Employing and supporting persons with visible or hidden disabilities is a rewarding and significantly positive experience for all.

Reed in Partnership have recently reported that although 93% of SMEs businesses have an equal opportunities policy, 1 in 3 do not actually employ anyone with a disability or are not aware that they do so. 99% of UK businesses fall under this category.

Nearly seven million people of working age have a health condition or disability. The government and businesses are highlighting the gap between employed disabled persons and non-disabled persons.

The British government has highlighted the following points to encourage businesses to widen their staff pool;

• Increasing the number of high-quality applicants
• Creating a workforce that reflects diverse ranges of customers it serves and community in which it is based
• Bringing additional skills to the business e.g. British Sign Language, which could result in large savings.

Under the 2010 Equality Act, employers must make reasonable adjustments to support disabled job applicants and employees. This allows them to overcome substantial disadvantages and can involve little or no costs. Examples would be changes to working pattern, training and mentoring, making alterations to premises ensuring information is accessible, modifying equipment and allowing extra time during selection.

To retain an experienced member of staff with an impairment must be beneficial compared to recruiting and training new staff and it maintains relationships within your business.

The employer’s guide Access to Work, can help businesses make these adjustments. If you have a business with 25 or fewer employees, you can gain extra support from Job Centre Plus to recruit and retain staff with disabilities or health conditions.

Internships and college supported placements are one avenue to recruit young people with disabilities. The Hive College, Birmingham are liaising with employers to progress 90% of students on placement into paid work. Practical skills can be broken into manageable chunks and repeated.  This is in contrast to only 7% of young people with disabilities moving into employment following formal education.

Reed in Partnership are delivering Better Working Futures across Yorkshire and the wider North East region, to bolster the government’s efforts for the Work and Health Programme. For more information on how to commit your business as a Disability Confident Leader, register at disabilityconfident.campaign.gov.uk.