FAQs
Frequently Asked Questions
Here are some of the questions that real clients and visitors have asked Celebrating Disability.
If you have a question you’d like answered, get in touch.
How will my workplace benefit from Disability Awareness Training?
Disability awareness training can set the foundations of what is to come. It is hard to support your employees to know that they have to be inclusive and work to create an increase of workforce if they don’t know what that means in reality.
Organising disability awareness activities in the workplace such as events, training sessions, webinars, conversations, can support that foundation of knowledge to be built upon.
Disability awareness training can come in all different priorities and touch upon a number of subjects. These include; the foundations and overview of disability awareness all the way through to implementing disability inclusion as part of your diversity and inclusion strategy.
Many organisations struggle to articulate what they would like to achieve out of their disability inclusion goals. Therefore, sometimes, disability awareness training can support to answer this question. This is because it discusses the barriers disabled people face in every day life and in the workplace. Having an understanding of these barriers can support an organisation to see what needs to change and what they can develop in order to support disabled people to feel empowered.
Disability awareness is such a minefield. Where do I start?
Disability awareness can seem like a minefield. Many organisations want to make disability inclusion and disability awareness a priority but struggle to know where to start. In this instance, we suggest that you start by considering what outcome you are looking for. Whether you are looking to have a training session, implement some new strategies or you want to ensure that all your events are accessible and inclusive for disabled people, it will be helpful to think about why you would like to do this.
Yes, it is good to be inclusive of disabled people and yes, it is good the disabled people are able to achieve in the workplace. However, consider why. Why does it matter for your organisation/your team/your event.
Would you like to provide training for your line managers? Consider why? What are the main pay points stopping them from achieving what you would like them to achieve at the moment? When you have been able to answer these questions, it will make it easier to think about where to start.
We have created a few questions to enable you to articulate your reasons in your desired outcomes. To receive these questions, click here.
Please note, this opens a pop-up window. If you cannot access this window, please email esi@celebratingdisability.co.uk to receive a copy.
What is the Social Model of Disability?
The Social Model of Disability is a philosophy that states that it is not the impairment that disables but society. In other words, it is not the fact that a physically disabled person cannot climb stairs that stops them from getting to the second floor. Instead, it is the fact that the stairs exist.
Many Celebrating Disability training sessions touch on this subject. We also have blogs discussing the concept in more detail.
Starting with an overview of disability would give an insight into what disability is and is not. It offers insight into the barriers that disabled people face and helps plot possible solutions.
After developing a clearer overview, you will be more prepared to explore specific areas. To find out more about Disability Awareness Training, click here.
See also: “Why does my company need Disability Awareness Training?”
We don’t have disabled people in our organisation, so why would we need your services?
Disabled people make up 20% of the UK population, so the likelyhood is that you are employing disabled people. Disability is not always visible. When you see somebody in a wheelchair or walking with a limp, it is easy to identify them as being disabled.
However, a lot of disabled people have hidden disabilities (ie, disabilities that cannot be seen) Employees do not always disclose to their employer that they are disabled. Sometimes this is be due to not being aware themselves or fear of repercussion.
Implementing certain processes that support your employees regardless of disability, will support everyone and create an environment that will help those disabled employees you did not know you had. It will also demonstrate that you are an approachable employer.
See also:
“We don’t have any disabled customers”
“Disability awareness is such a minefield. Where do I start”
We don’t have any disabled customers
Why not? Disabled people make up 20% of the population. However, as stated above, not all disability is obvious.
If you work in a leisure venue (i.e, a gym, a shopping centre, a hotel, a restaurant or bar) and you are not seeing physically disabled customers, consider your accessibility.
Are disabled people able to access your facilities? By that, think about toilets, equipment, reception area, the building, both internal and external, rooms, dining options, floor space…
We offer inclusion audits to help you with the above.
See also: “We don’t have any disabled people in our organisation”
We need to be hiring more disabled people. The problem is, we don’t know where to start.
