A-million-futures-halving-the-disability-employment-gap.pdf?ext=

with the way individuals supportneeds are being assessed. [62] In33% of cases – 24,550 referralsoverall – the customersimpairment or condition wasmissing or unknown, reflectingserious concerns about theassessment and informationsharing process.Employment support shouldbecome more personalisedThere are three priority areasthat should be addressed toimprove employment support fordisabled people: accelerateprogress towards personalbudgets in employment; createa more personalised supportassessment; and shape themarket to capacity build smallerspecialist providers.1. Introduce personalemployment budgetsThe priority for any redesign ofthe employment support systemshould be a dramatic increase inthe level of personalised supportavailable to disabled people. Todo this, the next Governmentshould accelerate progresstowards introducing personalbudgets into employmentsupport. Personal budgets can:•Empowerdisabled people toincrease choice and control overtheir careers by enabling them todecide what support they needto meet their own careeraspirations.Remove bureaucracy from theemployment support system.Many disabled people reportfinding the current employmentsupport system remote anddifficult to access. A single,portable budget with a clearlydefined and agreed support plancould reduce the need tocontinually reapply for support.•Creategreater flexibility in thetype of employment supportavailable. Disabled people reportfacing barriers not currentlyaddressed in the system, as setout in page 23.•Smooththe transition fordisabled people moving fromunemployment into work, andfrom one job to another. Startingwork can be made much moredifficult for disabled people byhaving to apply for separatesupport at each stage.•Providegreater flexibility andreassurance to employers byhaving a single personal budgetfor employment support that isavailable both pre- and duringemployment.This could helpdisabled people guarantee toemployers that the adjustmentsthat they require (or be perceivedto require) are covered by thefinancial support that theyalready have in place.•Allowdisabled people to accessemployment support at any pointin their career, not just during aperiod of unemployment. 80%of disabled people are in workwhen they acquire a condition orimpairment. [63] Providing supportfor them and their employers tomake necessary adjustmentsduring this period of changeis vital.There is already evidenceshowing how personal budgetscould work in practice, includinginternational examples [64] , andthe considerable lessons learntfrom the introduction of personalbudgets in social care.These include:An individual should havea person-centred supportassessment, carried out by atrained specialist advisor. Thisassessment should be availableat different points in a disabledperson’s career, not just whenthey are unemployed.Following the assessment, thefinancial level of support aperson can receive will bedetermined, and a range ofactivities decided in partnershipbetween the advisor and thedisabled person that they canuse to either i) find and preparefor work, or ii) adjust theworkplace to keep their job.Where an individual is a jobseeker, a ‘Return to WorkPlan’ will form the basis ofaccountability for the disabledperson to carry out certainactivities to replace currentblanket conditions and sanctionsfor non-compliance, and toensure the budget is spentas agreed.Different payment options shouldbe available to the disabledperson, including a DirectPayment and a managed budget.However, there are still keychallenges in introducingPersonal Employment Budgets,notably around the local marketof support available to disabledpeople. As such, there is a clearrole for a new market-shapingbody, separate from DWP, tooversee the introduction ofpersonalisation intoemployment support.2. Create a more personalisedassessmentThe Work Capability Assessmentis no longer fit for purpose.Evidence from Disabled People’sOrganisations [65] , officialreviews [66] and consultations,frequent media reports [67] andMPs’ own correspondence [68] allhighlight the significant personalharm that is being caused bydisabled people being found fitfor work inappropriately. Over80% of respondents to a recentDisability Benefits Consortium(DBC) survey either stronglyagreed or agreed that the stressof the WCA had made theircondition or impairment worse.At the heart of the failure of theassessment is a debate about26 27