4Pre-employment support
29.It is not just employers who lack awareness about the potential of AT. Leonard Cheshire Disability told us the employment prospects of many disabled people are hindered because they do not know how AT can enhance their own capacity to work.93 In turn, this can cause them to miss many opportunities. For example, most recruitment processes now take place online, but AT is often necessary for disabled people to use the internet.94 In 2017, the Office for National Statistics found that 22% of disabled adults have never used the internet compared with 9% of non-disabled people.95 Lack of training and the cost of equipment are key reasons for low take up.96 Scope explained that not having internet access means disabled people are immediately cut off from large parts of the labour market.97 Beyond simply accessing opportunities, AT can also help disabled people gain a broader understanding of the sorts of work they could do, learn skills, and provide a means of demonstrating their ability to perform certain roles.98
Learning the skills for work
30.In the next chapter, we consider Access to Work, the DWP’s programme to fund adjustments for employees whose health conditions affect the way they do their job.99 Access to Work offers a valued service, but is only available for people who are already in work. We heard that prior to an Access to Work assessment, many potential users of AT have no idea what kinds of AT could support them.100 Prior knowledge of suitable AT could be beneficial on starting work, not least because employer awareness can be low.101 There can also be long waits for equipment to arrive and be set up, followed by time taken to learn how to use it effectively.102 Combined, this can mean it takes weeks or months before disabled workers are able to work as productively as non-disabled workers—a factor that may act as a further disincentive to employers and deter some disabled people from applying for certain jobs. Jo Ann Moran, a civil servant, told us that all of this made starting a new job even more “nerve-wracking” than it would otherwise be.103
31.There are few mechanisms for unemployed disabled people to find out about AT, and learn how to use it in preparation for employment.104 Users can seek independent advice from specific charities and support organisations, but this provision is limited. Aspire, a charity supporting people with spinal cord injury, described it “notoriously inconsistent across the country”.105 Some witnesses suggested this kind of advice could be provided initially by Jobcentre Plus Work Coaches—front-line support staff.106 Jobcentre Plus might additionally ensure AT is available on-site for disabled job-seekers to use while looking for work, with staff on hand to offer help if necessary.107
32.Action on Hearing Loss told us there was a “strong case” for providing disabled jobseekers with more detailed, expert pre-work AT consultations with charities and user organisations.108 These could include a preliminary assessment of what AT might be useful, referrals for pre-work training, and advice on built-in accessibility options built into devices they already own.109 This provision could be made for any claimants with impairment, whether they are on Employment and Support Allowance, Jobseekers’ Allowance or Universal Credit.110 For some claimants, this might negate the need for an Access to Work assessment altogether, saving time and public money. For others, it could make the process of carrying out an Access to Work assessment and learning to use the equipment much quicker.
33.The Department’s Flexible Support Fund (FSF) can be used to fund employment support to which individuals are referred at the discretion of Work Coaches.111 The Department explained that AT and related training could be funded through FSF “barrier awards”, which aim to remove obstacles to searches for work.112 These might include “awards for the purchase of specialist equipment, such as assistive digital packages where appropriate”. In practice, the FSF is rarely used to fund AT equipment or training. The Department told us that clothing, tools and travel costs account for the majority of awards.113 The FSF budget was reduced from £179 million in 2014–15 to £52 million in 2016–17. This partly reflects its historic tendency to be underspent—barely half of the 2014–15 budget was used. The FSF budget is reviewed each year to reflect “claimant needs and volumes”.114
34.Shaw Trust explained that whether the FSF is used to fund AT support hinges on Work Coaches having a “basic level of understanding of AT and its benefits”, sufficient to prompt them to make referrals.115 Currently, Work Coaches do not receive specific training on AT. Specialist DWP Disability Employment Advisers have some training on assistive equipment and are responsible for passing this training on to Work Coaches.116 Shaw Trust suggested JCP needs to do more to ensure front-line Work Coaches themselves receive training on AT, equipping them with the knowledge needed to refer claimants.117 We also heard that referrals are dependent on up-to-date, specialist support being available across JCP areas.118 Witnesses told us provision of these services could be stimulated by the Department encouraging local specialist services to tender for FSF funding.119
35.Opportunities for disabled people to understand the potential benefits of assistive technology while looking for work are limited. This can make it harder for them to convince employers they can do a job. It may even discourage them from seeking a job at all. The support currently available through Jobcentre Plus is limited and patchy. But provision already exists—via the Flexible Support Fund—to greatly enhance access to assistive technology for out of work disabled people. We recommend the Department update training for front line Work Coaches to include mandatory training on assistive technology. This should include emphasising the wide range of conditions that AT can help manage, and encouraging Work Coaches to make referrals at the earliest point of contact. We further recommend the Department undertakes an assessment of existing and potential suppliers of assistive technology support to inform development of a more consistent, extensive market linked to the Flexible Support Fund. The support that is available should be publicised, on a rolling basis, to Jobcentre Plus staff and claimants.
