“I want to work. But I need to be able to do it in a way that works for me.”
This is one of the clearest messages that emerges when we listen to people with neurodevelopmental conditions (NDCs) who are currently outside the labour market or trying to find their way back into employment.
Through the evaluation of the project Stronger Together and 21 individual interviews conducted in Norrköping, Åtvidaberg and Ödeshög, we have met people with different experiences, aspirations and circumstances. One person wants to work in game development, another prefers practical work. Someone feels that starting with three hours a few days a week would be right for them. Another could work full-time – provided that the working environment is right.
What they have in common is not what they can or cannot do. It is how crucial the conditions surrounding the work can be.
For one person, clear written instructions can make all the difference. For another, it may mean starting at 25 per cent and gradually increasing their working hours. Some need a calm working environment with limited social demands. Others need support when making initial contact with an employer or preparing for a job interview. Several participants emphasise the importance of structure, predictability, opportunities for recovery and a well-planned introduction to the workplace.
This challenges the idea that a person’s ability to work is something fixed. The same person may struggle to work half-time in an environment with high social demands but thrive in full-time employment in a more independent role. The right tasks, communication and working environment can unlock abilities that might otherwise never become visible.
But the interviews also reveal something more fundamental: what it feels like to be the person who is constantly being assessed, trained and placed into different programmes.
One participant describes the difference:
“I feel that other organisations I have encountered have been in a hurry to get rid of me. As if I am a problem and they just want to place me somewhere so they can tick that box. Here, I have been listened to. People have cared about me and about the circumstances and needs I have.”
This tells us something important about what employment support needs to be. The goal cannot simply be to get someone into a workplace as quickly as possible. It needs to be about finding a path together – one that can actually work and be sustainable over time.
For many people with NDCs, clarity is not simply a matter of comfort; it is essential for participation. Knowing what is happening, why it is happening and what the next step will be reduces uncertainty and makes it possible to have a genuine influence over the process.
As one participant puts it:
“The best thing about the way Coompanion works is that I constantly receive feedback about what is happening and what the next step will be. I know what is going on, and I am involved in planning what happens next.”
A person looking for work should not be treated as a case to be moved from one programme to another. They need to be the main actor in their own journey towards working life.
At the same time, the interviews show that the solution cannot simply be to prepare the individual better. Employers and workplaces also need to be prepared to change.
Recruitment may sometimes need to take place in ways other than through a traditional job interview. The introduction period may need to be longer. Tasks may need to be made clearer. Working hours may need to increase gradually. Supervisors may need a better understanding of what creates stress and what creates a sense of security.
This is where the idea of a more inclusive workplace begins.
Not with the question:
How do we make people more employable?
But with a different one:
How do we create a working life in which more people are genuinely given the opportunity to show what they can do?
This activity was supported as part of STRONGER TOGETHER, an Interreg Central Baltic Programme 2021-2027 project co-funded by the European Union.
Pia Tingvall
Coompanion Östergötland