Promoting disability confidence and improving access to employment for all is at the heart of our approach. As a Disability Confident Leader, we are committed to reducing the disability employment gap and actively supporting disabled people in the workplace and their community, ensuring every individual has the opportunity to thrive.
Recent statistics show that the disability employment gap stands at more than 30%. While progress is being made, barriers such as accessibility issues and a lack of workplace adjustments continue to persist, limiting opportunities for many.
To mark this year’s Purple Tuesday campaign, which promotes accessibility and inclusion for disabled people, we were proud to partner with St David’s Dewi Sant, Cardiff’s biggest shopping centre, hosting a jobs fair within the centre open to all local residents – promoting inclusion and connecting the community with a host of our employer partners and expert disability organisations.
Sharon Michaelson-Yeates, Head of Employer Engagement Wales, explained: “We are passionate about reducing the employment gap for disabled people and we can only do that by working together with employers and community partners across the country to ensure that workplaces and customer environments are accessible to all.”
Maximus has worked in partnership with St David’s for more than two years, holding six job fairs within the shopping centre whilst offering invaluable Disability Confident training and access to guides and tools to more than 200 of their brand partners located within the centre.
Sharon added: “It was a privilege to be asked to deliver our Disability Confident training to St David’s brand partners. Alongside the training we also provide a disability guide for employers to help them implement reasonable workplace adjustments for anyone who has a disability or health condition.
“It’s really important to hold events like this and ensure they remain accessible to everybody, whether people are looking for work or need further information on crisis support, mental health or debt advice.”
St David’s has also rolled out a range of initiatives to improve accessibility across its premises, including the introduction of a calm and quiet space within the centre for those who are neurodiverse and a new app that provides access to a British Sign Language interpreter in real time.
Richard Stevens, Deputy Centre Director at St David’s Dewi Sant, said: “Our aim is to make our centre as inclusive and accessible as possible. We are constantly learning and events like these are important because it gives us an opportunity to learn and make St David’s accessible and safe for all that use it.
“We really love working with Maximus as they understand the importance of inclusivity. We have worked closely with them for more than two years now. Not only have they hosted several jobs fairs at St David’s, but they also deliver disability confident training to our brand partners which is incredibly important to us if we are to continue to evolve and be inclusive for all.”
A host of employer partners and Community Partnership Network members were in attendance to meet local residents, including Adjuda Training who have been working with us for the last seven years, offering our participants vocational qualifications and training services.
Tom Evans from Ajuda Training explained: “It’s incredibly important to hold events like this so that local people are given the opportunity to find out what is on offer for them. We’re really proud to work in partnership with Maximus to help make training accessible to everyone and ensure they can gain accredited qualifications and go on to secure work, regardless of their ability.”
TeacherActive, one of the largest education recruitment agencies in the UK, has been working with Maximus for the last five years. Charlotte Allen, Principle Resourcer, reflected on the growing partnership: “Our relationship with Maximus is really important to us as through their huge pool of talented participants we have been able to recruit hundreds of local people, of all abilities, into different roles within our schools.”
Sharon concluded: “It’s great to partner with St David’s Centre and other businesses who are passionate about disability. It’s an amazing opportunity for us to meet people in the heart of the community and promote the importance of making just one small improvement or change to make our environments more inclusive and accessible.”
