Supported internships are a structured, work-based study programme for 16 to 24-year-olds with special educational needs and disabilities (SEND) who have an education, health and care (EHC) plan. The Department for Education (DfE) aims to strengthen the supported internship programme, by making an £18m investment in activity to allow the supported…

Students with significant disabilities typically experience poor postschool employment outcomes. However, when provided opportunities to work and engage within their communities, they can gain necessary work-specific and workplace social skills to improve outcomes. This article outlines a six-step model for community-based employment programs…

The importance of employment in society is unmistakable, but for many people sustained employment remains elusive. The unemployment rate for individuals with disabilities is staggering, and the consequences of being unemployed affects those individuals, their families, and society. The effects of performance feedback delivered via covert audio…

The aim was to identify factors associated with physical activity participation among active (i.e. more than or equal to 10 000 steps per day) individuals with intellectual disability. Staff at day program and supported employment organizations were asked to identify individuals they believed were physically active. To verify participants were…

The "Making it Work" book is for practitioners and managers working with people with learning difficulties in FE colleges, adult and community learning services, work-based learning and voluntary sector organisations. This book was produced as a result of a two-year project funded by the Department of Health. It provides information…

Recent legislation, especially the Americans with Disabilities Act in 1990, generated the closure of institutions for people with disabilities and inclusion into community residences and employment. It has been well documented that individuals with developmental disabilities often experience difficulties with employment including both obtaining…

Traditional employment often excludes those individuals with severe and moderate mental retardation. This paper describes three strategies that can be used by employment specialists and one strategy that can be used by job coaches in obtaining and maintaining employment for mentally retarded adults, using the supported competitive employment…

Individuals with significant disabilities who have been trained to enter independent employment often depend too much on their job coaches. This guide describes strategies to enhance the problem-solving skills of learners with mental retardation by teaching them to use self-instruction or self-directed verbal commands. It details procedures for…

Part of a series that provides practical resources to transition personnel on topics essential to the process of preparing individuals with disabilities for adulthood, this manual focuses on transition issues related to students with visual impairments. Chapter 1 discusses the nature of visual impairment and reactions to visual impairment. Chapter…

A study reviewed the efforts of six states (California, Florida, Minnesota, Oregon, Texas, and Washington) to create new policies and strategies to support low-income individuals as they work. The study found the following: (1) working steadily initially after leaving welfare is linked to being employed in later years but is not linked to higher…

This book, which is intended to assist teachers, supported employment personnel, and employment specialists, provides information on supports and methods that have proved successful in helping persons with autism obtain and hold jobs. Discussed in chapters 1-5 are the following topics: autism and vocational fitness; vocational planning for workers…

The Continental Project is a school-to-work transition program for students with disabilities. The 6-year old program, which is located at a country club and golf course, serves more than 20 students per year and has successfully transitioned 45 young adults with moderate to severe handicaps into the workforce. The program is a cooperative effort…