J+C ADVERTISEMENT FEATURE SUMMER 2023 to know who to speak to - such as HR, occupational health, a senior manager or a disability champion - if more specialist advice is needed. Disability confidence Organisations are increasingly embracing the advantages of being a flexible and Disability Confident employer. Here are Disability Rights UK's five steps to disability confidence. Step 1 Engage with your workforce Engaging with existing employees and encouraging them to talk about any disability, learning difference or health condition starts an open conversation about how to make recruitment more inclusive and how to boost the career development of disabled staff. Boost declaration rates by communicating your desire to improve workplace practices, develop solutions and provide support. Step 2 Focus on the barriers Get a clear idea of the barriers your employees face. These can be physical, such as the lack of a ramp; attitudinal barriers such as bias and stereotyping; or organisational barriers including inaccessible systems and inflexible processes. Disabled staff need to know they are not seen as " the problem " . Step 3 Make reasonable adjustments The duty to make " reasonable adjustments " to support disabled employees is enshrined in the Equality Act 2010. Ask the employee what changes would help them perform to the best of their ability. Employees also need For more information Organisations are warmly invited to reach out to Disability Rights UK by emailing tony.stevens@ disabilityrightsuk.org or exploring consultancy and training options at disabilityrightsuk.org/disabilityconfidence-training Step 4 Be Disability Confident Signing up to the government's Disability Confident scheme can help you think differently about disability. It can support the recruitment of disabled candidates by making sure you have all the right processes in place, while also highlighting alternative options such as traineeships and apprenticeships. Step 5 Provide the necessary training for managers Disability equality and confidence training for managers helps reinforce the previous steps. Research indicates that an effective supervisor or line manager makes a big difference to an individual's needs and training increases a managers' confidence in initiating open conversations with staff.http://disabilityrightsuk.org/disability-confidence-training http://disabilityrightsuk.org/disability-confidence-training