Select committee: Public Services Committee
Recommendation 21
1st Report - Think Work First: the transition from education to work for young disabled people
Published 15 Oct 2024
Paragraph 80
Public Services Committee The transition from education to employment for young disabled people All items in this report Report on parliament.uk ↗ Inquiry on parliament.uk ↗
Recommendation (the committee's words)
The Government’s review of post-16 qualifications reform must consider and prioritise the impact that reforms will have on young disabled people. The Government must commit to retaining all extant BTEC courses at least until there has been a full evaluation of the impact of the introduction of T Levels both generally and specifically on young disabled people. Even if the ultimate decision is to discontinue support for BTECs, this support must continue until alternative level 2 and level 3 qualifications suitable for young disabled people have been fully developed.
From: Public Services Committee, 1st Report - Think Work First: the transition from education to work for young disabled people, paragraph 80, 15 October 2024
Government response
The government responded to the whole report on 3 June 2025 (deadline 20 January 2025).
Summary written by Accountability Index from the government's response. It is not the government's own words.The government accepts some recommendations in full, partially accepts others, and "notes" several, with commitments including Connect to Work funding and consultation on disability pay gap reporting.
- On vocational profiling, the government "agrees" it should be a standard part of careers guidance for young disabled people, and says it will be embedded into Careers Leader and SENCo training modules "by September 2025".
- On the information hub (Recommendation 5), the government says it "will consider" the recommendation and makes no commitment to build the hub or launch it within 12 months.
- On disability pay gap reporting for large employers, the government "accepts" the recommendation and refers to a consultation that closes on 10 June 2025, which it will draw on to shape the legislation.
- On a four-week employer deadline for reasonable adjustments, the government "notes" the recommendation and says research with the University of York will inform next steps, with initial findings "expected in the Summer".