Somerset SEND young adults offered military base internships

Those aged 18 to 25 with SEND or additional needs will be able to take part in one-year fully supported internships at Royal Naval Air Station (RNAS) Yeovilton.

The programme, operated by specialist education provider SWRAC, aims to help young people develop employment skills in a professional environment.

Maria Fincham, Director of Education for SWRAC, said: “Supported Internships at RNAS Yeovilton offer a fantastic opportunity for young people to gain meaningful, real-world work experience within a professional environment.

She added: "Alongside work experience, they also help young people to develop the practical, social, and professional skills that employers value most such as communication, teamwork, reliability, confidence, and problem-solving, while providing a highly respected addition to their CV that can open doors long after the internship itself has ended.

"Working within a live operational air base also offers an inspiring and motivating environment that few young people ever have the opportunity to experience."

Interns will work Monday to Friday with ESS Support Services Worldwide, part of the Compass Group, in various structured work environments.

These include hospitality and catering, retail, front-of-house and facilities, and management and housekeeping.

Interns in hospitality and catering will prepare ingredients, set up dining spaces, and help serve meals to base personnel. Those in retail will work in the on-site shops and high-street style café outlets.

Front-of-house interns will greet staff, manage service areas, and engage in customer service, while those in management and housekeeping will maintain building cleanliness, organise stock, and help run the base's infrastructure.

Maria added: "This programme has been designed completely around the specific needs of young people with SEND and is available to people with or without an EHCP (Education, Health and Care Plan).

"The interns work with an experienced workplace mentor. They also have a dedicated job coach from Discovery, who will help them break down work related tasks into manageable steps.

"Alongside their work rotations, they learn valuable skills such as workplace safety, manual handling, and food safety and will be supported in their customer service, maths, and English skills, in our onsite classroom."

Adrian Culwick, group manager of Compass Group, said: "We are delighted to welcome students to RNAS Yeovilton to experience the delivery of our soft services first hand.

"They will gain valuable insight into how ESS provides catering, retail, and cleaning services to our military customers and learn how we deliver high-quality services, meet operational requirements, and maintain the highest standards across our sites.

"This experience will offer a practical understanding of the important role ESS plays in supporting the military community and ensuring an excellent customer experience."

People interested in learning more about the supported internships can attend an information session at RNAS Yeovilton on Wednesday 15th July from 3:00pm.

Spaces must be booked in advance by emailing katiekitchener@swrac.ac.uk or phoning SWRAC on 01202 848099, and then selecting option 2.

The supported internships begin in September 2026 and are delivered by SWRAC in partnership with the DFN Project SEARCH charity, Somerset Council, Imagine the Possibilities, and Discovery.