Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:

To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what steps his Department is taking to support tailored, small-cohort employability programmes for care-experienced young people that include one-to-one career coaching, work experience opportunities and in-work mentoring.

The Department is committed to improving employment outcomes for care‑experienced young people and ensuring they can access the personalised support they need to move into and stay in work. Our new programme, Connect to Work is a £1 billion voluntary, locally commissioned, Supported Employment programme for anyone who is disabled, has a health condition or is experiencing complex non-health related barriers to work which includes care experienced young people. The programme will support around 300,000 people across England and Wales by the end of the decade.

Robust international evidence shows that Supported Employment, which provides a holistic approach to supporting individuals with more complex barriers to employment, can be effective in helping these people into sustained employment.

Participants are given a dedicated, specialist employment support adviser who works alongside them to understand their career goals and help them to address any specific barriers to employment. The adviser seeks good labour market matches for the participant. Participants are supported to have conversations with prospective employers, removing the need to go through complex application processes. The employment adviser works with both the employer and the participant to ensure that the transition into work is smooth and that the workplace is inclusive.

Out of Work participants receive one-to-one support from Connect to Work for up to 12 months to help identify and fulfil employment goals that are suitable for their circumstances. In work participants who are at risk of falling out of employment or self-employment due to their disability or complex barriers can receive up to 4 months support.