The upcoming Milburn Review into Department for Work and Pensions (DWP) benefits will recommend a major expansion of supported internships for young people with autism, learning disabilities, or mental illness, according to reports. The review, led by Alan Milburn, is set to advise the Labour government to scale up these schemes to address the UK's youth jobs crisis.
Milburn calls for 'turbocharging' supported internships
Milburn, a former Labour health secretary, said supported internships should be scaled up to combat what he described as “devastating” joblessness rates among young people with those three conditions. He argued that the UK must abandon the assumption that people with a diagnosis are unable to work, stressing that they can work if given the right opportunities and support.
“The question is: are the opportunities there and is the support there? Supported internships have got such an effective track record,” Milburn told the Guardian. “With the best ones around 70% of the people on them end up in paid employment. In my view we have to turbocharge support – and at the moment the system is not set up to do that.”
Nearly one million young people classified as NEET
Milburn previously warned in his interim report that nearly 1 million 16- to 24-year-olds in the UK are classified as Neet (not in employment, education or training). He dismissed “myths” about 18- to 24-year-olds being a “snowflake generation”, saying: “The problem isn’t shortage of effort on the part of young people. It’s a shortage of opportunities, jobs, support.”
He also addressed the rise in youth ill health, stating: “There are two views about [the rise in youth ill health]. You can either say it’s fake or you can decide its real. It’s a real phenomenon. So we’ve got to deal with it and we have got to adjust our systems to deal with it.”
Early intervention in schools recommended
Milburn emphasised the need for early identification of young people at risk of becoming Neet, starting as early as preschool. “The warning signs are there from a very early, early age,” he said. “You know, frankly from preschool. So, definitely primary schools should be identifying children who are at risk of being Neet.”
He added: “And secondary schools and other services should be intercepting, intervening, supporting and helping those young people to get on a different path.” Milburn also highlighted the long-term consequences of current benefit dependency: “If you are a young person today and you apply and get a health and disability benefit, there’s a 50% chance that in 15 years’ time you will still be eligible. You’ll still be out of work. That is neither a good outcome, frankly, nor is it a progressive cause.”
