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Connect To Work - Plymouth Official: Instagram, Facebook | Linktree

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Supported employment programme in Plymouth helping people with complex barriers to employment find and sustain meaningful work.

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Connect To Work - Plymouth | 226 followers on LinkedIn. Supported employment programme helping people with complex barriers to employment find and sustain meaningful work. | Connect to Work is a voluntary supported employment programme designed to help people with disabilities, health conditions, or complex barriers to employment find and sustain meaningful work. By integrating work, health, and skills support, the programme aims to improve employment outcomes and reduce economic inactivity in Plymouth and the wider region. Our goal: To empower every participant to achieve sustainable, rewarding employment.

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Employing disabled people: Disability Confident and CIPD manager’s guide

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Employing disabled people: Disability Confident and CIPD manager’s guide

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Employing disabled people: Disability Confident and CIPD manager’s guide

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A practical guide for line managers on recruiting, managing and developing people with a disability or health condition.

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The Disability Confident scheme supports employers to make the most of the talents disabled people can bring to your workplace.

Disability Confident employers of all sizes are:

challenging attitudes towards disability

increasing understanding of disability

removing barriers to disabled people and those with long-term health conditions

ensuring that disabled people have the opportunities to fulfil their potential and realise their aspirations

Why you should become Disability Confident

Being Disability Confident could help you discover someone your business just can't do without.

Whether an employee has become disabled during their working life, or you're looking for new recruits, being Disability Confident can help your people fulfil their potential and contribute fully to your team's success.

By being Disability Confident, you'll also be seen as leading the way in your business sector and beyond, helping to positively change attitudes, behaviours and cultures.

For example, Acacia can gain all the benefits of Denise's wealth of experience because they signed up to become a Disability Confident Employer.
Acacia Training is a Disability Confident employer
Disability Confident helps businesses:

draw from the widest possible pool of talent

secure and retain high quality staff who are skilled, loyal and hard working

save time and money on the costs of recruitment and training by reducing staff turnover

keep valuable skills and experience

reduce the levels and costs of sickness absences

improve employee morale and commitment by demonstrating that they treat all employees fairly

How to become Disability Confident

The scheme has 3 levels designed to support you at every step on your Disability Confident journey. You must complete each level before moving on to the next.

Our guidance explains which commitments you must agree to and which actions you need to take at each level.

Level 1: Disability Confident Committed

To be recognised as Disability Confident Committed, you must agree to the Disability Confident commitments and identify at least one action that you'll carry out to make a difference for disabled people.

The commitments are:

inclusive and accessible recruitment

communicating vacancies

offering an interview to disabled people

providing reasonable adjustments

supporting existing employees

The activities include (you must identify at least one):

work experience

work trials

paid employment

apprenticeships

job shadowing

traineeships

internships

student placements

sector-based work academy placements

Your business may be doing these things already. If so, the scheme is a great way of letting everyone know that you're serious about equal opportunities for disabled people.

Once you've signed up as Disability Confident Committed you'll receive:

confirmation of your membership and a Disability Confident certificate in recognition of your achievement

a Disability Confident Committed (level 1) badge that you can use on your business stationery, social media and communications for 3 years

information to help you continue your journey to becoming a Disability Confident Employer

Level 2: Disability Confident Employer

Once you've signed up for level 1 you can progress to level 2, a Disability Confident Employer, by self-assessing your organisation around 2 themes:

getting the right people for your business

keeping and developing your people

Disability Confident Employers are recognised as going the extra mile to make sure disabled people get a fair chance.

Having confirmed you've completed your online self-assessment, you'll be registered as a Disability Confident Employer for 3 years. You'll receive:

confirmation of the completion of your self-assessment to become a Disability Confident Employer

a certificate in recognition of your achievement

a Disability Confident Employer (level 2) badge that you can use on your business stationery, social media and communications for 3 years

information on how to become a Disability Confident Leader

Level 3: Disability Confident Leader

By becoming a Disability Confident Leader, you'll be acting as a champion within your local and business communities.

