New guidance highlights need to embed inclusive practices to support neurodiverse staff.
Employers are becoming increasingly aware of the need to create workplaces and cultures which value and respect diversity, including neurodiversity. There is a greater understanding of the benefits which spring from more diversity of thought and ways of thinking within the workforce and an appreciation that becoming more neuroinclusive will benefit the whole organisation.
There are also legal risks in failing to take steps to ensure neurodiversity is understood and that any barriers for neurodiverse staff are acknowledged and alleviated as far as is reasonable. We have previously reported on a number of cases where neurodiverse employees and job candidates have brought claims in the employment tribunal alleging they have been discriminated against in relation to their neurodiverse condition as a disability under the Equality Act. For more detail see Reasonable adjustments for neurodiverse job applicants and Employee's aggressive conduct did not arise from disabilities (available on our website).
The CIPD has now published a very useful guide to Neuroinclusion at Work which is a good starting point for leaders and managers seeking to create a neuroinclusive culture.
The guide makes clear that neuroinclusion is not a tick box exercise or one-off event and that it requires a long term commitment to embedding neuroinclusivity in everything the organisation does.
The fact that we are all neurodiverse, in the sense that no two brains are alike and that different people think differently means that focusing on neuroinclusive practices will benefit all staff. Employers are encouraged in the guide to invite all staff to request adjustments and to be flexible in how work gets done, as well as when and where work is done.
The guide flags the need for person-centred and tailored support for individuals where needed, but also the importance of creating a wider culture where all employees feel safe to ask for what they need and where privacy is respected. There is also a focus on listening to the individual rather than making assumptions about what they need.
Training is a key step in making the organisation more neuroinclusive, putting in place neurodiversity awareness training across the organisation with the aim of normalising conversations about neurodiversity, while also training managers on having open and effective conversations with their team about neurodiversity.
The guide stresses the importance of creating a culture where diversity, including neurodiversity, is respected and valued (and not just accepted). This includes taking an empathetic approach to management, seeking to create psychological safety for speaking up, and ensuring that people's strengths are utilised.
Helpful examples are provided for adapting recruitment processes to ensure they do not exclude neurodiverse candidates. These include steps to ensure that interviews are not a test of social competence rather than a test of ability to perform the role.
The guide provides pointers for improving the retention of neurodiverse staff, including considering job design for progression and establishing alternative ways to recognise achievement.
While the focus is on neuroinclusion permeating the organisation at all levels, the guide highlights the importance of senior leadership championing neurodiversity and "walking the walk" when it comes to living the values of the organisation in the workplace.
The guide also includes some practical starting points and sets out six key principles for creating a neuroinclusive organisation:
Principle 1: Understand where you are now and commit to a long-term plan of action
Principle 2: Focus on creating an open and supportive culture where people feel comfortable talking about neurodiversity
Principle 3: Proactively consider neurodiversity in all people management interactions
Principle 4: Allow individual employees to be masters of their own journey
Principle 5: Embrace flexible working to enable everybody to thrive
Principle 6: Practice ongoing attention to wellbeing
Principle 7: Empower neurodivergent voices
The central theme of the guide is the need for an approach which does not see neurodiversity as a problem to be solved, but as an integral part of the organisation and a positive asset to its work, with neuroinclusive ways of working leading to a more open, balanced and productive workplace.
The content of this article is intended to provide a general guide to the subject matter. Specialist advice should be sought about your specific circumstances.
