Vauxhall charity offers work experience to people with autism

By Alice Neil

A charity has launched a new internship programme to provide vital work experience for people with autism.

Vauxhall-based charity BeyondAutism has started a new internship scheme that offers work experience to two people with autism.

The programme is designed to give interns the skills they need to enter the workplace.

New intern Martin Kelly heard about the internship through his job coach at his local Mencap centre in Bromley.

He said: “It has been very interesting so far.”

Martin is currently working with the fundraising team and added that he can’t wait to experience the different departments during the rotation.

The placement offers people hands-on experience to develop their skills in different areas.

This allows people to get a varied experience and help them work out the career path they would like to follow.

Chief executive Tracie Linehan said: “Finding a job if you have autism already presents quite a few challenges, so we created our internship programme with this in mind.”

A dedicated job coach supports interns throughout.

Only 16 per cent of adults with autism are in full-time employment.

This programme is designed to ensure that opportunities are available for people with autism to prepare them for the workplace.

BeyondAutism hopes to expand this programme, and recruit six new interns next year.

It also runs services across London that provide access to education, as well as Post-19 hubs to help young people with autism find employment.

Pictured top: New Intern Martin Kelly at BeyondAutism’s Vauxhall office