Where do you advertise your roles? Some businesses recruit in specific areas that they know will attract specific candidates. While this method has its advantages, it may mean that you are not necessarily going to target disabled people. By advertising your roles on websites and in publications known to disabled people, you will attract a wider audience.
Is your application process accessible for disabled people? Modern technology has enabled most applications to be completed online or via a downloadable application form. Whilst these systems are time and cost effective, they can create certain barriers.
Another element to consider would be your business’ brand awareness. Does your company demonstrate a positive attitude to equal opportunities? If you have a reputation of being inclusive, supportive and diverse, you will naturally attract candidates who will benefit from such workplace environments.
To find out more about creating an inclusive application process and to discuss your options, get in touch.
Starting with an overview of disability would give an insight into what disability is and is not. It offers insight into the barriers that disabled people face and helps plot possible solutions.
After developing a clearer overview, you will be more prepared to explore specific areas. Disability Awareness Training will also help.
See also: “Why does my company need Disability Awareness Training?”
Can you tell me about some of the benefits of hiring disabled people?
It is a common misconception that disabled employees will absorb more resources. In actual fact, only 4% of reasonable adjustments (adjustments made to a workplace to support disabled people) have a financial implication. Even then, there are funding streams that can be tapped into to support an employer with the cost.
Employing disabled people does not necessarily have to take up any extra time. If the right reasonable adjustments are provided, the individual is likely to be able to get on with the job at hand.
You should never make assumptions about an employee’s requirements. Strive to have an open conversation with your employee and their manager about the support they need. More often than not, the individual will have a fair idea of what they require.
Starting with an overview of disability would give an insight into what disability is and is not. It offers insight into the barriers that disabled people face and helps plot possible solutions.
After developing a clearer overview, you will be more prepared to explore specific areas.
You can find out more about Disability Awareness Training here.
See also: “Why does my company need Disability Awareness Training?”
Why is Web Accessibility is so important?
£14.7 billion is spent by disabled people online every year. However, 71% click away from inaccessible websites.
Upgrading your website to be accessible is not as challenging as you may imagine. Implementing a few relatively easy solutions can mean that customers with a variety of access needs will be free to explore and ultimately, shop.
Our consultancy packages can help you when creating accessible websites.
How can we make our events more accessible?
There are many ways you can make your event accessible for many disabled people with different impairments. The most important thing you can do right now is to be as transparent as possible to the people attending your events about what access already exists.
For more information on this topic, we have written a blog.
We don’t know why people are not disclosing their disability
This is not unique to your organisation. At Celebrating Disability, we hear this question time and time again.
Disabled people do not disclose their disability easily for many reasons. Some reasons include a fear of repercussions; repercussions of not being offered a position, of being held back in the current organisation, not being accepted into education settings.
Your organisation may have all the best intentions and have all the processes in place to support disabled people but, history tells disabled people that disclosure is a bad idea.
Other people may not identify themselves as having a disability. This would mean they may not alert you to any support they may need because for them, this is associated with the disability that does not belong to them.
By developing inclusive workforces, you are working to create a space where no matter how somebody identifies, they will have the confidence, the encouragement and will feel safe to come forward and ask for support if and when they need it. We’ve written a blog discussing this in more detail.
Employing disabled people does not necessarily have to take up any extra time. If the right reasonable adjustments are provided, the individual is likely to be able to get on with the job at hand.
You should never make assumptions about an employee’s requirements. Strive to have an open conversation with your employee and their manager about the support they need. More often than not, the individual will have a fair idea of what they require.
Read our blog here.
Starting with an overview of disability would give an insight into what disability is and is not. It offers insight into the barriers that disabled people face and helps plot possible solutions.
After developing a clearer overview, you will be more prepared to explore specific areas. Disability Awareness Training would be perfect for you.
See also: “Why does my company need Disability Awareness Training?”
Want to know more?
Contact us today for a friendly and impartial chat about how we can help your business to become more inclusive and disability confident.
