FORWARD2 EMPLOYMENT LIMITED

Overview

Forward2Employment is an independent specialist provider offering supported internships for young people with special educational needs in Kent and Medway. The report describes a setting where learners receive high levels of support, value their training, and make good progress towards employment, resulting in an overall effectiveness judgement of ‘Good’.

Strengths

• Learners “greatly value the training and high levels of support” and “relish the opportunity to acquire valuable workplace skills” in carefully chosen placements.
• Leaders “work collaboratively with employers” and provide disability and autism awareness training, ensuring employers are “confident and able to support interns”.
• Staff “break complex concepts down into more easily understood components,” helping learners gain a “secure understanding” of subjects like mathematics.
• Most interns are “well motivated and enthusiastic,” becoming “reliable team members” who learn professional behaviours quickly.
• Leaders ensure staff receive sufficient development activities and support, creating an environment where staff feel “valued and motivated”.

Areas to improve

• Ensure all supported interns have access to activities that extend their knowledge and understanding of “healthy lifestyles”.
• Provide all interns with useful feedback that specifically helps them “improve and achieve their targets,” addressing instances where feedback is currently “too limited”.
• Ensure all interns further develop their understanding of the risks associated with “radicalisation and extremism”.

Safeguarding

The report states that “the arrangements for safeguarding are effective.”