SaTH prepares to welcome talented young interns

We are preparing to welcome talented young interns via the DFN Project SEARCH Transition to Employment Programme, which launched earlier this year.

This new and exciting programme is for young people with an Education, Health and Care Plan (EHCP). It is aimed at students with learning disabilities and autism with ambitions to get 10,000 young adults with learning disabilities and autism into full-time paid jobs over the next decade.

We are working with Shrewsbury Colleges Group, Shropshire Council, Enable Supported Employment Provider and the DFN Project SEARCH to deliver the programme. The interns will be enrolled at Shrewsbury Colleges Group and receive their lessons on site from a college tutor whilst benefitting from total workplace immersion. The interns will be learning competitive and transferable skills for a variety of roles and will receive an employability curriculum each day to develop their work-based skills.

More than 1,600 young people with learning disabilities and autism have now graduated through DFN Project SEARCH programmes in the UK. Typically, 70% of interns secure employment against the national average of just 5.6%.

The programme starts in September, but we have hosted a welcome day for the interns. We will be welcoming: Lauren, Hannah, James, Emily, Gina, Harvey, Dan, Arron and Elliot.

We already have confirmed placements in Education, Pathology and Therapies, but are seeking further opportunities at RSH. If you would like to get involved and support these young people, please contact Tracy Newbold at t.newbold@nhs.net.