21/11/2024 | News release | Distributed by Public on 21/11/2024 11:55
I am proud to announce that last month Sport England achieved the Disability Confident Leaderlevel, the highest level in the Department of Work and Pensions' Disability Confident Scheme.
This recognition highlights our ongoing commitment to creating an inclusive workplace for all employees, an effort that firmly links our way of operating with our long-term strategy Uniting the Movementand with tackling inequalities.
We've been working consistently on one cultural element and that's 'sharing'.
Openness around sharing a hidden disability or long-term condition can be challenging to measure, plus we understand that not everyone will choose to share for a number of reasons and that's absolutely fine.
It's more about knowing that if you choose to 'share' - whether that's now or in the future, when you decide - that's okay.
For us it's been about raising confidence and building trust through various initiatives that we hope are enhancing employee satisfaction, engagement and inclusion.
Openness around sharing a hidden disability or long-term condition can be challenging to measure, plus we understand that not everyone will choose to share for a number of reasons.
By becoming a Disability Confident Leader, we are not only aiming to lead by example within our industry.
We also want to support other organisations in their journey to build inclusive practices.
We are delighted that our inclusive hiring practices and workplace activities have earned us the recognition as a Disability Confident Leader.
This was very much a collaborative project across a number of functions, and I was especially pleased to have representation from our staff disability Network, STRIDE, and our recognised staff trade union, PCS.
Our work involved a level of challenge, with insights gained as part of the process.
All in all, the journey to becoming a Disability Confident Leader has involved:
Sport England has now joined a growing list of organisations recognised as Disability Confident Leaders and we're truly happy and proud of all the work we've done to get to where we are.
We look forward to our ongoing commitments and to continuing our work to ensure that everyone can thrive in a truly inclusive environment.
We'll be working through recommendations and guidance from our validator - the Business Disability Forum- and ensuring improvements continue to be made through regular assessments.
This accreditation signals our core values - we are ambitious, we are collaborative, we are inclusive and we are innovative - and demonstrates a forward-looking commitment to maintaining the scheme and evolving practices.
We will be voluntarily reporting about our Disability Confidentwork in the coming 12 months, as part of our commitment to being a Disability Confident Leader, because we are happy to grow and we want all our employees to be able to contribute, participate and benefit from that growth.
You can find out exactly how we'll look after your personal data, but rest assured we'll only use it to make sure you receive our newsletter, to understand how you interact with our newsletter, and to provide administrative information about our newsletter.
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