What is supported employment?
This
service
A service gives people what they need, like healthcare services that help people when they are ill, and support services that give people support.
can support people who are age 18 or over, live in the London boroughs of Kingston, Merton or Sutton, have a
learning disability
A learning disability is to do with the way someone's brain works. It makes it harder for someone to learn, understand or do things.
and/or a learning difficulty,
autism
Autism is a disability. Autistic people find it difficult to understand what other people think and feel. They also find it difficult to tell people what they think and feel. Everyone with autism is different.
or ADHD, into work.
It can support people who do not currently have a job, for up to 12 months. We can also support people who already have a job but would like help to keep their job or to take on more hours.
There are lots of other things you get to learn at our supported
employment
Employment means having a job.
services like how to:
- Understand what kind of jobs you would like to do
- Write a
CV
A CV is also called a Curriculum Vitae. It is a document with information about: your skills, your qualifications and any jobs or volunteering you have done. You may have to send a CV when you try to get a job.
- Search for a job
- Get ready for a job
interview
An interview is a meeting where you talk to someone or a group of people about something. When you have an interview for a job, you have to answer questions and say why you would be good at the job. The person who gives the best answers is offered the job.
- Understand your pay
- Stay safe at work
- Travel to work
- Do different tasks in your job.
Where can I find Mencap supported employment services?
How to use this search tool:

- Click on the name of the service that you want to know about.
- Click 'back' at the bottom of each search page to go back a step.

- Click 'restart' to go back to the beginning.
Find out more about each service
Sadly, we only have funding currently to deliver our programmes in certain Certain means you are sure about something. , specific areas.
If you do not live in any of the areas where we offer support, then we suggest you search on the local offer
website
A website is a page you can go to on the internet like Google or YouTube.
for your
local authority
A local authority is also called a council. They are a group of people who make decisions about some of the things in the area where you live like schools, social care (support for people), parks and dustbin collection.
area. Local offers are lists of local services that every
council
A council is also called a local authority. They are a group of people who make decisions about some of the things in the area where you live. These include: schools, social care (support for people), parks and dustbin collection.
has to have.
However, local offers only have to list support available to people aged up to 25. So it may also be a good idea to ask your local job centre about what employment-related support is available to you locally.
There are also Connect to Work services all over England and Wales. Some of these services are still being set up in some areas but in other areas you can get support now. There are two types of Connect to Work services - Individual Placement Support (IPS) and Supported Employment Quality Framework (SEQF). For people with a learning disability, learning difficulty, autism or ADHD, SEQF services will most likely be the most suitable service.
No.
Where we deliver these programmes, we have funding from local councils or grant givers, so you do not need to pay anything to access them.
Our programmes run all year round, with staff working Monday-Friday, 9-5, so you should be able to make contact with them during these hours.
Taking part in our programmes shouldn't affect your benefits. However, the purpose of these programmes is to secure paid work and if you achieve this, then this may affect your benefits depending on the number of hours that you work and how much you earn. You can find out more about the different kind of benefits and how they might be affected by what work you do on our benefits page.
We aim to respond to all enquiries within 10 working days. If you do not hear back within that time, please email our general enquiries inbox and a member of our team will work to chase up your enquiry with the relevant programme.
Our general employment enquiries email is: [email protected]