A visit from Government Minister Seema Malhotra

As part of our campaign to encourage more MPs to visit the homes of people we support so they can develop a better understanding of person-centred supported living, Government Minister Seema Malhotra visited Elliott and his Lead Support Worker Paul Baker at one of our homes in Hounslow, West London.

This is a friendly home for 11 people, many of whom were supported elsewhere in London and were keen to move back to the borough to be closer to their family and friends.

Paul invited his local MP for Feltham and Heston to visit. Seema is the Migration and Citizenship Minister and a former Shadow Skills Minister.

Paul was keen to introduce Seema to Elliot, who has lived at the home for two and a half years. Elliot is autistic and has found a job with a supermarket after difficulties navigating the job market. He had an apprenticeship with Kwik Fit, but it didn’t last.

Elliot found the number of government apprenticeships that are Disability Confident disappointing. Although he is drawn to technical jobs, he found them less accessible because of the health and safety requirements.

Tesco runs a Stronger Start scheme to help attract young people from disadvantaged backgrounds. It provides a Level 2 in national retail service equivalent to five GCSEs. Elliot was impressed by the supermarket’s approach to recruitment.

He said:

“You are invited to a Zoom meeting before an interview, and they describe some of the questions you’re likely to be asked; they explain each step of the process, and you can choose when to be notified of the outcome.  I found those who were recruiting inclusive and open to questions, and it felt like they cared. In the past, I’ve applied for jobs and haven’t heard back for several months.”

“It was a very useful opportunity to meet the former Shadow Skills Minister to talk about the difficulties in the education system from the perspective of someone with autism. I’m very positive about starting my job at Tesco and I feel it’s a good opportunity, given how I struggled at school.”

Seema’s visit was scheduled for an hour, but she spent more than two hours talking to Elliot.

She toured the building during her visit, guided by Paul and Elliot. She was impressed by the ratio of staff to people who are supported and the opportunities for them to pursue their own interests.

Paul Baker said:

Seema said she thinks social care is low-paid because it was once typically constructed as work for women.

Seema’s visit follows the ‘Celebration of the Community’ event earlier this year, which James, who also lives at the home, attended.

Assistant Locality Manager Ramona Nagy said: