Our commitment to equality, diversity and inclusion is at the heart of our organisational culture. As part of our pledge to take positive action in recruitment we encourage applications from under-represented candidates including BAME (Black, Asian, and Minority Ethnic) and Disabled candidates as we work towards a representative workforce that is able to provide the quality, the dignity and respect and to deliver above and beyond.
In August 2023, members of the People Team formed a project group to support our ongoing hospice Disability Confident action plan. We have been reviewing and revising our recruitment processes to ensure that we are attracting candidates from a wide talent pool. As an employer we are committed to ensuring that any candidates with disabilities who apply for roles within our organisation, and who meet the essential criteria, are offered an interview.
Suzie Long, Director of People and Culture, said: “At North London Hospice, we believe that everyone deserves the opportunity to reach their full potential and we are committed to creating a workplace where everyone feels valued and respected. Being Disability Confident means that we are being intentional about tapping into disabled talent. We are being intentional about recruiting, retaining and developing people with the skills we need. We are also able to increase our understanding of disability and how to make the most of the opportunities provided by employing disabled people. We are truly excited to part of the Disability Confident scheme and look forward to continuing to progress with this certification.”
In light of our efforts, North London Hospice have been awarded Disability Confident Level 1: Committed. This commitment includes:
- Ensuring our recruitment process is inclusive and accessible.
- Communicating and promoting vacancies.
- Offering interviews to disabled people who meet the minimum criteria for a role.
- Anticipating and providing reasonable adjustments as required.
- Supporting any existing employee who acquires a disability or long-term health condition to stay in work.
- Offering work experience to disabled people.
This commitment extends to doing all we reasonably can to support and retain people who may become disabled during their employment with the hospice. In order to strengthen the support we are able to provide, we have actively been developing relationships with Access to Work, local disability specialists and charities.
Moving forward, North London Hospice intend to expand our Inclusive Recruitment strategy to reflect other protected characteristics, including race, religion and sexual orientation. Recruitment practices will be monitored so that we can identify any barriers that might exist for people who may have a disability.
