Up to one in five people are neurodivergent in some way (British Safety Council, 2024), yet most workplaces and recruitment processes are designed for neurotypical staff. Creating a positive, inclusive culture and providing neurodiversity training can help break down the barriers holding back those with unique talents. That is why in March 2023, to mark Neurodiversity Celebration Week, CCHA launched a set of Neuroinclusive Pledges to foster a more inclusive workplace for neurodivergent colleagues.
Since our last update in July, we have reached three major milestones in our journey:
- Interview support: Sharing questions before the interview – no one had to ask for any cognitive-related reasonable adjustments. Not only does this reduce the burden on candidates who might otherwise have to request them, but reasonable adjustments offered to all mean that everyone benefits equally.
- Reasonable adjustments guide: Anyone might face some challenges in the working environment while being unsure of what they need to mitigate them. Our new guide is intended as a starting point to help consider reasonable adjustments. Rather than focusing on the specific conditions of Autism/Autistic Spectrum, ADHD, Dyslexia, Dyscalculia, Dyspraxia and Tourette’s Syndrome, the guide looks at various presentations across neurodiverse conditions and the adjustments that may be helpful. Those adjustments are easy to implement and, in the majority of cases, demonstrate value for all of us.
- Neurodiversity training: CCHA’s Equality Action Group assessed several different training providers and chose Differing Minds as a partner to deliver neurodiversity/ neuroinclusion programmes. Workshops have been developed with different needs and learning styles in mind, and multiple formats, including interactivity, storytelling, and video, have been used to ensure they are engaging, impactful, and memorable. Colleagues who participated in those sessions found them informative, reassuring and developing.
Our efforts start from the same principle – we all are neurodiverse. We are not focusing on specific conditions, as everyone will be different, but on barriers and limitations our environment can pose to others. By improving our operations, we want to benefit everyone (whether they identify as neurodivergent or not).