This young disabled man dreamed of having a job – the system had other ideas

After a joyful graduation from National Star in 2022, Elliot moved to Project Choice, a specialist college providing tailored educational support. He was excited about his future and hoped to secure an NHS apprenticeship.

Elliot didn’t want to “sit at home on the benefits system” and wanted to get out, work and meet people, he said.

Work and Pensions Secretary Liz Kendall recently confirmed the government’s commitments to its manifesto Back to Work Plan, which includes plans for more disabled people and those with health conditions to be supported to enter and stay in work.

She said government would be devolving more power to local areas to offer more “joined-up” support.

When Elliot was looking for an apprenticeship, he suffered a series of setbacks that epitomise a system cracking under the strain. Due to the Covid outbreak and a lack of suitable work placements, he was not able to get the work experience he needed.

His mother, Chris, said a lot of placements weren’t satisfactory as he either couldn’t get his wheelchair into them, or they didn’t have accessible toilets. North Tyneside Council says it is not aware of having offered a placement that was unsuitable for wheelchair access. A spokesperson for the authority says it has “worked hard to secure opportunities that are suitable for Elliot’s needs”.

But Elliot wasn’t able to get his longed-for apprenticeship. He was very disappointed.

Elliot is not alone in his struggle to find employment. Disabled people are almost twice as likely to be unemployed as non-disabled people.

Recent ONS employment statistics for disabled people find the disability employment gap – the difference in the employment rate of disabled people and people who are not disabled – is at a similar level as it was before Covid.

Though the proportion of disabled people who are in employment varies considerably depending on the type of disability, in the last quarter of 2023, the gap was 27.9 percentage points.

As Elliot has not been able to get an apprenticeship, his local authority has extended his time in education.

The hope is it will help him develop workplace skills and gain more experience. He is pleased, as he is eager to to do some form of job, even if it’s volunteering.

North Tyneside Council contacted 25 organisations to help him secure a position but acknowledged there were gaps in finding meaningful and accessible placements. Elliot has now joined the council on a voluntary placement in a customer-facing role.