Did you know that disabled people in the UK are almost twice as likely to be unemployed as non-disabled people?
Disability Confident is a government initiative that supports employers to attract, recruit and retain disabled workers.
It provides advice on how to think differently about disability and offers free mentoring from companies that have already embraced the scheme, like Ingeus.
Employers provide evidence to progress through the ‘Disability Confident Committed’ and ‘Disability Confident Employer’ levels.
Moving to the final tier and becoming a ‘Disability Confident Leader’ involves validation from a mentor.
As the Department for Work and Pensions’ provider of choice to deliver these validations, Ingeus has worked with many companies, government departments and local authorities.
I’ve learned that disability confidence doesn’t mean being certain, expert, or experienced in every aspect of disability. It’s about having the right motivations, support and processes to make meaningful changes – think small, progressive steps rather than expensive kit or office refurbishments.
I have yet to find an employer that can’t make some simple improvements to their recruitment processes.
More than 70 per cent of employers that make work-related adjustments say it is easy to do so.
My own disability journey saw me unemployed for three years with severe osteoarthritis until I was supported into a short spell of volunteering, which led to a full-time job.
That was 19 years ago.
I now lead Ingeus’s work as a Disability Confident Leader, passionately encouraging other employers to support opportunities for disabled people.
Along with 20,000 other Disability Confident-registered employers, we haven’t looked back since joining the scheme five years ago.
Eleven per cent of our workforce is disabled, and we actively share our own inclusion processes.
Recently, I’ve addressed MPs, alongside Tom Pursglove, Minister of State for Disabled People, Health and Work; explored neurodiversity with Jobcentre Plus staff in Wigan; shared our work supporting the Valuation Office Agency for Employability Day; and delivered a webinar with the LGA.
Ingeus has just completed the first holistic research project in the UK looking at disability diversity and inclusivity in British workplaces. The key findings indicate significant work is needed to expand the availability of suitable and accessible roles.
It is frustrating and worrying that people with disabilities are scared they will never find a job. One in five feel hopeless, believing finding work they love is out of reach.
Connecting with this available source of talent is surely important for addressing recruitment challenges, and we’ll be publishing our 2023 Disability Diversity and Inclusivity Index soon.
We believe that Disability Confident is a movement, not just the right thing to do.
As a result, our employment support activity is provided free of charge to match jobseekers experiencing barriers to work and employers struggling to find the perfect fit for their vacancies. For example, we developed a programme with a London borough to recruit, train and support applicants with diverse and first-hand lived experience into sustainable roles as case workers for the council.
We also deliver the Work and Health Programme and Restart Scheme across Greater Manchester, the North West and London, where we are funded to support employers to access tens of thousands of people who have experienced barriers to work.
Please join the movement: becoming Disability Confident is simple and the right thing to do for your organisation and your communities.
For LGA workforce advice on supporting employees with disabilities visit the LGA website. To find out more about Disability Confident, please visit the Gov.uk website.