‘Give us more time’ young disabled students experiences of career provision in English mainstream secondary schools

Since 2011, increased responsibility has been placed on English mainstream schools to provide appropriate careers guidance and support to their students to prepare them for a successful transition from school. Disabled students are likely to encounter many barriers in their transitions from formal education settings, and they are less likely to be in employment, training, or education when compared to their non‐disabled peers. With growing numbers of disabled students attending mainstream provisions, a key challenge encountered by such schools is ensuring that they are providing inclusive and accessible career support to all young people. This project hoped to provide young people with an opportunity to reflect on their experiences of career support and to highlight what they think professionals need to consider in order to meet the needs of disabled students. Providing space for young people to be able to articulate their needs is particularly important, as once they begin to transition from mainstream school, there is increased emphasis on them being able to self‐advocate. Over the period of one academic year, nine young people, aged between 14 and 15 years old, took part in a series of research workshops to identify key principles for supporting young people to access careers in the classroom. We hope to provide opportunities for professionals who work with young people to be able to reflect on how they can best prepare young people for their transitions from mainstream school.