There’s a growing awareness among employers that making premises accessible should also include staff training. In this article, About Access explores how training staff on the requirements of disabled colleagues and visitors makes your business more accessible
One of About Access’ projects is working with a client to remove the barriers that can prevent disabled people from pursuing their choice of career.
By building training programmes for existing employees, the organisation is taking its commitment further than many businesses. As a recruitment consultancy, the client can also share and encourage best practices across various businesses and sectors.
The business also stands out from the crowd for its focus on finding disabled candidates for senior management posts, thereby rejecting any stereotypes linking disabled people purely with menial roles.
About Access is developing a programme of online training services
This approach will create a number of modules designed to inform and support various participants such as senior managers, service teams, HR, and anybody whose role involves making the workplace accessible.
About Access expect to receive more enquiries as other employers realise there is more to accessibility than making premises accessible.
Broadening accessibility training will help to give staff a better understanding of disability in all forms
The client aimed to ensure that all of their sites were accessible. One specific problem that arose was concerning new security gates.
During normal working hours, the gates were accessible. However, at other times of the day and night, people used a different entrance which was not accessible.
By broadening the accessibility commitment and providing training to current staff, employers will give their people a better understanding of what disability is in all its forms. They will also help staff to recognise the existing barriers to access within their working environment and avoid inadvertently creating more obstacles.
About Access became aware of the opportunity through contacts in the accessibility sector
Other organisations, from SMEs to national businesses and international operations, also need this support. As a business with experience working globally in various territories and regulatory regimes, About Access was selected for the task.
What all the employers have in common is the recognition that improving accessibility and the knowledge around it is a good use of resources, investing in people already working in the business and preparing them to welcome new colleagues who have a disability or to support existing colleagues who become disabled.
Most employers are aware of the benefits of making an environment more accessible
Most employers will be aware of at least some of the benefits. Adherence to The Equality Act 2010 and demonstration of a strong CSR commitment are two of the more bureaucratic examples. But progressive and creative businesses will easily come up with others.
Increasing the diversity of your workforce is always a good thing to do. The people we are working for clearly recognise the value that disabled people can complete all sorts of duties and tasks to the same standards as everybody else and for the same rewards.
It’s well known that some industries benefit from the skills which disabled people can apply to specific roles, an example being people on the autistic spectrum who are known to be particularly strong in computing and associated fields.
Some of the features which disabled people need to gain access to a workplace include:
- Accessible parking bays
- Ramps
- Toilets
- The features in and around lifts
Other less obvious examples of accessibility include:
- Hearing loops
- Doorways
- Quiet spaces
- Internal fittings and décor.
Understanding hidden disabilities is a key part of an effective workplace training programme
For example, it should not be assumed that a staff member who uses a wheelchair is familiar with the needs of a colleague with a visual impairment.
Nor is it just about understanding the needs of colleagues. A business needs to be able to welcome any visitor, whether they are customers, suppliers, consultants or whatever.
Staff should be conversant about different types of disabilities, confident about engaging with disabled people and capable of sharing best practices with colleagues and with new recruits.
About Access’ client recognises that disabled people are capable of working to a high standard and contributing to a healthier bottom line. They might just need some simple and affordable adjustments to the building, the facilities and maybe to the mindset of their colleagues. The outcome should be an accessible organisation and a more inclusive world.