Buying assistive technology
36.Financial barriers can prevent disabled people from making use of AT. Disabled people often face greater and unavoidable financial pressures on their incomes than non-disabled people.120 Witnesses explained that support to buy AT outside the workplace is limited. We heard that few charities offer finance for AT and, occasional grants via the FSF aside, there is no substantial source of public funding.121 People requiring expensive, specialist AT packages may particularly struggle to afford them. For disabled people relying on out-of-work benefits or on low incomes, even mainstream accessible technologies like a smartphone or basic laptop may be out of reach.122
37.Some witnesses suggested funding for AT could be provided through the Personal Independence Payment (PIP) benefit.123 PIP is intended to help cover some of the extra costs associated with having a health condition, and to enable disabled people to participate in society.124 The Department told us that AT can be a tool for reaching similar goals, enabling “greater inclusion of disabled people in the workplace and broader society”.125
38.PIP is split into two components—mobility and daily living.126 Claimants who receive the mobility award can opt to use it to lease high-cost items such cars, scooters or electric wheelchairs at a preferential rate via the Motability scheme, in lieu of a monthly payment. There is no equivalent for the daily living component.127 Stephen Duckworth, an AT user and business leader, told us the Government should introduce one. He envisaged a “financing stream that could provide money upfront that could then be deducted off people’s monthly income from PIP”.128 Leonard Cheshire Disability endorsed a similar funding model. They explained an ideal scheme would include:129
i)a comprehensive assessment of an individual’s specific needs, carried out by someone with specialist knowledge of their condition;
ii)recommendations of the right technology, which they could opt to buy or lease through a loan, repayable through PIP awards; and
iii)support during the set-up and training process, and with ongoing maintenance of equipment.
Stephen Duckworth told us that this funding system would enable disabled people to “invest in their future”, buying AT they would otherwise struggle to afford. This could improve their standard of living and help them both in work and looking for work. As the scheme would act as a low interest loan, it would come at no extra cost to the taxpayer.130
39.Cost barriers prevent disabled people realising the life-changing potential of assistive technology. Specialist AT can cost thousands of pounds. For disabled people with low incomes, even cheaper mainstream AT can be unaffordable. That PIP enables claimants to get access to cars up front, but not smartphones or laptops, is out of step with modern life and work. We recommend the Department introduce a new finance scheme for the daily living component of PIP. Claimants should have the option of a low interest loan to buy or lease assistive technology products. Users of the scheme should be offered a consultation before buying equipment, with expert assistive technology advisers, to ensure they are buying the most appropriate and cost-effective equipment. The Department need not administer the scheme, but should ensure that whoever company does so works in line with the principles of providing a public service.
93 Leonard Cheshire Disability (AST0022). See also: Action on Hearing Loss (AST0025), Jisc (AST0010), Scope(AST0009), RNIB (AST0044), British Assistive Technology (AST0034)
94 AbilityNet (AST0024), Shaw Trust (AST0027), Leonard Cheshire Disability (AST0022), RNIB and Thomas Pocklington Trust (AST0020), WAIS Accessibility Team University of Southampton (AST0019), Inclusion London (AST0016), How Do I? (AST0014), Scope (AST0009)
95 Office for National Statistics, Internet users in the UK: 2017, May 2017
96 Extra Costs Commission, Driving down the extra costs disabled people face, 2015
97 Scope (AST0009). See also: WAIS Accessibility Team University of Southampton (AST0019), Shaw Trust (AST0027)
98 Leonard Cheshire Disability (AST0022). See also: Action on Hearing Loss (AST0025), Jisc (AST0010), Scope (AST0009), RNIB (AST0044), British Assistive Technology (AST0034), Inclusion London (AST0016), RNIB and Thomas Pocklington Trust (AST0020)
99 The process of Access to Work assessments is explained in Chapter 5
101 Action for ME (AST0006), See also: Shaw Trust (AST0039), Shaw Trust (AST0027), Action on Hearing Loss (AST0025), AbilityNet (AST0024), Leonard Cheshire Disability (AST0022), RNIB and Thomas Pocklington Trust (AST0020), How Do I? (AST0014)
102 Name Withheld (AST0003),Shaw Trust (AST0027), Name Withheld (AST0047), Leonard Cheshire Disability (AST0022), Inclusion London (AST0016), Action on Hearing Loss (AST0025)
104 Q38 (Tracey Johnson), Q22 (Simon Wheatcroft), Leonard Cheshire Disability (AST0022).See also: Action on Hearing Loss (AST0025), Jisc (AST0010), Scope (AST0009), RNIB (AST0044), British Assistive Technology (AST0034)
105 Aspire (AST0017), Inclusion London (AST0016), Association of Disabled Professionals(AST0015), Jisc (AST0010), Shaw Trust (AST0027), Leonard Cheshire Disability (AST0022), WAIS Accessibility Team University of Southampton (AST0019), Vision Impairment Centre for Teaching and Research University of Birmingham (AST0008), Name Withheld (AST0047)
108 Action on Hearing Loss (AST0025), Leonard Cheshire Disability (AST0022), Jisc (AST0010), Vision Impairment Centre for Teaching and Research University of Birmingham (AST0008), Shaw Trust (AST0027), Shaw Trust (AST0039)
112 Letter from Minister for Disabled People, Health and Work to Chair of the Committee, February 2018
113 Letter from Minister for Disabled People, Health and Work to Chair of the Committee, February 2018
116 Letter from Minister for Disabled People, Health and Work to Chair of the Committee, February 2018
119 Shaw Trust (AST0039), All Party Parliamentary Group on Assistive Technology (AST0035), Business Disability Forum (AST0035), Hft (AST0030)
121 Shaw Trust (AST0027), Leonard Cheshire Disability (AST0022), Stephen Duckworth (AST0041), RNIB and Thomas Pocklington Trust (AST0020), Name Withheld (AST0047), Scope (AST0009)
122 Shaw Trust (AST0027), Leonard Cheshire Disability (AST0022), Stephen Duckworth (AST0041), RNIB and Thomas Pocklington Trust (AST0020), Q21 (Simon Wheatcroft), Q27 (Stephen Duckworth), Name Withheld (AST0047)
124 DWP, https://www.gov.uk/pip, March 2018
126 DWP, https://www.gov.uk/pip/what-youll-get , March 2018
127 Motability, https://www.motability.co.uk/ , March 2018
Published: 19 April 2018