Employing people who are neurodivergent

Employment is important to everyone. It gives us economic independence, as well as opportunities to socialise with others, feel valued, grow and contribute as part of society.

At AFK, our mission is to support as many young people with disabilities and autism as possible, by giving them the opportunity to work or volunteer in their community. We have been running our employability programmes since 2013 and now have a wide range of business partners and companies offering work placements and jobs to our trainees.

(Neurodiversity covers conditions such as learning disabilities/intellectual disabilities, Autism, ADHD, Dyscalculia, Dyslexia, Epilepsy, Tourette’s and Tic disorders, Downs Syndrome…)

If you are not Neurodiverse you are Neurotypical.

Not only does hiring a young disabled employee showcase diversity and inclusion, it shows that the business focuses on support for every member of staff.

There are many ways your business can benefit from hiring people with learning disabilities, including:

• Reduced recruitment costs
• Reduced sickness and absence
• Reduced staff turnover
• Elevated morale
• Enhanced reputation
• New ways to organise and distribute the workload
• The opportunity to develop new products or services for a different demographic
• Attracting disabled people as customers (the “purple pound“)

An inclusive and accessible workplace is an environment that values the individual and group differences that make up your work force. By embracing the diversity of your employees, your business can increase staff contributions, innovation and creativity.

Making your workplace inclusive and accessible is about more than being wheelchair-friendly (although that’s a great place to start!) Accessibility means giving people the right training, tools and equipment to do their jobs effectively.

Accessibility might look like:

• Providing information in different formats, fonts, colours and sizes;
• Allowing additional time for comments or responses to be made;
• Taking complaints and comments over the phone;
• Providing assistive technology such as screen readers, magnifiers, etc.

Partnerships with businesses are vital to AFK’s Employment and Skills Programme. Quality work placements bring meaningful benefits to young people and employers alike, allowing young people to explore their career options, develop work-related skills and build self-confidence.

AFK works closely with potential candidates, identifying their skills and aspirations. We provide interview practice and employability skills training to help prepare young people for the application process. We also provide travel training, so they can get to work independently.

We recognise employers as consumers of our service and part of our mission is make sure your needs are met. Our team of specialised job coaches provide support to both employees and employers to guarantee a great experience for everyone involved. We tailor every work placement to suit both the employer and the individual – and we’re here to help every step of the way.

If your business is interested in hosting one of our trainees on a work placement, please email [email protected]

Elaine Harman

Employability and Skills Manager