To reach this level you'll need to:

have your self-assessment validated by someone outside of your business (not including DWP employees in jobcentres)

provide a short narrative to show what you have done or will be doing to support your status as a Disability Confident Leader

confirm you are employing disabled people

report on disability, mental health and wellbeing, by referring to the Voluntary Reporting Framework

Once you're recognised as a Disability Confident Leader, you'll be sent:

confirmation of the completion and validation of your self-assessment to become a Disability Confident Leader

a certificate in recognition of your achievement

a Disability Confident Leader (level 3) badge that you can use on your business stationery, social media and communications for 3 years

Advice on employing disabled people

Read our guidance on employing disabled people and people with health conditions.

Discover the help and support for young disabled people to find and stay in work.

Read help and advice from ACAS for employers and employees on disability discrimination.

Get advice on creating inclusive communications.

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How to sign up to the Disability Confident employer scheme

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The Disability Confident scheme supports employers to make the most of the talents disabled people can bring to your workplace. Disability Confident employers of all sizes are: challenging attitudes towards disability increasing understanding of disability removing barriers to disabled people and those with long-term health conditions ensuring that disabled people have the opportunities to fulfil their potential and realise their aspirations Being Disability Confident could help you discover someone your business just can't do without.

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Inclusive Recruitment Guide for SME's - British Association of Supported Employment

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Inclusive Recruitment Guide for SME's - British Association of Supported Employment

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Employment Guidance on Creating Opportunities for Care Leavers - Care Leavers Covenant

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Employment Guidance on Creating Opportunities for Care Leavers - Care Leavers Covenant

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Inclusive Employment Toolkit - Care Leaver Covenant

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Inclusive Employment Toolkit - Care Leaver Covenant

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Mindful Employer - in partnership with Leeds Mind

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Good mental health in the workplace helps everyone no matter what position they may be in. Whether you work in human resources for a large organisation or manager of a small agency, wherever you work, creating a mentally healthy workplace isnt as difficult as you might think.

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Sign up to find out more about the Homelessness Alliance and to play an integral role in the movement to end homelessness in the UK.

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Toolkit for supporting care leavers into work - LGA

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Toolkit for supporting care leavers into work - LGA

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Toolkit for supporting care leavers into work

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This toolkit is designed to help employers create inclusive, supportive, and effective pathways for care leavers in the UK to enter employment

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Top Tips: Recruiting and Supporting Care Experienced Apprentices (a Guide for Employers) - Amazing Apprenticeships

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Top Tips: Recruiting and Supporting Care Experienced Apprentices (a Guide for Employers) - Amazing Apprenticeships

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Advice for managers on mental ill health conditions - HSE

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Advice for managers on mental ill health conditions - HSE

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Stress at work - Advice for managers on mental ill health conditions - HSE

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Mental health at work and work-related stress

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Taking care of your staff's mental health - Mind

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Taking care of your staff's mental health - Mind

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Taking care of your staff’s mental health | Mind

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A mentally healthy workforce has so many benefits. Get our resources on how you can support the mental health of your employees, and reduce workplace stress.

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Neurodiversity Training & Inclusive Practice - Moor to Life

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Neurodiversity Training & Inclusive Practice - Moor to Life

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Accredited L2 training bespoke to organisations for approx £75 pp for a min group of 10 attendees. Can be blended delivery. Flexible to the needs to the business. L5 programme to be delivered from 2027.

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We have created a range of accredited, professional development courses, experiences and projects for individuals, organisations and companies who wish to up skill and empower their workforce.

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Embracing Neurodiversity in the Workplace - NHS Employers

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Embracing Neurodiversity in the Workplace - NHS Employers

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It is estimated that around one in seven people in the UK (over 15 per cent) are neurodivergent. Neurodivergence is an umbrella term used to describe alternative thinking styles such as dyslexia, developmental co-ordination disorder (dyspraxia), dyscalculia, autism, Tourette's and attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD).

Neurodivergent people may have a protected characteristic of disability under section 6 of the Equality Act 2010 where their condition or 'the impairment has a substantial and long-term adverse effect on' the person's 'ability to carry out normal day-to-day activities.' However, many neurodivergent people do not think of their neurodivergences as disabilities or disorders. In the right context, these differences mean people can offer unique perspectives and powerful contributions to organisations.

The benefits of employing neurodivergent people

Employing neurodivergent people has significant benefits to individuals and employers alike. This includes:

Reduced employee turnover - through creating inclusive and accessible organisations.

Access to a wider talent pool - in a competitive recruitment market.

Enhanced service design - helps organisations design services that better reflect and serve their diverse patients, clients and communities.

Creative and motivated workforces - neurodivergent individuals are often hardworking, highly motivated and possess exceptional creative thinking and problem-solving abilities, which can significantly enhance team dynamics and performance.

By recognising and valuing the unique contributions of neurodivergent individuals, organisations can build stronger, more innovative, and inclusive teams.

Neurodiversity, as with all forms of diversity, is valuable within a team, as people from different backgrounds all have different experiences, perspectives and skill sets.

Top tips for supporting neurodivergent staff in their roles

Below are some tips to consider, to better support your neurodivergent staff and to become a neuroinclusive organisation:

Hold open conversations

Learn how staff like to work and accomplish tasks through open conversations . Record details of working and communication preferences and workplace adjustments in an NHS health passport . Note that their needs can change over time and these conversations need to be ongoing.

Create psychological safety

Foster an environment of psychological safety , so neurodivergent staff feel able to ask for what they need and speak up when something is not inclusive.

Ensure they have the skills to support neurodivergent staff.

Help neurodivergent staff feel more comfortable. This may include the creation of quiet spaces, provision of noise-cancelling headphones, lighting that can be adjusted and the reduction of strong smells.

Access further information and resources

Listen to this podcast and hear from North East Ambulance Service and the Employers Network for Equality and Inclusion about how to support staff with hidden disabilities .

Find out how you can support people with learning disabilities into the workplace through supported internships.

Access this guide from CIPD on neuroinclusion at work .

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Embracing neurodiversity in the workplace

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Access guidance to help you support neurodivergent colleagues in the workplace.

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Neuroinclusive Employer Award Scheme - National Autistic Society

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Neuroinclusive Employer Award Scheme - National Autistic Society

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Offering a neuroinclusive working environment demonstrates your organisation’s commitment to creating a welcoming and supportive atmosphere and will positively impact the working lives of neurodivergent individuals.

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Supporting neurodiversity in the workplace: A Manager's Guide - BUPA

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Supporting neurodiversity in the workplace: A Manager's Guide - BUPA

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Uptimize is the global leader in neuroinclusion training. Our neuroinclusion solutions help organisations embrace neurodiversity to boost well-being and supercharge their teams’ collaboration and creativity.

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Reasonable adjustments at work: Adjustments for neurodiversity - ACAS

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Reasonable adjustments at work: Adjustments for neurodiversity - ACAS

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Adjustments for neurodiversity - Reasonable adjustments at work - Acas

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How to support neurodivergent employees at work with reasonable adjustments, including examples and whether someone needs a diagnosis.

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Employing people with lived experience of multiple complex needs - Fulfilling Lives: South east partnership

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Employing people with lived experience of multiple complex needs - Fulfilling Lives: South east partnership

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Supporting people with lived and living experience of substance use in to work - Scottish Government

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Supporting people with lived and living experience of substance use in to work - Scottish Government

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Pathways to Employment: supporting people with lived and living experience of substance use in to work

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This toolkit brings together best practice and support into one place to provide employers and employment support providers advice on how to attract, recruit and support staff with lived experience of substance use.

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Designing Out Homelessness: Practical Steps for Business - Business in the Community

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Designing Out Homelessness: Practical Steps for Business - Business in the Community

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Supporting disabled people at work - ACAS

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Supporting disabled people at work - ACAS

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What employers should do - Supporting disabled people at work - Acas

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How employers should support disabled people in all areas of work, what the law says, and making reasonable adjustments.

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All Things Dotty - Business Support Services

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All Things Dotty - Business Support Services

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Braille and accessibility support

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Business Support Services — Braille and Large Print Transcription

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THE IMPORTANCE OF ACCESSIBILITY ACCESSIBILITY is important for everyone. Whether you are a sighted person living your everyday life; a visually impaired person, trying to live independently; a sighted or visually impaired customer, shopping from your favourite business; or a business owner.No matter what kind of busine

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Plymouth Resettlement and Support Services

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Plymouth Resettlement and Support Services

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ODILS - contact for further support

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To help us keep this website secure, please wait while we verify you’re not a robot! It will only take a few seconds…

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Tapping Potential: Guidelines to Help British Businesses Employ Refugees - Business in the Community 

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Tapping Potential: Guidelines to Help British Businesses Employ Refugees - Business in the Community 

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ANTI-RACISM AND ALLYSHIP IN THE WORKPLACE - Business in the Community

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ANTI-RACISM AND ALLYSHIP IN THE WORKPLACE - Business in the Community

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Gifted Women | Supporting Women in the Plymouth Area

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Gifted Women supports women overcoming multiple disadvantage in Plymouth and the surrounding areas to move towards, and into employment.

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Domestic violence and abuse - NHS Employers

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Domestic violence and abuse - NHS Employers

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Facts about domestic violence and abuse, how this can affect your staff and what you can do to support them.

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Domestic Abuse: A Toolkit for Employers - Business in the Community

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Domestic Abuse: A Toolkit for Employers - Business in the Community

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Supporting employment and volunteering opportunities for people with lived experience of homelessness and social exclusion - Homeless Link

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Supporting employment and volunteering opportunities for people with lived experience of homelessness and social exclusion - Homeless Link

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Supporting_employment_and_volunteering_for_people_with_lived_experience.pdf

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Recruiting people with experience of homelessness toolkit

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Recruiting people with experience of homelessness toolkit

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NHS Employers resource

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Why recruit from the Armed Forces?

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Promote your vacancies with us today if you want to recruit highly skilled and highly trained candidates at no cost.

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Helping employers recruit people with criminal records

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Reducing Reoffending Through Employment Toolkit - Business in the Community

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Reducing Reoffending Through Employment Toolkit - Business in the Community

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Ban the Box Employers Guide - Business in the Community

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Ban the Box Employers Guide - Business in the Community

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Guide to recruiting, employing and retaining people with convictions

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Guide to recruiting, employing and retaining people with convictions

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employing and

retaining people

with convictions

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Government skills training and employment schemes for employers considering hiring or offering placements including Apprenticeships, Traineeships, T Levels.

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Use this service to ask the Home Office to check an employee’s or potential employee’s immigration status if they cannot show their documents or online immigration status.

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Employer checking service (ECS): check your employee or potential employee’s immigration employment status

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Check a job applicant's right to work: use their share code

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Check a job applicant's right to work: use their share code

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Check a job applicant’s right to work: use their share code

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Use a job applicant’s share code to check they’re eligible to work in the UK if they’re from outside the UK and Ireland.

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Specialist in-work support for disabled academics, entrepreneurs, and professionals

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For Employers – The Work Inclusion Project

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Support for Business and Organisations - RNID

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Support for Business and Organisations - RNID

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(Royal National Institute for the Deaf)

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Support for businesses and organisations

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We can help you make sure your workplace is fully inclusive for staff and customers who are deaf or have hearing loss.

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Recruitment Hints and Tips - PACE (Positive About Care Experience)

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Recruitment Hints and Tips - PACE (Positive About Care Experience)

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Mencap's 2024 Big Public Transport Survey A survey is when someone asks you to answer some questions. found that only 29% of working age adults with a learning disability are currently in paid work.

As of August 2025, the estimated number of vacancies in the UK is 728,000.

In 2022, Mencap commissioned the National Development Team for Inclusion (NDTi) to conduct some research employment Employment means having a job. of people with a learning disability. They found that 86% of respondents with a learning disability who are not in work would like a paid job. Research is a way of finding out information which could come from books, or asking people what they think. into the

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Information for employers who want to work with people with a learning disability A learning disability is to do with the way someone's brain works. It makes it harder for someone to learn, understand or do things. .

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We work with employers to help them develop a more diverse workforce.

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Resources and useful links - Disabled Workers - HSE

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Resources and useful links - Disabled Workers - HSE

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Resources and useful links: Disabled workers - HSE

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Show your support

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Show your support - Armed Forces Covenant

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Find out different ways to show your support to the UK Armed Forces community and the Armed Forces Covenant.

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Capitalising on Military Talent - Business in the Community

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Capitalising on Military Talent - Business in the Community

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Mental Health Support for Employees and Apprentices - Able Futures

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Mental Health Support for Employees and Apprentices - Able Futures

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SME Employers: Get mental health support for your employees and apprentices | Able Futures Mental Health Support Service

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Able Futures delivers the Access to Work Mental Health Support Service to support employees and apprentices who have something on their mind that is affecting their time at work. You know how important people are to your business. When people are living with a mental health issue they can experience good days and bad days and their productivity can fluctuate. On their bad days they can lose focus and find tasks difficult to complete. They may even need time off, which can harm their performance and your profitability.

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Employers have a 'duty of care'. This means, as an employer, you must do all you reasonably can to support your employees' health, safety and wellbeing. This includes:

You should also remind managers to communicate regularly with your teams. You should support them if they need to have sensitive conversations with their team members.

Creating a supportive environment

If employees feel they can talk openly about mental health, problems are less likely to build up. This could lead to:

less time off for poor mental health

improved morale at work

You must treat mental and physical health as equally important.

You should create an environment where your employees feel able to talk openly about mental health.

For example, you should:

make sure managers model positive wellbeing behaviours and use their voice to challenge stigma

make sure employees have regular meetings with their managers, to talk about any problems they're having

provide resources to support open conversations about mental health

increase awareness of mental health through training and campaigns

appoint mental health 'champions' who are trained to listen and tell staff where to get support

Find out more about promoting positive mental health at work, including:

Supporting your team

You should be approachable, available and encourage team members to talk to you if they're having problems.

Your management style should suit the needs of each person. For example, if someone is working from home you could ask them if they prefer to talk over the phone, through video meetings or by email.

You should keep in regular contact with your team to check how they're coping.

You should check:
Find out more about mental health support and training
Assessing mental health at work

As an employer, you should talk to managers to understand how their teams are doing. You should find out which resources are helpful and if they need any more support.

If there is an online channel where employees share updates, it might be useful to regularly check it. This could help you understand employees' concerns and areas where they need more support.

You could also use wellbeing surveys to understand:

how your employees are feeling at work

where the sources of stress are

Training managers

As an employer, you should train managers to:

Training managers can give staff more confidence to talk about how their mental health affects their work.

You should train all managers, supervisors and team leaders to make sure they understand:

how the law relates to mental health at work

how to talk with and encourage staff to raise any mental health concerns

what support and workplace changes are available to staff - for example if someone needs a quieter place to work in an open plan office

how to deal with mental health sensitively and fairly

Acas provides training on mental health in the workplace.

Talking to someone with poor mental health

Knowing how to approach and talk to an employee who has a mental health problem might seem difficult.

As an employer, if you believe an employee has poor mental health, you should arrange a conversation as soon as possible.

Some employees might not feel comfortable talking about their mental health straight away. But it's important to let them know they can talk about their mental health at any time. This could include arranging appropriate follow up conversations if concerns continue.

To help the person feel comfortable talking, you should:

It might be difficult for someone to talk about their mental health. So it's important you're calm, patient, supportive and reassuring.

When talking to employees, it's important to remember that factors outside of work could also have an impact on their mental health. For example, if someone close to them has died.

You should know what resources and support you can offer and tell employees about them. For example:

If an employee's mental health problem is a disability, or could reasonably be believed to be a disability, you must make reasonable adjustments.

