Disability Confidence - Buckinghamshire Business First

Being a Disability Confident employer is easier than you might think

You don't need to have it all figured out straight away - it's about being realistic and reasonable with what you can do, while being open-minded to change.

It's also about understanding the different ways that someone can have a disability, such as:

physical (chronic fatigue, chronic pain, impaired movement/mobility, injury, loss of limb/s, muscular dystrophy)
neurological (concussion, seizures, autism, cerebral palsy, ADHD, epilepsy, dyslexia, dyspraxia, speech disorders)
sensory (impaired hearing, vision, smell, touch, taste or spatial awareness)
mental health (depression, anxiety disorder, bipolar disorder, OCD, schizophrenia, eating disorder, post-traumatic stress)

What is the Disability Confident scheme?

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

It's completely free, with access to guidance, good practice, resources, and ongoing support.

By signing up, you are simply showing a willingness to think about how you could adapt to having an inclusive, disability-friendly workplace.

The Disability Confident scheme helps employers:

recruit and retain great people from the widest possible pool of talent
have an accessible and supportive recruitment process
adapt in the event of employees becoming disabled
reap the benefits of having diverse perspectives and talents in an inclusive workplace
empower individuals with disabilities, promote their talents, and provide equal opportunities for career development
make reasonable adjustments to create accessible working environments
play a lead role in changing behaviours and attitudes for the better

How to join the Disability Confident scheme

Use this form to express your interest in the Disability Confident scheme (this ensures you join via our campaign and can access further inspiration and support)
Sign up to the Disability Confident scheme on the official website here

The DICE Club: become a Champion of Paralympic Heritage

Through a partnership between Buckinghamshire Business First and the National Paralympic Heritage Trust, employers that register on the Disability Confident scheme through our campaign will also have the chance to receive a complimentary year’s membership of the National Paralympic Heritage Trust's DICE Club, which is a business club that promotes the Paralympic virtues of Determination, Inspiration, Courage and Equality (DICE).

Join the DICE Club and:

get support to be an inclusive organisation
attend networking meetings with Paralympians and like-minded businesses
receive educational visits and workshops on disability in the workplace
get your DICE Club Champion status promoted far and wide

To take advantage of this amazing opportunity, all you need to do is:

Express your interest in the Disability Confident scheme via this form
Sign up to the Disability Confident scheme on the official website here
You'll then have the opportunity to join the DICE Club*

* Free DICE Club entry is available to the first 24 employers in Buckinghamshire who sign up to the Disability Confident scheme through our campaign.

Buckinghamshire Business First is a founding member of the DICE Club. Read why we signed up, then click below to join us!

Buckinghamshire: The Birthplace of the Paralympics

The genesis of the Paralympic Games is found in Stoke Mandeville and the inspiring work of Sir Ludwig Guttmann, who founded the Stoke Mandeville Games in 1948. These Games would later morph into the Paralympic Games, which an estimated 4.1 billion people are set to watch the latest edition of when it is held in Paris from August 28th to September 8th 2024.

The first ever Heritage Flame Lighting Ceremony at Stoke Mandeville took place ahead of the 2014 Winter Paralympic Games, contributing towards the Paralympic Flame in each host nation ever since. In 2024, for the first time, the Paralympic Flame itself and its entire journey along the official Paralympic Torch Relay will begin in Stoke Mandeville, with all future Games to follow suit in honour of its place in history as the Birthplace of the Paralympics.

This legacy is something for Buckinghamshire to be immensely proud of, and it should serve as inspiration for everyone who lives, works and runs a business in the county to try and uphold the values that the Paralympic Movement holds dear: Determination, Inspiration, Courage and Equality.

What does being an inclusive employer mean?

Being an inclusive employer simply means being aware of different people in society and being open to employing them, looking past a perceived obstacle and instead seeing the person and the opportunity. That's how the best teams are created.

Disability Confident employers are willing to support employees with a disability, ensure their recruitment processes are accessible, and help tackle the low employment rate for disabled people, benefiting from the well-documented advantages of hiring a diverse team. After all, if your business needs different skills, you need to look in different places.

Local Disability Confident employers include Fairhive, Talkback, Securitas, Buckinghamshire Business First, Buckinghamshire Council, and MK Gallery.