UK: Workplace Culture: Neurodiversity

Authors: Rob Hill, Corinna Harris and Sophie Jackson

The City & Guilds Neurodiversity Index Report 2024 found that more organisations are focusing on neuro-inclusion, with an increase in employers having neurodiverse-friendly strategies and adapting their recruitment practices to accommodate neurodivergent applicants as compared to the previous year. That said, it reported that 50% of individual respondents had been off work during 2023 as a result of neurominority challenges. In addition, over a third of neurodivergent workers had no guidance from their employer and a fifth were waiting for promised adjustments to be made.

City & Guilds, which specialises in skills development, also made a number of recommendations aimed at creating a neuroinclusive workplace, including:

• Reviewing and updating policies to create an inclusive work environment and eliminate barriers
• Drafting clear and understandable job descriptions that reflect the actual skills needed for the job
• Providing interview questions in advance
• Clearly explaining the rules of the workplace during the onboarding process
• Ensuring physical, technological and communication accommodations are in place to support all employees
• Implementing employee resource groups, neurodiversity champions and mentorship programmes to support neurodivergent employees
• Encouraging and supporting the representation of neurodivergent individuals at all levels of the organisation

Key Action Points for Human Resources and In-House Counsel

In an effort to increase inclusivity, particularly for neurodiverse candidates, John Lewis has published job interview questions online. While this approach may not be suitable for all organisations there are various hiring initiatives employers can adopt to accommodate different needs which can help with building a more diverse and talented team.

See our detailed update for the practical steps employers can take to ensure a fairer recruitment process for neurodiverse individuals: Neurodiversity: Harnessing untapped talent with fairer recruitment processes.