An employee's mental health problem might not be a disability. However, their job could be making it harder to deal with. You should still consider whether you can offer any workplace changes or support to help them. Changes are usually small but they can prevent employees needing to take time off.

If an employee talks to you about their mental health

If an employee approaches you to talk about their mental health, you should thank them for opening up to you. Give them as much time as they need to talk.

During the conversation, you should:

listen carefully to what they say

try to identify what the cause is, for example by keeping questions open ended

think about ways to help, for example if they know about options for support at work or how to request reasonable adjustments

reassure them - let them know you'll help them get the support they need

You could agree to take time to think through what you've discussed before making any decisions.

Using the right language

Use appropriate language when talking about mental health. Language can affect how people feel and cause distress.

Be sensitive in the terms you use. Do not use words that are offensive or negative. For example, instead of saying 'suffering from mental health issues', say 'someone who has concerns related to their mental health.'

Being clear about confidentiality

You should reassure the person that you will not share anything they tell you with anyone else without their permission, unless there's a good reason to. If there is, you should be clear about who you'll share it with and why.

If you direct them to external support networks, for example an employee assistance programme (EAP), reassure them that the conversations will be confidential. However, let them know they can still talk to you about it if they want to.

Reasonable adjustments for someone with a disability

By law if the person's poor mental health is considered a disability, you must make reasonable adjustments. This is to help them carry out their job without being at a disadvantage.

Find out more about:

Knowing what support is available for employees

You should not be expected to be an expert in mental health. But, knowing what support is available can help.

Trade unions and other employee representatives can help you promote positive mental health.

Trade union representatives are usually:

trained by their union on mental health

more willing to share concerns than employees might be

aware of issues that could cause mental health problems

able to work with you to promote the support and resources available to employees

Getting support for yourself

You might find that you need advice and support for your own mental health. For example, you might be under more pressure than usual to support your team and resolve problems.

It might help to talk things through with someone who can support you, for example:

your own manager

someone else at work

a mental health 'champion' or network at work

a counsellor, if you can access one through work

If your organisation offers counselling, it'll usually be through a scheme known as an employee assistance programme (EAP).

If you think an employee is at risk

If you think an employee is at risk, you should encourage them to seek help.

This could include speaking to:

Your organisation might have an employee assistance programme (EAP) who you can:

contact for advice

direct your employee to

You can also tell them about external organisations who can help, for example:

The NHS provides a list of helplines and services that can support people with mental health problems:

If someone is in immediate danger, call 999.

Employers have a 'duty of care' to do what's reasonable and practical in situations involving an employee's mental health.

Once the employee is safe

Once the immediate situation has been handled, you should start thinking about how you can support the employee going forward.

The employee might need to take some time off. You should:

follow your organisation's absence policy

agree with the employee how you'll keep in touch during absence

When an employee is ready to return to work, you should have a process to follow.

Find out more about:

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Managing employees' wellbeing - Supporting mental health at work

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How employers can support their employees' mental health, safety and wellbeing at work.

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Social Mobility Employer Toolkit - Co-op

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Social Mobility Employer Toolkit - Co-op

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Become a certified Mental Health First Aider (MHFAider®) with this 2 full-day course, available online or in-person. Gain an in-depth understanding of mental health, as well as skills and confidence to support someone in distress.

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Mental Health Training Courses & Seminars | Devon Mind, leading the fight for mental health in Devon

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Become a certified Mental Health First Aider (MHFAider®) with this 2 full-day course, available online or in-person. Gain an in-depth understanding of mental health, as well as skills and confidence to support someone in distress.

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Supporting Carers in Workplace Toolkit - Business in the Community

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Supporting Carers in Workplace Toolkit - Business in the Community

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Carer Friendly Employer Scheme - Devon Carers

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Carer Friendly Employer Scheme - Devon Carers

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Carers for Carers- Improving Lives Plymouth

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Carers for Carers- Improving Lives Plymouth

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Caring for Carers – Support for Unpaid Carers in Plymouth

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Are you an unpaid carer in Plymouth? Caring for Carers offers advice, breaks, support groups and practical help for carers of all ages.

