1. Talentino Early Career Development Enterprising ways for Working Experience for young people with disabilities
Helen Joy
Joy of Joys

2. Introduction to the session – working together to:
Which young people are we talking about?
What do we mean by working experience?
Why is working experience critical for these young people?
Enterprising ways to secure working experience
Our ideas
Our schools’ ideas
Your ideas

3. Who is Talentino?
Who is Talentino? Talentino was created by senior people from business to improve outcomes for young people through raising the quality of careers learning in all types of schools, based in Reading and working across England. It is award winning and has won places on the following Social Enterprise programmes: The Young Foundation ,Unltd Big Venture Challenge, Big Issue and Ernst and Young
Quality Talentino has the following quality awards by assessment:
The Matrix (2012 and 2016)
The CDI Quality assured award for the Talentino Career Development Coaching Programme
The EMCC accreditation for the Foundation Practitioner level coaching programme
Campaigns Talentino campaigns nationally for better early career development for young people with learning difficulties including in 2016:
Invited to the All Party Parliamentary Group Education at their Careers meeting
Invited to the new Ministers’ roundtable on the new National Careers Strategy
Published a paper #sameandifferent in two journals and submitted to Government
Annual SEN Schools Careers conference for our clients

4. Which young people with disabilities / in Special Schools are we talking about?
Young people with cognitive learning difficulties in Special Schools from moderate to profound and multiple learning difficulties and may / may not have physical disabilities
Young people with physical difficulties who do not have cognitive learning difficulties
Young people who are ‘looked after’ in care
Young people in Special Schools with social, emotional, behavioural challenges
Young people in SEN provision in mainstream schools
It is important to understand how the disability is viewed by the employment marketplace and their readiness to accept a diverse workforce

5. What do we mean by working experience?
Traditional - External work experience for a week or two in June for Year 10 mainstream funded by the Government
Now – very patchy, ‘Cold spot’ analysis, funded by schools or parents
Yet, it is viewed as essential by employers that young people have early work experience
London Careers Ambition committed to 100 hours for every young person by the time they leave school
Together we will look at optimising working experience for young people with Special needs

6. Why is working experience critical for these young people?
‘Proving’ to employers they are employable
Often competing with few / no academic qualifications and everything starts with a ‘C’ minimum in Maths and English
Some young people with learning difficulties will never achieve this
Employers always say that attitude and the soft skills ( intrinsic) skills needed for work are the most important to them in many jobs
Working experience is an ideal way to demonstrate these skills and secure references to evidence this
Proven that the more interactions with employers that take place reduce or negate the possibility of a young person becoming NEET

7. Enterprising ways to secure working experience Our ideas, Our schools’ ideas, Your ideas
Case study – Brookfields Special School
In 2012 Brookfields had 2 students out on work experience and no employer relationships, paid for this service
In 2016, employers network of 55 local employers including big nationals and small local employers with every KS4 and post 16 student who can access external or internal working experience – average 80 per year. All done in house!
Not always easy - Sainsburys
How did they do it?
Worked with Talentino to have more business like conversations with employers
Lots preparation with employers
Lots pre work with students who followed a career coaching curriculum prior to work experience
Graduated and multiple working experiences now called work placements
Firstly about getting good work disciplines, then orientated to their career interest, reinforced
Celebrated and rewarded employers which incentivised them further
Whole school behind it and saw the value
Curriculum changed to focus on post school outcomes
Goal – Improve the possibility and probability of paid work’

8. Brookfields film – Pathway to Employment

9. Share ideas in groups and come back
Which group of young people do you work with?
Why is working experience critical for these young people?
How can you help secure these opportunities? Internally or externally

10. For more information contact: