Lillian’s tablet tour brings a family holiday into view
Lillian Tellsdale is looking forward to a big family holiday at the end of the year. The trip to Penrith in her native Cumbria with her sister and other relatives is six months away, allowing the 74-year-old from Wigton plenty of time to research the area on her new tablet.
She says she might learn to take photos on the device to show support staff her holiday snaps when she returns.
Submitted by Annie Mannion on Fri, 25/06/2021 - 10:02
One size does not fit all, so make sure you have robust, inclusive, accessible policies and approaches in place to create a workplace to meet the wide range of employees' needs.
Get top tips for inclusive onboarding in our free webinar on Tuesday 29 June at 1pm BST: 'How to excel at inclusive onboarding and induction'.
Everyone who signs up will receive a link to the slides and the webinar recording after the webinar occurs.
Lloyd's speaks about disability inclusion
Guest speaker Trevor Jennings, Risk Manager at Lloyd’s will be speaking with AbilityNet's Service Delivery Director, Amy Low, about the disability inclusion strategy and culture at Lloyd's.
AbilityNet's accessibility and usability consultants Rina Wharton and Daniel McLaughlan will also discuss best practices for onboarding staff with different disabilities including autism, which Rina discusses in an interview on our website.
The webinar will last for 60 minutes and includes an opportunity to pose questions to the panellists.
AbilityNet's senior accessibility consultant James Baverstock joined Susi on the webinar to provide a timely outline of the key responsibilities for public sector organisations to meet the Public Sector Bodies Accessibility Regulations (PSBAR) 23 June deadline. Find a summary below.
Are public sector organisations delivering accessible eLearning?
Before Susi shared her tips, we asked attendees on the webinar 'How confident are you that you deliver accessible eLearning'?
The majority said 'Quite confident - we have just a few issues to iron out but we know what we need to do' (44%), which is a really positive response.
However, no respondents answered 'Very confident - we have perfected it'.
Other results were:
Not confident - there are a lot of problems to fix and possibly more we don't know about (40%)
Not at all confident - we don't know where to start (4%)
Not applicable - 12%
Teach your staff about eLearning best practices with our eLearning modules for higher and further education:
James's advice for meeting the mobile apps deadline included:
If you have in-house developed apps make sure they are checked for accessibility
Most public sector organisations are more likely to use 3rd party apps. Note that CDDO (formerly GDS) has issued updated guidance that only apps where both of the following apply are in scope:
Mobile apps designed and developed by or on behalf of a public sector body (NOT unbranded off-the-shelf apps)
Mobile apps for use by the general public (NOT specifically defined groups such as employees or students)
If your 3rd party apps are in scope, speak to suppliers ASAP and publish a statement by 23rd June
Susi and James also answered many questions from attendees on the webinar itself, and you can find the answers on the webinar recording page including advice on captioning tools and accessible quizzing.
Tablet success is music to our ears: Digital Lifeline Fund
Access to a tablet is bringing the pick of the pops to Susan Russell, 50, from Bromsgrove, who received a device through the UK government's Digital Lifeline scheme.
AbilityNet is helping to support people like Susan, who has a learning disability.
Tablet gifts a birthday surprise: Digital Lifeline Fund
The first thing Stacey Webb did with the new tablet she got through the government’s Digital Lifeline Fund was a web search for her sister’s birthday gift.
AbilityNet is helping support people with learning disabilities to make the most of the devices they receive through the national scheme.
During our assessment of Stacey’s digital needs, the 32-year-old from Newcastle said she was keen to use the new bit of kit to search for information.
Leannda is on her way with (DJ) mix of tech support
Submitted by Saba Salman on Tue, 22/06/2021 - 16:56
Leannda Ward is pretty tech-savvy. The 30-year-old, who was born blind, has used digital devices since she was a child. During the lockdown, she even got herself some DJ CD decks and started mixing music at home in North East Lincolnshire.
Although Leannda was comfortable using her new tablet, she says AbilityNet’s assessment and follow-up calls enabled her to customise the kit for her needs.
Leannda received her device thanks to Digital Lifeline, a government scheme providing learning disabled people access to tablets. She got the tech through Foresight North East Lincolnshire, a charity that supports disabled people and where Leannda does regular arts and crafts sessions.
Leannda says: “I wasn’t nervous about getting the tablet, but it was still useful being trained to use it.”
For support adapting technology call our helpline 0300 180 0028
Please note: calls to our helpline number cost no more than a national rate call to an 01 or 02 number and count towards any inclusive minutes in the same way as 01 and 02 calls, and AbilityNet does not receive any money from these calls
Braille support for an Android device
Having previously used Apple devices, Leannda says it was helpful to have advice on the Android operating system: “The barrier was going to Android from an Apple device, but once you get used to it, it’s fine.” Typing in Braille, she adds, is far better on an Android tablet.
She also valued AbilityNet’s help in connecting her existing Bluetooth Braille keyboard to the tablet. She was pleased the tablet was pre-loaded with apps: “The email one was really useful to start using straight away.”
During our initial assessment, Leannda also said she wanted to use the tablet to play games for the blind and join in online forums.
Our volunteers recommended the installation of BrailleBack, an accessibility app that enables Leannda to connect a refreshable Braille display to her Android device via Bluetooth. With BrailleBack, screen content appears on Leannda’s Braille display, and she navigates the tablet using the keys on the display.
We also advised using settings like text-to-speech (if Leannda touches text on the screen, the tablet reads it out) and speech-to-text (when Leannda talks to the tablet, it writes her words). Other recommended settings enable Leannda to speak or type, and the tablet will do or find out what she asks (like sending messages or checking the weather).
As for playing games, Leannda is currently enjoying Dice World, an accessible game for people with visual impairments.
The new tablet will also make it easier for Leannda to keep up with her voluntary role co-chairing and promoting a local group for the blind: “We organise social activities once a week…what I like about chairing the group is being able to get things organised.”
The tablet’s biggest benefit, she says, is the access to her online activities in one place: “Facebook is easier to use on the tablet than on my phone. Before, I might use it on my phone and use email on a computer, but now I have it all in one place.”
Tablet gifts a birthday surprise: Digital Lifeline Fund
Submitted by Saba Salman on Tue, 22/06/2021 - 15:56
The first thing Stacey Webb did with the new tablet she got through the government’s Digital Lifeline Fund was a web search for her sister’s birthday gift.
AbilityNet is helping support people with learning disabilities to make the most of the devices they receive through the national scheme.
During our assessment of Stacey’s digital needs, the 32-year-old from Newcastle said she was keen to use the new bit of kit to search for information.
She received her tablet through Stoke-On-Trent City Council’s adult social care, health integration and wellbeing department (with the Digital Lifeline scheme, organisations apply for devices on behalf of individuals).
“I’ve had the screen made bigger, so it’s easier to read.” Stacey, 32, received a tablet through the Digital Lifeline Fund
Tablet is a part of daily life
Stacey says: “First of all I looked up a present for my sister when it was her birthday. I was just looking for ideas - she likes perfume and rosé wine…Using it to get information has been the main thing for me.”
Although Stacey was familiar with using her mother’s tablet, she worried she might make a mistake. “I’d never had my own tablet. I was nervous because you don’t know what you should press and what if it goes wrong?”
One adaptation that helped, says Stacey, was screen magnification: “I’ve had the screen made bigger, so it’s easier to read.”
Now Stacey is now so familiar with the tablet that it “feels part of daily life.”
She is currently building up to contacting friends through messaging and video calling apps: “I like texting my friends and asking how they are…I’m going to start using Facebook messenger on the tablet - I’m still learning! I’m going to try and use it for video calls. I use it mostly for looking things up, but I’m going to try and start using it more to message people.”
Alongside the practical benefit of information-gathering, Stacey says the tablet is a confidence booster. “It’s made me feel more confident…because I got a new bit of tech which I’ve learned to use, and I’ve been able to find things out.”
The tablet, says Stacey, has made a “really good difference” during Covid: “It’s made me feel more confident and positive through Covid.”
Stacey is clearly aware of the tablet’s potential to support her interests. The keen singer and dancer joins a local performing arts group at her community centre twice a week and is looking forward to being in the panto Mother Goose in November.
She says: “We can’t sing, and we can’t have too many people because of Covid rules, but we do try and dance. We try and read through the lines. I like to learn lines and then dance it through”. Stacey says she loves dancing to songs by Justin Timberlake, Cheryl Cole and Katy Perry.
Ask Stacey for her verdict on the tablet so far, and she does not miss a beat: “It’s built my confidence - it will help everyone who’s got one.”
Digital Lifeline is an emergency response project delivering devices, data, and digital skills support to digitally excluded people with learning disabilities. It’s funded by the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport (DCMS) and delivered by Good Things Foundation in partnership with AbilityNet and Digital Unite. The project is also supported by Learning Disability England, the Voluntary Organisations Disability Group, self-advocates and other disability and digital inclusion organisations.
How AbilityNet can help
For support with devices, call our FREE Helpline on 0800 048 7642
Tablet success is music to our ears: Digital Lifeline Fund
Submitted by Saba Salman on Tue, 22/06/2021 - 13:57
Access to a tablet is bringing the pick of the pops to Susan Russell, 50, from Bromsgrove, who received a device through the UK government's Digital Lifeline scheme.
AbilityNet is helping to support people like Susan, who has a learning disability.
Susan had used a tablet before she got the new device through the Digital Lifeline Fund, so she was familiar with how apps might work. “I had one before, so it wasn’t so new for me. I wasn’t so nervous about it. I found it quite easy to use."
“I like pop music. Listening to pop music is relaxing. I listen to music that’s in the charts.”
A keen music-lover, Susan’s next goal was to search for her favourite tunes on YouTube.
“I like pop music. Listening to pop music is relaxing. I listen to music that’s in the charts.”
One of Susan's favourite bands is the 1970s pop group Showaddywaddy, known for its 1950s and 1960s style songs.
Keeping connected during lockdown
Susan, who lives in supported living (a combination of housing and care) in Worcestershire, got a tablet through The Hive Library, run by Worcestershire County Council.
In an AbilityNet assessment, Susan told us it was important for her to keep in touch with friends and relatives. “It was difficult being on my own in lockdown,” she recalls, “I was seeing less people.”
Our volunteers recommended apps, including a messaging app and a contact list so Susan could see who calls or messages her and automatically save their numbers.
Game on: relaxing with a tablet
Susan was also keen to use the device to play games which she finds help her relax.
With advice from AbilityNet, support staff at the Bromsgrove Resource Centre, a day centre Susan visits three times a week, enabled her to download the apps she needed.
“I use it for games,” says Susan of her tablet, explaining that she is keen on a fishing game: “I find it relaxing!” She also uses a colouring app and particularly loves making cross stitch patterns on the tablet.
Even though Susan had used a tablet before, she says it is essential to “take your time” so new users are not overwhelmed by new technology.
As for her own tablet use, she says she is looking forward to maximising its potential: “I’m still finding out new things with it.”
Digital Lifeline is an emergency response project delivering devices, data and digital skills support to digitally excluded people with learning disabilities. It’s funded by the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport (DCMS) and delivered by Good Things Foundation in partnership with AbilityNet and Digital Unite. The project is also supported by Learning Disability England, the Voluntary Organisations Disability Group, self-advocates and other disability and digital inclusion organisations.
Submitted by Saba Salman on Tue, 22/06/2021 - 13:12
Janet Groves admits feeling nervous getting started with the tablet she received via the government’s Digital Lifeline Fund, set up to help people with learning disabilities.
“I knew nothing about them - I was nervous,” says the 58-year-old from Bromsgrove, Worcestershire. “It felt strange,” she remembers.
Janet received her device through The Hive Library, run by Worcestershire County Council – only organisations can apply for tablets on behalf of individuals through the scheme.
AbilityNet is providing FREE support to recipients and assessed Janet’s needs. High on her list were wanting to play games and make video calls.
"I struggled at first, but I got used to it." Janet Groves, recipient of a tablet
Our volunteers supported her at Bromsgrove Resource Centre, which Janet attends three times per week to help build confidence. “I was taught how to use it. I’ve got a mobile phone, so I knew how to use FaceTime and Facebook a bit, but not on a tablet, she said.
“I struggled at first, but I got used to it,” Janet added.
At first, there were challenges, including working out how to switch the device on and off and generally “just learning how to use it,” said Janet. But, gradually, she became less hesitant: “I did feel myself becoming more confident…the more you use it, the easier it gets.”
The addition of shortcut buttons, as recommended by AbilityNet, was a big help. These were configured using Action Blocks for Android. The App enables you to configure tailored buttons for the home screen to automatically jump to a task.
For Janet, the shortcut helps her to access FaceTime. She says that FaceTime is better on a tablet than a mobile phone “because it’s a bigger screen.”
“It’s quite fiddly on the phone. I can call my friends. I can just press the shortcut,” she said.
Janet, who lives in Bromsgrove in supported living (a combination of housing and care), has a stylus for using with a colouring-by-numbers app and loves to play online quizzes.
“Coronation Street is my favourite quiz. I’m doing well with my score! I do colouring-by-numbers and have a special pen for the tablet.”
Her favourite activity is doing quizzes, although colouring is a close second because it is “relaxing and calming”.
Janet's "pretty busy diary" includes visits from her sister and aunt and knitting. She is currently making a scarf and enjoying “knit and natter” sessions at the day centre. Susan also goes for drinks at the pub with her boyfriend of two years, Paul (“usually a Coke or cappuccino.”).
Combined with lockdown restrictions easing, Janet says using the tablet has boosted her confidence:
“It's had a good impact. It’s given me more independence. It’s allowed me to keep my interests and access them in a different way. I’m able to do things I’m interested in when I want to do them.”
What's her advice for others who might feel wary about new tech?
“Don’t rush yourself and take it easy. It’s made me feel more confident using technology. I like it. I feel proud of myself.”
Digital Lifeline is an emergency response project delivering devices, data and digital skills support to digitally excluded people with learning disabilities. It’s funded by the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport (DCMS) and delivered by Good Things Foundation in partnership with AbilityNet and Digital Unite. The project is also supported by Learning Disability England, the Voluntary Organisations Disability Group, self-advocates and other disability and digital inclusion organisations.
How digital accessibility can drive diversity and inclusion
Submitted by Stuart Andrews on Mon, 14/06/2021 - 15:22
Diversity and Inclusion (D&I) have rapidly become a mainstream part of the business landscape and are increasingly seen as a business priority, with global indices tracking companies’ D&I performance and ranking them accordingly. Accessibility leaders may be familiar with the values that underpin diversity and inclusion, but what role can they play in delivering D&I goals?
Stuart Andrews is a freelance journalist, commissioned by AbilityNet.
He spoke to AbilityNet's Mairead Comerford, Google’s Chris Patnoe, The Valuable 500’s Caroline Casey, Diversity & Inclusion Exec Sheree Atcheson and Verizon’s Samantha Soloway. They explained how they’re driving a cultural change in their own organisations and the connection between D&I and their vision of a digital world that is accessible for all.
What is the difference between diversity and inclusion?
Often presented as a double-act, diversity and inclusion are critical parts of your company strategy - but they are not the same.
Diversity means recognising the diverse needs of individuals. For example, a wheelchair user is only disabled when entering a building if there is no ramp; an employee with a visual impairment can access documents, websites, and apps if they are attuned to work with assistive technologies (AT) such as a screen reader.
Inclusion focuses on ensuring that every employee and customer feel seen and valued. So, employees can work to their full potential, whatever their background or identity or whatever disabilities they have.
“An equitable employer respects the unique needs, perspectives and potentials of all team members.” Mairead Comerford, Head of HR for AbilityNet
As Mairead Comerford, Head of HR for AbilityNet (a Disability Confident Leader), says: “An equitable employer respects the unique needs, perspectives and potentials of all team members and creates deeper trust and commitment from employees. It outpaces competitors.”
Christopher Patnoe, Head of Accessibility Programs and Disability Inclusion at Google, agrees: “Some businesses forget that human beings are not cogs,” he said. “We all have the ability to bring something unique and powerful.”
Inclusion drives innovation, creates better workplaces and better products. Partly, this is because a diverse workforce pushes a business into thinking about issues it might otherwise find uncomfortable.
Doing so can generate ideas and uncover problems that a more homogenous team might never see.
“Teams of people create innovations' says Comerford. "So the more diverse teams are, along many dimensions, the more likely they are to draw inspiration from unrelated places.”
Patnoe agrees, “A more diverse workforce provides a more diverse set of answers and – more importantly – a more diverse set of questions."
Hear more from Google's Christopher Patnoe in our TechShare Procast series
How diversity and inclusion drive business value
Embracing different lived experiences is essential for growth.
Caroline Casey, Founder and Creator of The Valuable 500, says: “Business is about delivering to the bottom line; it is interested in growth; in innovation,” she said. “The only way we can get growth and innovation is to access different lived experiences around innovation, and that insight leads to innovation and, for growth, to access to more markets.”
Tech giants often at the forefront of innovating agree, and Google’s Patnoe agrees with this point: “Disability creates this need to solve problems; you have these passionate, technically expert people on the team, contributing in ways you hadn't expected.”
Hector Minto, Senior Technical Evangelist for Microsoft Europe, believes employees are the most powerful advocates for change: "Having employees with disabilities telling you the hard truths about your product drives more impact inside the business because it's not this other-ism," he said, speaking at Microsoft's Ability Summit 2021.
Listen to the AbilityNet Accessibility Insights Podcast for more from our conversations with the global accessibility community, and the accessibility leaders who are working to build a digital world accessible to all.
Why do diversity and inclusion programmes fail?
Too much focus on demographic data is one reason D&I initiatives fail, says Sheree Atcheson, author of Demanding More (Why Diversity and Inclusion Don't Happen and What you can do about it). “People assume when you talk about data in inclusion related work that we're talking about demographic data or representation as a singular marker of inclusion," she said. "That's one of the biggest pitfalls I've seen.”
The Valuable 500’s Caroline Casey agrees that diversity and inclusion must go beyond box-ticking.
“The biggest barrier pre-Covid was that businesses could say, 'this year we are focusing on gender, next year we're doing LBGQT, maybe we might do race'," she said. "That is not inclusion, and that is not diversity. It's a delusion. It is a hierarchy.”
Businesses “continue to create 'exclusionary inclusion', prioritising those they feel an affinity towards, and often pushing diversity of gender above other forms of diversity and inclusion,” said Atcheson.
“Disabled people are being left behind, people of colour are being left behind," she says, "and the intersections of those things goes across everything. It goes across neurodiversity, sexual orientation, caring responsibility, socioeconomic background and everything else.”
Technology’s role in driving diversity and inclusion
The sudden shift to remote working at home due to Covid-19 has amplified inclusion messages, and the role technology can play.
“Technology is critically important, especially when it comes to disability," said Patnoe referencing accessibility tools within online platforms, notably captions and audio descriptions.“It’s beneficial for someone who is deaf or hard of hearing. They get to follow the contributions very, very clearly because each person has an attribution, and every person has a caption.”
Tech giant Microsoft made a raft of announcements at Ability Summit 2021 as part of a five-year commitment to supporting people with disabilities.
For example, the company is switching on the accessibility checker within Microsoft Word by default. It hopes to make it as ubiquitous as the spellchecker so that documents created within organisations are accessible to everyone.
Notably, Microsoft saw a 30x increase in the use of Microsoft Teams’ captioning features between February and April 2020.
However, there’s more to be done. “The inclusion of people with disabilities is important,” said Samantha Soloway, Accessibility Lab Manager for Verizon Media. “But we still have a way to go in “making sure that technology serves everyone, including those with disabilities."
“We aim to have accessibility at the centre of everything we do. Our products are born accessible, and accessibility is part of everybody's job.”
“If you’re designing from the extreme need,” says Caroline Casey, “you're probably going to fulfil everybody's need. So I see the disability experience being the greatest insight to help companies achieve universal accessibility, which is not simply about the disability market but also about the ageing market.”
So, how can organisations drive their diversity and inclusion agenda?
To be successful, it needs to go beyond policy and permeate every area, activity and process, says AbilityNet’s Comerford. “I think sometimes companies think that, as long as you’ve got a policy, you’re driving D&I forward, but that’s not the case,”
With AbilityNet, D&I runs through the organisation, beginning with recruitment. “We’re always looking at recruitment and at how it can be more inclusive,” said Comerford. "We take feedback not only from the interviewers but also the interviewees – how it’s gone and any feedback.”
AbilityNet uses an award-winning app called ClearTalents during recruitment that enables candidates to state if they have specific needs or concerns about the process.
Candidates don't have to speak up about any disabilities. Still, they can request the option to prepare a video or see interview questions in advance as an alternative to a face-to-face presentation or a conventional interview.
“We don't need to know why they have requested it - and it doesn’t mean that they have an unfair advantage,” says Comerford. “It’s just that people have different ways of doing things, and I think we’re trying to embrace that. We’re not trying to catch people out at interview – we’re just trying to get the right person for the right job.”
Verizon's Samantha Soloway also believes in a holistic approach.
“We know how to make sure that people with disabilities feel included at the workplace, but more so, that our hiring processes are inclusive and that accessible. Once someone joins Verizon Media, we want to make sure they have a positive experience and stay.”
Get help with diversity and inclusion from AbilityNet's experts, including training on accessible HR, recruitment, onboarding and career development.
How do you build a culture of diversity and inclusion?
Every organisation working on diversity and inclusion faces challenges, and how to create cultural change is one of the hardest tasks.
“I think that company culture is the biggest challenge,” says Patnoe. “Small companies tend to have so many things that they need to do and, frankly, diversity and inclusion are often not at the top of the list.’
Patnoe understands that while it's easier to promote diversity and inclusion at Google because it has the scale to have a specialist team, smaller companies don't have the same resources. "Everybody has multiple hats that they have to wear," he explains, "and they think that they don't need to do it, but what they don't realise is that they're harming their staff."
Caroline Casey agrees that culture is a huge issue. "When we talk about culture, it's creating environments where we can be whole, and where individuals are truly allowed to turn up as the whole human being that they are."
Many leaders face an uphill struggle in how they develop inclusive work culture. "How do they come to the table when they've never done this before?'" said Casey. "How do they prepare for this? How do they put measurements in place?"
"Everything needs to incorporate accessibility from the start." Sam Soloway, Verizon Media
'I think companies might struggle with applying it to their entire ecosystem', says Verizon's Sam Soloway. "Making sure that we are the most meaningful and the most effective means applying knowledge of accessibility and disability and inclusion into our user-facing products."
It's also about ensuring that disability and inclusion run through the company's DNA including its business partners, procurement, marketing, internal and external communication, recruitment, hiring, and training. "Everything needs to incorporate accessibility from the start.”
Leadership in Diversity and Inclusion
Buy-in across an organisation is critical if cultural change is to succeed, and that demands strong leadership.
"We have been successful in Google in our work in terms of disability and inclusion because we've been able to convince our leadership that it matters," said Patnoe.“We've been able to convince the teams that it's important. And we've been able to make people uncomfortable, but not too uncomfortable. You have to push people.”
The Valuable 500 targeted the C-Suite, "because it's completely around them that we drive change," says Caroline Casey of the Valuable 500's highly successful two-and-a-half-year campaign.
''We built this community to break the CEO silence, the business silence, around disability and inclusion. So that we could drive real, true understanding of the value that people with disabilities and their families bring," she explained.
Comerford agrees: "You have to have leadership buy-in. It's not just a tick list from leadership – you have to have time allocated to D&I," she said. “Diversity and inclusion initiatives have got to align with your organisational goals and your company values or, they will be pushed to the back burner."
