at helping young people with a learning disability transition into paid work. This programme is different to other education based programmes, as it involves being in the work place most of the week. Whilst in the work place all interns will have a Job Coach who will support them to develop their skills and confidence.
A Supported Internship is about learning ‘real’ skills, for a 'real’ job, it is not just work experience. The amount of support provided by the Job Coach is different for everybody. However, all interns would usually start with 100% support which would fade week by week. Until the intern is working completely independently! Interns will also spend part of their week with their education provider (this could be a School, College or Training Provider, depending on where they are doing their Supported Internship). Here, interns will develop their employability skills, as well as Maths and English.
Who can apply?
You must be aged between 16- 24 years old and have a current , Education Health Care Plan . There are no entry requirements needed to do a Supported Internship, only the desire to want a job and ready to start a job.
Where can I do my Supported Internship
- Bury College
- Elmsbank
- Project Choice
- Bridge College
Guidance from the Department of Education
Preparing for Supported Internships
Supported Internship is a final year of education, this is because the goal of the programme is to help young people transition from education into paid work (with support from a job coach).
There are some key things that you can do to prepare for a Supported Internship. The most important thing for anybody accessing a Supported Internship is to have done some work experience or volunteering. This is because it helps you to gain knowledge about what it is you might like doing, and where you feel your strengths and skills are. This helps us to ensure we are finding the best work placement for you- to ensure you have the best opportunity of progressing into paid work at the end of the programme.
Before coming on to a Supported Internship, we will work with you and the people that know you best to complete a ‘vocational profile’. A vocational profile is an important piece of work we do before anybody starts on the Supported Internship programme. This profile helps us to build up a picture of you. For example, your interests and skills, past work experience, past information about school, information about travel training, and also the areas of support that you would benefit from. All this information is key to ensuring we find you the best work placement to meet your needs, and it also ensures that the job coach can put the best strategies in place to support you to reach your potential whilst on programme.
Preparing for adulthood
Vocational Profile resource is a discovery document that is specifically related to work and supporting someone to find a job.
Information for Employers
A Supported Internship is a programme that helps to bridge the gap from education into paid work by providing additional support to both the young person and the employer. The programme is designed to support young people with additional needs who have an Educational Health Care and Plan in place and are aged between 16 - 24, who want to gain paid employment but would require additional support to do so. The main goal of an internship is to help a young person with learning difficulties to develop the skills they need to be able to gain paid work.
A supported Internship is unpaid, there is no cost to the employer in offering an extended work placement to a young person. The young person will be supported whilst in placement by a Job Coach, funding for this and reasonable adjustments would be in place prior to starting in the workplace. An Employer would receive support and guidance throughout the placement from the provider.
The education provider would collaborate with the employer to ensure the best job match between the Intern and the employer fits from the roles they have available. In order for the programme to be a success, for both the employer and the young person, it is crucial that we match the right young person and their skill set with the right role and employer. The aim of the programme is to benefit both the employer and the intern.
Accepting a young person on a Supported Internship can not only be rewarding by giving a young person the opportunity to grow in confidence, but also to ensure they benefit from completing a Supported Internship in a real working environment, it is also beneficial to an employer in the long term by helping with their recruitment of staff.
How does your business benefit
- It can save your company time and money
- It gives you extra team capacity at no extra cost
- It opens up a diverse, undiscovered talent pool
- It provides motivated, committed employees
- It improves morale and team working
- It can enhance your company’s reputation, both internally and with customers
- It demonstrates social value, helping you attract further talent and win business
Grow your team, grow their confidence. While this is a game-changing opportunity for your business, it’s a life-changing opportunity for the supported interns. They develop in confidence, learn new skills, learn to work as part of a team, build their independence and progress towards paid employment. So, you really are helping to rewrite their future.
Further Information
For more information, you can contact Zerqa Ahmad, SEND Business Development Officer, who is leading on the Supported Internship Programme.
- Telephone: 0161 253 7234.
- Email: z.ahmad@bury.gov.uk.
- Address: 3 Knowsley Place, Duke Street, Bury, BL9 0EJ.
