Leading with inclusion: Tips for a supportive workplace
With around 15% of the population identifying as neurodiverse and 24% living with a disability, putting inclusivity at the heart of your workplace has never been more important. With National Inclusion Week (15th – 21st September 2025) shining a spotlight on the power of diverse workplaces, now’s the perfect time to reflect on what inclusivity really means for your organisation.
What does being truly inclusive mean in practice? How can it strengthen your business? And what steps can you take to get there?
In this article, our Lead Disability Training and Consultancy Specialist, Kath Wood, explores these questions and shares practical guidance to help employers create workplaces where everyone can thrive.
This blog is written by Medigold Health’s Lead Disability Training and Consultancy Specialist, Kath Wood.
What does inclusion actually mean?
Inclusion as a whole means making sure that everyone feels welcomed, respected, supported and valued. It’s about removing barriers, improving accessibility and ensuring that diversity is respected and valued.
Why does it matter for your business?
There are many benefits to being an inclusive business. You can attract and retain talented employees, as well as improve employee engagement and morale – both of which have a positive impact on performance and productivity. Being seen as inclusive also improves your brand reputation and helps grow your customer base.
What does inclusivity mean as an employer?
Inclusivity as an employer means removing barriers and improving accessibility in recruitment, onboarding, induction, training, internal communication and systems. It’s also about raising awareness and enhancing knowledge across the whole business of different ways of thinking and working. It is imperative that recruitment and progression in the business is based on talent and that opportunities are available to all, regardless of any disability or diagnosis.
The key to ensuring this happens lies in leadership and management. Managers have the chance to implement policies and processes, remove barriers, make adjustments and actively support individuals in their team. Leaders drive change, influence the culture of a business and generally set the tone.
So, what can the leadership of a business do to create an inclusive culture and environment?
Implement inclusive policies and ensure managers are educated
A good starting point is to make sure that the right policies are in place. This means not only having a clear Equity, Diversity and Inclusion policy, but also ensuring diversity is embedded in all policies, including Recruitment, Absence Management, Bullying and Harassment.
Developing their own knowledge is an important foundation for leaders and managers. They should educate themselves on diversity, attend training and reach out to expert groups for support and information.
Improve communication and listening
Communication is key. Leaders can ensure that information about diversity is shared with all employees through internal communications. They can also set the example by using inclusive language and ensuring stigmatised language is challenged.
Listening to feedback from employees is essential to being truly inclusive. Surveys could be used to gather information, but the best way to ensure voices are heard is to create employee representative groups with senior leader sponsors. Learning from employees’ lived experience is hugely beneficial.
Case study: We were asked to develop a training course for a business. To ensure it was fully inclusive and met the needs of their people, the organisation involved their employee representative group in shaping the outline. The group also reviewed and approved the final version of the bespoke course we created, ensuring it truly reflected the voices and experiences of their workforce.
Ensure accessibility and implement workplace adjustments
Accessibility is important, especially for disability inclusion. It involves considering both the physical accessibility of the environment, but also accessibility of information and the way it is distributed.
Being open to making workplace adjustments is another crucial part of inclusive leadership, and workplace adjustments can often be affordable and quick to implement. Some options may include:
- Providing assistive technologies
- Offering flexible working arrangements
- Adapting workspaces with ergonomic furniture or quiet zones
- Ensuring digital content is accessible and tailoring communication methods to suit individual needs.
Raising awareness across your business
Raising awareness and developing knowledge is hugely valuable when it comes to truly embedding an inclusive culture. Leaders should ensure that the business marks important awareness days, weeks or months with meaningful activities, as well as communications. Sharing any personal experiences can also really add value to campaigns.
Case study: One business we worked with released a vlog featuring their CEO openly discussing his personal experiences with mental health. This had a powerful impact across the organisation, helping to break down stigma and making him appear more approachable and relatable to employees.
Monitoring and measuring progress
Monitoring and measuring the impact of changes to inclusion practices can also be useful. For example, gathering data on attrition and absence at the start of any programme of change. This benchmark data can then be compared to data gathered at various points later on, to see if progress has been made.
Leaders could also commission outside bodies, both for support and to achieve accreditations as external recognition for the work the organisation has done. For example, we have helped many organisations on their journey to achieving Disability Confident accreditation, demonstrating their commitment to creating inclusive and supportive workplaces.
Making inclusion business as usual
Inclusion should not just be a one-off initiative. Leaders have a vital role in guaranteeing that accessibility and potential barriers are considered when new services, processes or policies are being developed. Inclusivity should become business as usual, rather than something which is considered just once a year.
How we can help
Looking to build a more inclusive workplace where everyone can thrive? We’re here to help.
Our expert-led support services are designed to empower your organisation with the tools and knowledge to create a truly inclusive culture. We offer:
- Neurodiversity, disability and menopause training and consultancy
- A comprehensive neurodiversity toolkit
- Tailored guidance to support every employee
- Advice on workplace adjustments and how to become Disability Confident
If you want to learn more, contact our friendly team today.
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