Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what recent assessment he has made of the contribution of social care in supporting working-age disabled people into employment; and what plans he has for improvements to that care.

We have made no recent assessment.

Local authorities provide a range of services to enable people to participate more fully in society including support to gain or maintain employment. Local authorities are responsible for deciding what services to provide to people with eligible care and support needs in accordance with local priorities and the needs of the communities to which they are accountable.

For people with a learning disability or autism who are known to adult social care services, or those in contact with secondary mental health services, local authorities are working with the Department for Work and Pensions to test an approach to delivering supported employment, with payments based on employment outcomes.