The Local Supported Employment (LSE) initiative is providing grant funding to 24 local authorities in England and Wales, representing an investment of £7.6 million over the next three years.

Each local authority area will support between 60 and 140 adults with learning disabilities, autism or both to move into competitive employment and provide the help they need to maintain that employment.

An average of 91 participants in each local authority are set to benefit from the grant funding and support, which will include assigning job coaches who can carry out vocation profiling, engage employers and provide in-work support to help develop more careers.

This follows the government hitting its target to see one million more disabled people in work by 2027 five years early, as ministers consider a new target to help bring down the disability employment gap further in the forthcoming Health & Disability White Paper, due in the autumn.

Minister for Disabled People, Health and Work Chloe Smith MP said:

Disabled people deserve the same opportunities to start, stay and succeed in employment as everyone else.

We know that those with autism and learning disabilities can face particular barriers to employment, which is why we’re spending £7.6m through the Local Supported Employment initiative.

We hope to break down those barriers and use local networks to help more disabled people reach their full potential.

A total of 22 local authorities in England and two in Wales will benefit from the funding worth £7.6m over the Spending Review period.

The DWP along with nine local authorities ran an LSE proof of concept pilot in November 2017 for 18 months. Following a consultation process with those involved, the DWP has incorporated feedback and lessons learned into the design of the latest initiative.

Evidence from other supported employment programmes suggests that at least 30% of participants should start some form of work following involvement in the initiative.

The longer-term ambition is to provide further evidence to local authorities of the value of supported employment to help drive further investment and secure effective employment for more people with learning disabilities, autism or both.

The government made a public commitment to delivering LSE in the Adult Social Care Reform White Paper)

and the Work, Health and Disability Green Paper (England) to ensure that everyone should get the support they need whatever their disability or health condition.

Additional information

Local Supported Employment (LSE)

• DWP is providing grant funding for 24 County Councils and Unitary Authorities (including Metropolitan Councils and London Boroughs) in England and Wales, to take part in the LSE Initiative.
• These are:
  • Cheshire East Council
  • Gloucestershire County Council
  • Barking and Dagenham
  • Lincolnshire County Council
  • Surrey County Council
  • City of Cardiff Council
  • The Council of the City of Wakefield
  • Oxfordshire County Council
  • Norfolk County Council (NCC)
  • Kirklees Metropolitan Borough Council
  • Leicester Council
  • Cheshire West and Chester Council
  • Tower Hamlets
  • Salford Council
  • Lancashire County Council
  • Solihull Metropolitan Borough Council
  • Durham County Council (DCC)
  • Southampton Council
  • Hertfordshire County Council (HCC)
  • Pembrokeshire County Council
  • Bradford Metropolitan District Council
  • Sandwell Metropolitan Borough Council
  • Barnsley MBC
  • Kent County Council
• Supported Employment has been successfully used for decades as a model for supporting people with significant disabilities to secure and retain paid employment. Supported Employment does not adhere to a work readiness model, rather a Place, Train and Maintain approach is implemented.

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Published 27 May 2015
Last updated 17 August 2022 + show all updates

Oxford station is set for a £161m revamp, which will deliver quicker journeys, increased freight and passenger services and a brand new fully accessible entrance.

Announced today (17th August), by Rail Minister Wendy Morton, the upgrades will be completed by 2024 and have been specifically designed to improve passenger experience, better integrate the station into the local road networks and boost economic growth by supporting the creation of almost 10,000 jobs in the area.

Among the upgrades will be the creation of a brand new track, platform and fully accessible entrance on the west side of the station, making travel far easier for all passengers. As one of the busiest stations in the South of England, managing 8.7 million passenger journeys a year pre-pandemic, the new track and platform will significantly improve capacity at the station, which will boost connections, the economy and job opportunities in the area with almost 10,000 new roles being supported as a result of the project, drawing talent and investment to both the City of Oxford and the numerous sciences, innovation, technology and business parks located across the county.

Funding will also be used to renovate the existing road bridge on Botley Road to create a four metre wide cycling and walking path and allowing standard height double-decker buses to pass underneath for the first time ever. It will also fund three new high-speed crossovers to be created, which will enable trains to turn around in the station, increasing services and reducing journey times.

Rail Minister, Wendy Morton said:

While union bosses continue on their campaign to inflict maximum disruption to the lives of everyday people with strikes, I am busy getting on with the job at the hand, modernising our railways to create one which is fit for the 21st Century and meets the needs of the modern day passenger.

This £161 million will truly transform the region, increasing the number of services for passengers, boosting economic growth by connecting people to new opportunities and increasing freight services between the South and Midlands.

The upgrades will play a central role in boosting economic growth and opportunities in the local and surrounding areas and increasing freight services to the equivalent of about 500 lorries per day between Southampton Ports container hub, the Midlands and North West – increasing supply chain resilience while supporting the environment.

Oxford Station is one of the first projects delivered through the government’s new scheme SPEED (Swift, Pragmatic and Efficient Enhancement Delivery) which aims to halve the time it takes to complete a rail infrastructure project and slash the cost of project delivery – helping local areas to build back better through investment.

Mike Gallop, Network Rail’s Western route and strategic operations director, said:

We are delighted to have been awarded this significant amount of funding from the Department for Transport, which will enable us make positive substantial improvements to Oxford station and railway for the benefit of our passengers and freight customers.

A new entrance, new additional track and platform, and improved accessibility will transform this station so that is fit for the 21st century and significantly enhance its capacity for increases in passenger numbers and future services such as East West Rail.

Work at the station will begin later this year, with the Botley Road improvements expected to be completed by the end of 2023 followed by the new platform and entrance which is set to open in 2024.