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Carer Friendly Employers - Devon Carers at Westbank

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What are the benefits of becoming carer friendly? For employers For working carers In joining Carer FriendlyDevon | Employers, you will receive: Oaklands Residential Care Home, Sticklepath, Barnstaple

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(Royal National Institute of Blind People)

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If you’re affected by sight loss, we’re here for you

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Access to Work: get support if you have a disability or health condition

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Get help at work, including an Access to Work grant, if you have a disability or health condition - eligibility, how to apply.

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How to Ensure Online Recruitment is Accessible and Inclusive (Factsheet) - Business in the Community

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How to Ensure Online Recruitment is Accessible and Inclusive (Factsheet) - Business in the Community

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Support for employers - British Association of Supported Employment

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Support for employers - British Association of Supported Employment

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Inclusive recruitment means removing unnecessary barriers so disabled and neurodivergent people can access, secure and sustain employment. While the Equality

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Evaluating the impact of lived experience: Report - Ingeus

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Evaluating the impact of lived experience: Report - Ingeus

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Director of Public Health Annual Report 2025 - The health and wellbeing of women in Plymouth

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Director of Public Health Annual Report 2025 - The health and wellbeing of women in Plymouth

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Director of Public Health Annual Report 2025 | PLYMOUTH.GOV.UK

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The health and wellbeing of women in Plymouth Director of Public Health Annual Report 2025

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Good Practice Guide - Scottish Union of Supported Employment

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Good Practice Guide - Scottish Union of Supported Employment

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SUSE - Scottish Union of Supported Employment

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SUSE - Scottish Union of Supported Employment

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Good Practice Guide - SUSE - Scottish Union of Supported Employment

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This guide covers elements of good practice that should be embedded into managerial practice and organisational culture to create inclusive workplaces and support people with disabilities.

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Health Conditions and Disabilities Guide - Lancashire Skills and Employment Hub

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Health Conditions and Disabilities Guide - Lancashire Skills and Employment Hub

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Alcohol Awareness, Mental Health First Aid, Wellbeing Champions, Nutrition, Resilience and Self-care, Suicide Awareness

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Commissioned by Plymouth City Council to deliver services to businesses and communities in Plymouth or to those businesses with over 50% of their employees having a Plymouth postcode.

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Ambitious about Autism - Toolkit for Employers

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Ambitious about Autism - Toolkit for Employers

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Ambitious about Autism is the national charity for children and young people with autism. We provide services, raise awareness and understanding, and campaign for change. Through TreeHouse School, The Rise School and Ambitious College we offer specialist education and support.

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Inclusive Remote Working Toolkit - Business in the Community

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Inclusive Remote Working Toolkit - Business in the Community

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An Employers Guide to Supported Employment - NDTi

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An Employers Guide to Supported Employment - NDTi

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National Development Team for Inclusion

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What reasonable adjustments are - Reasonable adjustments at work

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What reasonable adjustments are and when an employer must make them for someone with a disability.

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Inclusive Recruitment Practices - Devon, Plymouth and Torbay Careers Hub

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Inclusive Recruitment Practices - Devon, Plymouth and Torbay Careers Hub

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Inclusive recruitment - Employer Inclusion Guidance

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INCLUSIVE APPROACHES Inclusive Recruitment Practices Recruitment is about getting the most suitable person into a role; however traditional methods such as online application forms, formal interview panels and various forms of testing don’t always bring out the best in candidates and you may be missing out. In addition, Inclusive Recruiting can help your business become […]

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Becoming an Age Friendly Employer Guide - Business in the Community

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Becoming an Age Friendly Employer Guide - Business in the Community

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Plymouth Charter

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Plymouth Charter

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Plymouth Charter

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Reducing Intersectional Bias in Recruitment Toolkit - Business in the Community

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Reducing Intersectional Bias in Recruitment Toolkit - Business in the Community

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Plymouth Charter

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Plymouth Charter

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Plymouth Charter

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It is e stimated that there are around 27,250 carers in Plymouth (Plymouth report 2019)

41.7% of households in Plymouth have dependent children in 2021, compared to 33.3% of households in 2019 (06.12.22 NOMIS)

Flexible working

Flexible or Hybrid working can be of huge help to people with caring responsibilities, but it can also support older workers or people with disabilities or long-term health conditions.

