Preparing for Adulthood - Young People with Special Educational Needs and Disabilities
Project Background
Based on feedback from residents and stakeholders on their priorities in health and social care, Healthwatch Tower Hamlets conducted a research project exploring the experiences of social care services supporting young people with special educational needs and disabilities (SEND) to prepare for adulthood and transition to adult services.
The questions we wanted to explore were based on the Tower Hamlets Special Educational Needs, Disabilities and Inclusion Strategy 2024–29, which has set out the following objectives to improve the opportunities and support for young people with special educational needs and disabilities:
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Planning for adulthood should start at the age of 14 for young people with SEND.
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More local education places for young people aged 16 and over with SEND.
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More options for vocational learning or part-time alternative provision for young people with SEND.
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Timely and well-planned transitions for our young people who will need support from adult social care and health services.
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Support for life skills such as travel training, welfare entitlements and wellbeing for young adults.
We wanted to hear from young people aged 14-25 with SEND about how well they are being supported to plan different aspects of their lives, such as education, employment, living arrangements, financial independence, and social interactions, to help inform improvements to services to ensure all young people are equipped to live as independently as possible and provided with same skills and opportunities.
Methodology
The feedback was collected through an online survey and in-person visits to services to speak to young people. The online survey ran between December 2024 and May 2025. However, most of the feedback was collected through face-to-face interviews with support from staff working with the young people.
In total, we collected feedback from 21 young people: 10 of these young people reported having hearing or visual impairments. Additionally, we heard from six parents and carers of young people with special educational needs and disabilities.
Key Findings and Recommendations
Recommendation 1: Planning for adulthood should start earlier to allow detailed plans with achievable goals to be developed
When asked to recall the age at which planning for their future began, the average age mentioned by the respondents was 17, suggesting more work is needed to ensure the planning phase starts as early as possible, giving young people enough time to discuss their wishes, explore their options and set realistic goals and the steps needed to achieve them.
Recommendation 2: Young people should be provided with more practical support in securing apprenticeships, internships and employment
Only 19% of the young people we spoke with had a support plan in place to help secure employment. Through our discussions with young people, we learned that many of them find it challenging to secure employment, which makes it essential that they are provided with opportunities to learn skills in a supportive environment. We heard some good examples of the positive impact an internship and apprenticeships can offer, highlighting the need for more meaningful opportunities in various industries, giving them a chance to discover, learn new skills and pursue something they truly enjoy.
Recommendation 3: Young people with visual and hearing impairments should be provided with more opportunities to take part in activities and hobbies
The feedback from young people with hearing and visual impairments indicated that activities and hobbies were less often discussed compared to the feedback provided by all young people with SEND. Additionally, Healthwatch Tower Hamlets noted during our engagement phase of the project that there are very few organisations in Tower Hamlets that provide activities for young people with sensory impairments, or there is a lack of awareness of them.
Recommendation 4: Improve recruitment of social workers to ensure consistent, high-quality support for young people
Although the majority of the young people we spoke to rated their relationship with their social worker as positive, 42% rated it as neutral or negative, or they were unsure about it.
Some young people reported negative experiences with their social workers or having multiple social workers, with some being “okay” and some not, which would no doubt have an impact on the continuity of the young person’s care. In addition, more than a third of the young people rated the communication with their social worker as either neutral or negative, while 30% reported that their social worker did not provide information about their support plans in a way that was easy for them to understand.
Downloads
If you need this document in a different format, please email info@healthwatchtowerhamlets.co.uk or call 0800 145 5343.
