The state of disability workforce in Europe : needs in training, qualifications and skills

Abstract

Commissioned by the European Association of Service Providers for Persons with Disabilities (EASPD), the Policy Impact Lab (PIL) prepared a report on the state of the disability support workforce in Europe. The report is based on desk research of literature on the topic, an online survey of disability service providers (mostly EASPD members) and several interviews with relevant stakeholders. In accordance with the key objectives set out in the Terms of Reference (ToR), the report overviews:

• challenges faced by disability service providers in recruiting staff;

• hiring intentions;

• qualifications and skills in highest demand for disability service providers;

• most pressing training needs of the current disability support workforce;

• planned training for the next two years;

• current and planned use of new/innovative technologies; and

• the impact of new/innovative technologies on work organisation/efficiency, staff and service users.

The report starts with a brief overview of data collection methods (see Chapter 2), followed by findings and conclusions. First, we present findings from the desk research in Chapter 3 and then overview the key trends uncovered by the online survey in Chapter 4. The report ends with concluding remarks in Chapter 5. The questionnaire used for the online survey is presented in the Annex.