“And leadership need to lead by example, by integrating D&I into their hiring interview process and how they treat fellow employees."
The role of training within Diversity and Inclusion
A coherent training programme has a vital role to play, says Soloway.
"Training plays a significant part in the solution. Training is everything," says Soloway. "When we as a team have been building our employee engagement and learning and development resources, people with disabilities have been informing what the best practices are," she said.
Verizon developed training on assistive technology (AT) to evaluate Verizon's work and its editorial. "It spans different content areas, but using the true subject matter experts – those with lived experiences – is so important."
Comerford also believes that training is essential. "Training helps all employees understand different perspectives. It encourages them to think about their actions and how they could unintentionally offend someone, " she says.
Patnoe says that training pushes people. "It's not just pushing people but pushing them and providing them with the tools to be able to fend for themselves. It has to be OK to make mistakes, too. You're never going to get it right the first time,"
"Everyone's going to make a mistake. But as long as you approach it from the point of authenticity and sincerity, you should be fine."
Caroline Casey agrees. "Our organisations have the intention to do this better, and that means for them to do things differently, they're going to have to innovate, and with innovation comes failure. That's the culture we need because no company just gets this right. It's tough."
Explore unconscious bias within your organisation
Perhaps most of all, organisations and their leaders have to consider their own unconscious bias. Here, training helps people to engage.
Comerford is aware of the media balance against unconscious bias training, but she says, "It was one of the best training courses we've run and generated the best feedback on training from staff."
"It was very engaging for people to realise that we all have a sense of unconscious bias, and to think about that and how it impacts on your recruitment. We all think that we don't have any issues, but training will show you that there are little bits that come out."
Training is essential but part of a broader journey. "Often, people will start by rolling out training on unconscious bias, and this and that," says Atcheson. "But truly, we don't know what bias exists in their companies."
How do you measure Diversity and Inclusion?
Measuring inclusion goes beyond demographic data, says Atcheson. “You can't tick box an exercise’ she says. “All too often, people define a process, a policy or a solution; they'll develop it, and then roll it out, and then they will find issues with it. You're just causing more harm or more exclusion in the world,” she said.
A genuine inclusion strategy looks at who’s progressing, how people from different groups feel about training opportunities, about belonging, management, loyalty and support all “so you don’t make any assumptions.”
Minto agrees that good data is part of the solution. "It's not just 'ticking the box," he said at Ability Summit 2021. "It's about being prepared to be audited; we want to know what works and what doesn't."
AbilityNet is a Disability Confident Leader as part of the UK government’s Disability Confident Scheme, a voluntary framework designed to encourage employers to recruit and retain disabled people and those with health conditions.
"What’s important is not just collating the data but to learn from it,” says Comerford. "We gather a range of data on who's employed but also who has risen to a management position and consider audience and employee sentiments based on surveys."
“Data collection, benchmarking, and feedback help you challenge any assumptions and ensure that your diversity and inclusion strategy is on the right path. What are your actionable points? What can you change and improve? What should you react to? What can you ignore, and what needs to be done today?"
"It's important to measure the failure first, and then build on that.”
She says she might learn to take photos on the device to show support staff her holiday snaps when she returns. 
Lloyd's speaks about disability inclusion
Although Leannda was comfortable using her new tablet, she says AbilityNet’s assessment and follow-up calls enabled her to customise the kit for her needs. 
A keen music-lover, Susan’s next goal was to search for her favourite tunes on YouTube. 
Janet's "pretty busy diary" includes visits from her sister and aunt and knitting. She is currently making a scarf and enjoying “knit and natter” sessions at the day centre. Susan also goes for drinks at the pub with her boyfriend of two years, Paul (“usually a Coke or cappuccino.”). 
Too much focus on demographic data is one reason D&I initiatives fail, says Sheree Atcheson, author of 
Tech giant Microsoft made a raft of announcements at Ability Summit 2021 as part of a 
So, how can organisations drive their diversity and inclusion agenda? 
Every organisation working on diversity and inclusion faces challenges, and how to create cultural change is one of the hardest tasks. 