Supporting Autistic People in Employment

Cost: Free

Join us for an event on how to make your workplace more inclusive and supportive for autistic job seekers and employees.

Who the event is for

This event is for employers, HR professionals, and individuals from community and voluntary groups involved in recruitment and management. You’ll find out how to better support people with autism in applying for and maintaining employment in your workplace.

What you'll learn

By attending this event, you will:
• Learn practical ways to improve your recruitment processes and practices to help autistic jobseekers apply for and secure jobs
• Learn ways to help autistic employees enjoy a safe and inclusive workplace
• Understand how to make reasonable adjustments and take positive actions
• Gain insights and effective strategies from employers and community groups, such as Allstate, BBC, Danske Bank, and Specialistern, on how they support autistic people to access and retain employment
• Learn about employability projects from the Department for Communities that improve job opportunities for people with autism
• Receive guidance on supporting autistic employees in the workplace.

Panel discussion - 'Building blocks for a psychologically safe and inclusive workplace'

• Chair - Ema Cubitt, Independent Autism Reviewer, Department of Health

Our panel will explore the key foundations of an inclusive culture, focusing on three main themes:

Policies and communication - covering recruitment, messaging, accessibility, reasonable adjustments with Colette Lydon, Enigma Staff Lead, BBC NI.

Employee awareness – addressing empathy, storytelling, training, and carer needs with Peter McHugh, Chair, Disability Lead, Danske Bank.

Employee empowerment – discussing staff networks, the 'So you think you are autistic' course, mental health, and employee resilience with Sharon Didrichsen, Specialisterne.

This event is hosted in partnership with Allstate NI and the Northern Ireland Union for Supported Employment (NIUSE).

If you need any reasonable adjustments to attend or participate, please let us know when booking through Eventbrite, and we will contact you.

We are committed to ensuring accessibility with the Reasonable Adjustment Duty under the Disability Discrimination Order 1995.

We reserve the right to cancel or amend the timings of these sessions.

We appreciate as much notice of cancellation by delegates as possible, so that we can re-allocate the place. Delegates may cancel their booking by email or by phone.

Delegates are responsible for any charges incurred during attendance at the session.

We are happy to share our training materials with guidance on their use from commission staff.