An NHS Lanarkshire programme for helping young people with autism and learning disabilities into employment has celebrated its tenth anniversary.
Project SEARCH was established by the charity DFN Foundation, and aims to help young people take on work-based learning opportunities to help them secure meaningful, paid employment.
The programme is a partnership between DFN Project SEARCH, NHS Lanarkshire, South Lanarkshire Council, North Lanarkshire Council and New College Lanarkshire.
It is run through University Hospital Hairmyres and University Hospital Monklands with the aim of making sure that everyone with a learning disability or autism can attain high-quality, integrated employment in their local area.
Cleland Sneddon, chief executive at South Lanarkshire Council, said: “Over the past 10 years, DFN Project SEARCH has provided fantastic opportunities for our interns, achieving remarkable results with many participants entering and sustaining paid employment.
“With excellent partnership working between South Lanarkshire Council, NHS Lanarkshire, ISS Facilities and New College Lanarkshire, this project has created meaningful work experience for young adults with additional support needs in South Lanarkshire.
“Our interns have been submerged into a real working environment, gaining on-the-job skills which have enabled them to follow and achieve their dreams. I am extremely proud to represent this group and I’m sure we’ll see many more successes in the future.”
The programme has a long history in Lanarkshire and has seen a range of success stories. An important part of its achievements has been due to the stability offered by ruining it in the same locations throughout the project.
Eddie Docherty, executive nurse director at NHS Lanarkshire, said: “I am delighted that NHS Lanarkshire has been able to support this brilliant project at University Hospital Monklands and University Hospital Hairmyres for the last 10 years and at University Hospital Wishaw for over 12 years.”
Claire Cookson, CEO of DFN Project SEARCH added: “Our programme, which is the biggest transition to work programme in Scotland, has a transformative effect on the interns who take part, with more than 1900 people now employed across the UK and 60 per cent of those interns achieving full-time permanent roles.
“Ultimately, we’re striving to enable an untapped talent pool of young people who can make a huge contribution to the employment market in Scotland.”
Less than five per cent of young adults with a learning disability and/or autism in Scotland get into paid work, compared to 80 per cent nationally.
Project SEARCH aims to overturn the imbalance by working in partnership across the public, private, and voluntary sectors to create supported employment internships that young people take part in during their last year of education.
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