Referrals to Jobsupport’s Open Employment and Transition To Work Programs

Jobsupport's combination of Transition To Work and Open Employment services provides an opportunity for a wide range of people with an intellectual disability to successfully enter the paid workforce.

Referrals are regularly received from parents, schoolteachers, and other disability services. Contact your closest Jobsupport office for Open Employment referrals, or Community Work Options for Transition To Work. (See Contact page)

The assessment processes for the Open Employment program and the Transition To Work program are closely linked.

Open Employment Referrals

Jobsupport’s Open Employment program caters specifically for people with a significant intellectual disability who require careful job matching, initial one-to-one on-the-job support for several weeks and ongoing support to maintain employment.

People who are not school leavers or school leavers who wish to go straight to employment should contact their closest Jobsupport office, as listed on our contact page, for assessment or further information.

The assessment process is intended to determine eligibility and achieve the best possible job match. The assessment process has five steps:

•    Background reports are obtained from various sources including the applicant’s last school

•    An interview is arranged with the applicant and his/her parents or advocates

•    Work trials are arranged for the applicant based on their interests and skills

•    If the applicant is determined eligible for the Jobsupport program a meeting is arranged to review a summary of the information gathered. This is recorded as an Assessment Summary and provides the basis for job searching and job matching

•    Applicants who are not currently eligible for the Jobsupport program are referred elsewhere.

Transition To Work Referrals

Community Work Options (CWO) provides a Transition To Work service for school leavers with an intellectual disability who need extra help before they attempt paid employment.

To access CWO a person needs to have been granted Transition To Work funding by the NSW Department of Ageing, Disability and Home Care (DADHC). However, referrals and assessment can begin before funding has been finalised.

There are advantages in referring to CWO as early as possible in the final year of school and before Transition To Work funding has been granted. 

•    Early identification of transition goals assists with program commencement in the new year.

•    More detailed information on how CWO will be able to assist the service user makes program selection choices clearer for school leavers and families/advocates.

•    CWO can provide support in funding appeals, should it be agreed that a school leaver has been granted inappropriate funding. 

For more information on the assessment process for Transition To Work with CWO, contact our office as listed on the contact page .