ABSTRACT
The transition from education to employment is a particularly tricky path to negotiate for people on the spectrum. Work is a strange, often disorienting thing — it's a huge change from education, as a job carries a lot of responsibility. The common denominator between high school, college, university and employment is that there is help available. Jonathan Andrews, a lawyer and poet with Asperger's syndrome who chairs the youth council of Ambitious About Autism, actively promotes a campaign that aims to improve the way autistic people move from education into work. The special educational needs (SEN) code of practice from Britain's Department for Education and Department of Health requires that employment be considered in a young person's Education Health and Care Plan. Supported internships offer in-work support from a trained job coach. When used alongside education funding streams, this should allow supported internships to be adequately funded.
