Internships and Supported Internships

An internship is another name for a work placement or work experience with an employer.

Some interns are employed by a company and receive regular pay; other interns are volunteers gaining valuable work experience as a stepping stone to the job they want.

If you are doing an internship for less than one year through a further education college, you are not entitled to the National Minimum Wage.

If you are doing your internship through a charity, voluntary organisation, fund-raising body or statutory body as a volunteer, you will not be paid except for limited benefits, for example travel or lunch expenses.

Supported Internships

If you are 16-24-years-old, have an education, health and care (EHC) plan and want to work, a Supported Internship will provide you with the extra support you need to achieve your goal.

A Supported Internship is a one-year study programme at college that will help you to get the skills and experience you need to get a job

On a Supported Internship, you will spend at least six months in an unpaid work placement with an employer. You will also have a personal study programme. This gives you the chance to gain useful qualifications, which could include English and maths.

A Supported Internship is very similar to a traineeship or apprenticeship; meaning you will be ready to work when you’ve completed the programme.  The main difference is that you will be offered a higher level of support than a trainee or apprentice, and this will include work place support through a job coach.

There are no entry or completion requirements for Supported Internships. The aim is simply to prepare you for paid employment by:

• Supporting you to develop the skills valued by employers
• Enabling you to show what you can do in the workplace
• Developing your confidence in your own ability to perform successfully at work

The ideal outcome is for you to be offered a paid job from your host employer or another employer.

Other outcomes you may also achieve are:

• Work experience to add to your CV
• Changing the perception of employers about people with learning difficulties and/or disabilities
• Changing the perception of your family/friends by showing that you can work
• Improving your English and maths skills to prepare you for work and independent living
• Becoming an independent traveller

Our colleges in Norfolk all offer the Supported Internship study programme where you’ll have the support of a Job Coach and be placed with one of the college’s partner employers.  This could be a large organisation, like a hospital, or a smaller employer. Your Job Coach will ask where you want to work.

To find out more contact your local college and ask about their Supported Internship programme:

• City College, Norwich
• College of West Anglia, King’s Lynn
• East Coast College, Great Yarmouth