Flexible working can include the following:

Hybrid working can include the following:

Why is this important?

Flexible working allows for the broadest range of people to maintain both employment and caring responsibilities. Also, to allow people with health needs to work at a time that helps them to manage a condition.

How will this benefit the employees?

It allows parents to maintain a job whilst caring for school aged children, flexibility for school runs etc. For people with caring responsibilities for adults this can allow time to support medical appointments or handovers to other carers.

How will this benefit employers?

Flexibility allows employers to gain more from their employees as they are encouraged to balance completing work and home/caring responsibilities. It can improve recruitment and retention rates. Investment in parents allows people to return to a career path and continue with the work they have been developed for with the same employer.

How can flexible working benefit your organisation? - CMI ( managers.org.uk )

A survey by The Chartered Management Institute (CMI) in 2019 found the following:

· 39% currently working flexibly noticed an improvement in their mental health

· 43% of people whose employers do not currently offer flexible working feel it would benefit their mental health if they were able to work flexibly

"Flexible working allows for the broadest range of people to maintain both employment and caring responsibilities."

Where to start

Review current job roles for the capacity to introduce more flexible working. Are working hours restricted? Could the work be shared between more people?

Seek advice on developing a flexible working policy including how to manage any concerns or disputes.

Effective actions

Be open: rethink how your workload could be shared differently. Do you need to work in the way you always have done?

Be honest: If flexible working will work for some roles but not others be clear about the reasons why.

Consider: How you could be more flexible for people with caring responsibilities. This includes; Mothers, fathers, children of aging parents, friends and relatives of people with aging conditions, caregivers of all ages.

Be aware: How you could be more inclusive to people with disabilities, health conditions or mental health needs.

Prepare: policies to change recruitment and development approaches to be more open. Also prepare managers to hold open conversations with people about reasonable adjustments.

How to achieve changes

Speak to people in your organisation, ask how flexible working could help both them and your business. This is a two-way conversation.

Seek help from organisations who can support.

Useful Links

Calculate holiday entitlement - GOV.UK (www.gov.uk)

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Plymouth Charter

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Digital Mental Health Support

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Training, Skills and Qualifications Directory for Employers

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Training, Skills and Qualifications Directory for Employers

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Devon and Cornwall Training Provider Network

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Dr Sarah Psychology - Corporate Services

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Dr Sarah Psychology - Corporate Services

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Specialist Clinical Psychologist offering autism assessments and psychological therapy to young people and adults, for help with autism, adhd, depression / low mood, anxiety, trauma, grief, stress (work stress /school stress / family stress), self esteem, and relationship difficulties. I offer indiv

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Guidance and Support

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Armed Forces Covenant: guidance and support

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The Armed Forces Covenant is a promise from the nation that those who serve or have served in the armed forces, and their families, are treated fairly.

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The Case for Equal Parental Leave: Toolkit - Business in the Community

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The Case for Equal Parental Leave: Toolkit - Business in the Community

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Drugs, alcohol and tobacco in the workplace: Infographic - Business in the Community

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Drugs, alcohol and tobacco in the workplace: Infographic - Business in the Community

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Preventing and Addressing Substance Abuse in the Workplace: Blog - Wellbeing Solutions

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Preventing and Addressing Substance Abuse in the Workplace: Blog - Wellbeing Solutions

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Preventing and Addressing Substance Abuse in the Workplace - Wellbeing Solutions

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Substance abuse in the workplace is a concern for any employer. Explore how employers and employees can work together to prevent it.

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Information and support for armed forces service leavers

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Information and support for armed forces service leavers

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Information and support for the armed forces | PLYMOUTH.GOV.UK

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Information and support for the armed forces | PLYMOUTH.GOV.UK

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The following organisations can provide help to service leavers and their families when leaving the forces:

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Watch this space!