News

Public Health England has issued updated statistics for the Public Health Outcomes Framework. They should that the disability employment gap for people with a learning disability and people in contact with secondary mental health services stands at almost 70% across England. The gap has increased by nearly 7% over the last 7 years.

The Office for National Statistics (ONS) has published its latest report into Disability pay gaps in the UK: 2018 which has found that in 2018 the median pay for non-disabled workers was £12.11 an hour, against £10.63 for disabled workers.

Disabled employees with a mental impairment had the largest pay gap at 18.6%, while for those with a physical impairment the pay gap was 9.7% and those with other impairments had the narrowest gap, at 7.4%. Around a quarter of the difference in mean pay can be accounted for by factors such as occupation and qualification.

The Open University's new report,  'Access to Apprenticeships', has found that, while two thirds of employers consider hiring candidates with disabilities for entry-level roles is an important priority for them, many feel 'unequipped' to do so - with financial barriers and lack of training meaning they aren't able to offer the correct provisions for disabled workers.

A survey of 500 small and medium enterprises (SMEs) by a solicitor firm, Bolt Burdon Kemp, has found that found many don’t understand how to cater for disabled employees. The survey found that 93% of those surveyed would like more information and training about disability employment law.

The Greater Manchester Good Employment Charter Supporters’ Network, the first of its kind in the UK, has launched with more than 60 businesses signing up to the aims of the Charter.

A coaltion of European associations has set out a series of recommendations about disability and employment support in a document known as the Vienna Declaration.

A new quality mark has been launched for Supported Businesses. The Social Enterprise Disabilty Employment Mark (SEDEM) has been designed specifically for the supported business sector, with the aim of providing assurance for commissioners/funding bodies and disabled people on the specialist supportive environment provided for employees with disabilities.

The National Audit Office (NAO) has published a report 'Supporting Disabled People into Work' on how the Department for Work and Pensions supports people with a disability into work. BASE supported the NAO's work on the report and we will be commenting on the content soon.

The report is about the Department’s support to help disabled people overcome barriers to work. It examines the Department’s:

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