Creating an inclusive and welcoming workplace for disabled and neurodiverse individuals is not just a matter of policies and compliance; it’s about fostering an environment where every employee feels empowered to advocate for their needs. The organisational benefits of promoting self-advocacy in the workplace include increased productivity, job satisfaction, and retention rates.
This blog will explore strategies for encouraging disability disclosure and self-advocacy in the workplace. By promoting open communication, providing necessary support, and fostering an atmosphere of understanding and respect, employers can play a pivotal role in empowering individuals to thrive in their professional lives.
1. Include workplace adjustment statements in job adverts so that candidates can see from the beginning of their journey that your company welcomes and supports diverse talent. Here is an example of a workplace adjustment statement from The Orpheus Centre:
“We have made a positive commitment to employing disabled people. Reasonable adjustments will be made to the recruitment procedure as required in consultation with the applicant to ensure no-one is disadvantaged because of their disability. If a disabled person is selected for a position, reasonable adjustments will be made to the workplace, including premises and equipment, work duties and practices or policies, as appropriate”.
2. Provide applicants with briefing notes about the interview.
This should include what to expect, how to get to the building, what the journey looks like from the tube to the building, etc. Aside from being best practice, it shows your commitment to inclusive workplace practice.
3. Develop an organisational policy concerning the recruitment and retention of disabled people.
By having a policy written down, it means that different departments have a road map to follow.
4. Create a disclosure policy and reasonable accommodations policy and share it widely.
Clarify who will access the information, where it will be stored, and how it will be used. The disclosure policy should include employee benefits of disclosure, e.g., what the employee will gain from the process. Provide a variety of ways to disclose (email, text, phone) with a single contact (for example, a member of the recruitment or HR team or it could be a disability advocate/champion). People have different communication preferences; some people may prefer anonymously sharing information via email or text, while others may need a more holistic and in-person experience.
Please speak to us today about our policy development service.
5. Showcase your D&I initiatives.
For example, you could highlight these on the company career home page to show your commitment to recruiting diverse talent.
6. Include an employee case study in the information sent to candidates.
The case study could feature one employee’s experience of workplace adjustments or information about the Employee Resource Network. Again, this showcases your commitment to supporting diverse employees and may help candidates feel more comfortable and less nervous about attending the interview.
7 . Provide line managers with ‘courageous conversations’ training.
This training gives them confidence when exploring health and well-being matters with team members. Managers can begin a dialogue to discuss any extra support the employee may need.
8. Give all employees (disabled and non-disabled) the opportunity to create a self-advocacy document.
The self-advocacy document should highlight preferred ways of working/learning, strengths, challenges, and areas for development. The employee can work on the document independently or in a formal supervision or mentoring context. We have compiled a handy self-advocacy template for team members and line managers. The approach encourages people to consciously think about how they work. It opens the conversation to those who do not see themselves as ‘disabled’. There might be opportunities to discuss the reasons for any difficulties, such as parental responsibilities, a specific learning difference, mental health challenges, physical disabilities, etc. The line manager can then signpost the employee to different support options such as workplace adjustments, Access to Work, and any other support they may need to do the job. It also gives them the skills to advocate for themselves in a performance review scenario.
9. Monitor long-term absence and sickness rates and possible causes.
You should include workplace adjustments in any return-to-work planning. The approach ensures that employees with ‘hidden’ disabilities or those masking their difficulties are picked up and supported.
10. Work with your internal communications team.
Internal campaigns are a great way to raise awareness and to boost disclosure rates amongst existing employees. Campaigns could be based on the following themes:
Rather than using the terms’ disability’ and ‘disclosure’ in internal campaigns, think about ‘How I work best’ to move away from a medical model of what someone can’t do and focus more holistically on the individual’s pattern of strengths and areas for development.
10. Initiate a career development programme specifically for employees who identify as disabled and/or neurodivergent.
The programme could include strategy coaching sessions focusing on self-advocacy and confidence building.
11. Provide disabled and/or neurodivergent employees the opportunity to ‘reverse mentor’ senior managers and leaders.
The initiatives provide managers and leaders with valuable insight into team members’ experiences.
12. Offer line managers and recruiting staff Neurodiversity and Disability awareness training
This training provides them with the knowledge and skills to effectively communicate with and support team members. We’ve compiled a Business Case template to help you build the business case and access the budget for initiatives and training.
14. No ‘one size fits all’
Crucially, there is no ‘one size fits all’ approach to enabling self-advocacy in the workplace.
The above strategies and initiatives are intended as a starter for organisations to explore and put together their strategy and policies to support diverse talent.
We’re a leading workplace adjustments provider based in the UK, dedicated to fostering inclusive and accessible work environments for disabled and neurodivergent individuals. Our workplace services include:
You can also download our FREE Self-advocacy template, with guidelines and examples.
To find out about the support we can provide, please get in touch with the team.
Dr. Deborah Leveroy is Neurodiversity and Inclusion Lead at neurobox. She works with organisations to advance neuro-inclusion strategy and practice. Deborah has a PhD in Dyslexia, inclusion and performer training from the University of Kent.
Her research is published by Routledge in peer-reviewed journals and edited collections. Current research interests include Neuroinclusive return to work practices and remote working. Previous roles include Disability Advisor for Remploy’s BBC workplace adjustment contract, Strategy Coach and Workplace Needs Assessor for PAM occupational health and Study Skills Tutor for several DSA providers.
