Academic Research Partnerships and Projects

Partners: Coventry University

Project: Disability, neurodiversity, and remote e- working: Promoting the creation of an inclusive workplace. ‘Remote for All’ (R4All), funded by the Digital Futures at Work Research Centre, University of Sussex.  

The project aims to fill a gap in understanding the impact of remote e-working for Disabled and Neurodivergent Workers. This group of workers, 20% of the working population, might be overlooked by employers, therefore becoming invisible and unable to work in a way that best supports their needs and capabilities.  

Through interviews with Disabled and Neurodivergent Workers, employers and other stakeholders this project begins to fill a gap in the academic understanding of the experiences facing disabled and neurodivergent people at work. 

As an industry partner, we provided subject matter expertise, supported with participant recruitment and continue to support research dissemination through blogs and events. 

See here for key findings.  

Partners: Coventry University

Project: Using the outputs of the Remote4All Project, this work aims to produce a practical toolkit for organisations and line managers to support disabled and/or neurodivergent workers who would benefit from remote working as a reasonable adjustment.

Developed in collaboration with Vodafone, NHS Employers, Costain, and the UK Atomic Energy Authority, the toolkit is designed to help line managers better support their disabled and/or neurodivergent remote workers.

The toolkit is the result of extensive research conducted through the Remote4All Project, funded by the Economic and Social Research Council’s Centre for Digital Futures at Work Research Centre.

Dr Grant’s research highlights a key gap in how line managers support disabled and neurodivergent workers – particularly when it comes to remote work. Her findings, which she shared in Parliament last year, underscore how remote working can be a powerful enabler of inclusion – if implemented thoughtfully.

The toolkit provides practical, evidence-based guidance for Line Managers. It covers how to initiate meaningful conversations about remote working, how to run inclusive meetings, and how to reduce the risk of isolation for those working from home.

To access the toolkit, visit our blog : Line Manager toolkit for disabled and neurodivergent remote workers

Partners: Sussex University

Project:  “Overcoming online psychometric barriers: Assessing the employment potential of neurodivergent candidates in a fair, inclusive and accessible way”

Dr Deborah Leveroy (Head of Consultancy & Research) and Bronwyn Francis (People & Culture Manager) are on the advisory board for an ESRC-funded Digital Futures at Work Research Centre project exploring how online recruitment methods can be made clear, accessible and fair for applicants from neurodivergent groups.

The project is a Knowledge Exchange Partnership project between Clevry UK, a leading psychometrics test publisher and the Digital Futures at Work Research Centre (Digit), University of Sussex. Deborah and Bronwyn have been providing stategic input on both the project design and employer guidance aspects of the research.

Further information on this research can be found here.