Asked by: Robert Buckland (Conservative - South Swindon)
Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:
To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what assessment he has made of the potential impact of the time taken to make an autism assessment on employment rates.
Answered by Mims Davies - Shadow Minister (Women)
There are no plans for DWP to make this specific assessment. Whilst we recognise the importance of early identification of autism, a diagnosis is not required to be eligible for reasonable adjustments and the provision of workplace support. These are made, in line with the requirements of the Equality Act 2010, based on functional need.
We are, as you know, encouraging employers to adopt more neuro-inclusive working practices, which benefit neurodiverse employees irrespective of whether they have a diagnosis.
The SoS and I were delighted to see the launch of your excellent Review into Autism Employment on the 28th of February, which has created a focus for action to improve the recruitment and retention of autistic people. It has identified workplace barriers, and the working practices and initiatives that can reduce them, to create a more inclusive working environment for autistic employees and autistic jobseekers.
We now look towards supporting how the 19 recommendations in the report can be implemented to encourage a more neuro-inclusive culture in the workplace.
This is supported by Disability Confident, our scheme to increase employers’ understanding of how to recruit, retain and support disabled employees and the Support with Employee Health and Disability online service which guides employers through health and disability scenarios at work, including making reasonable adjustments.
Asked by: Robert Buckland (Conservative - South Swindon)
Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:
To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what the average time was for Access to Work claims for the costs of employment coaches for supported interns to be paid in the latest period for which data is available.
Answered by Mims Davies - Shadow Minister (Women)
The information requested about Access to Work payment journey times for the cost of employment coaches for supported interns in the latest period is not readily available and to provide it would incur disproportionate cost.
However, the Access to Work statistics includes number of people who received a payment for any Access to Work provision from 2007/08 to 2022/23. Please see Table 6 of the Access to Work statistics.
The latest Access to Work statistics can be found here.
Asked by: Robert Buckland (Conservative - South Swindon)
Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:
To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, how many Access to Work claims for the cost of employment coaches for supported interns were (a) approved and (b) unpaid on 5 February 2024; and if he will make an assessment of the total value of these claims.
Answered by Mims Davies - Shadow Minister (Women)
The information requested about Access to Work claims for employment coaches for supported interns is not readily available and to provide it would incur disproportionate cost.
However, Access to Work statistics include how many applications result in provision being approved from 2007/08 to 2022/23. Please see Table 3 of the Access to Work statistics.
The latest Access to Work statistics can be found here.
Asked by: Robert Buckland (Conservative - South Swindon)
Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:
To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what steps the Government is taking to help integrate neurodiversity into working (a) practices and (b) culture in the (i) public and (ii) private sector.
Answered by Paul Maynard
We know that neurodivergent people bring many positive benefits to businesses and therefore understand the importance of encouraging employers to adopt more neuro-inclusive working practices.
The Secretary of State and Tom Pursglove (former Minister for Disabled People) are very grateful for the work you have been leading on the Review into Autism Employment, which has been exploring working practices or initiatives which can reduce stigma and create a more inclusive working environment for autistic and neurodiverse employees in the public, private and voluntary sectors. We look forward to the publication of the report early in 2024, and then to working with you, with employers, and with stakeholders to implement the recommendations from the report and encourage a more neuro-inclusive culture in the workplace.
We are also supporting employers via Disability Confident to increase their understanding of how to recruit, retain and support disabled employees and those with long term health conditions. The scheme provides employers with the skills and knowledge to remove barriers that might be preventing disabled people, neurodivergent people and those with long term health conditions from accessing employment and allows them opportunities to fulfil their potential and realise their aspirations.
Asked by: Robert Buckland (Conservative - South Swindon)
Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:
To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what steps the Government is taking to encourage industry to foster a more inclusive working environment for neurodivergent people.
Answered by Paul Maynard
We know that neurodivergent people bring many positive benefits to businesses and therefore understand the importance of encouraging employers to adopt more neuro-inclusive working practices.
The Secretary of State and Tom Pursglove (former Minister for Disabled People) are very grateful for the work you have been leading on the Review into Autism Employment, which has been exploring working practices or initiatives which can reduce stigma and create a more inclusive working environment for autistic and neurodiverse employees in the public, private and voluntary sectors. We look forward to the publication of the report early in 2024, and then to working with you, with employers, and with stakeholders to implement the recommendations from the report and encourage a more neuro-inclusive culture in the workplace.
We are also supporting employers via Disability Confident to increase their understanding of how to recruit, retain and support disabled employees and those with long term health conditions. The scheme provides employers with the skills and knowledge to remove barriers that might be preventing disabled people, neurodivergent people and those with long term health conditions from accessing employment and allows them opportunities to fulfil their potential and realise their aspirations.