Budget did little to support UK’s disabled community, says All In chairman Danny Josephs

It’s a depressing oversight because if we are to truly ‘Get Britain Working,’ perhaps it might help if the challenges 24% of the UK population with a disability face when it comes to work were addressed.

Even better would be if we could carry out our work effectively in properly accessible workplaces – something businesses across the country and, yes, in the creative industry still aren’t providing enough. In all fairness, the barriers some disabled people face when it comes to work would never have crossed my mind until I became a wheelchair user – since then, I have become acutely aware of them.

Disabled people face hurdles many able-bodied people may struggle to understand. My journey with multiple sclerosis has taken me from walking stick to walking frame to wheelchair and I’ve learned through experience the battles the disabled face when it comes to work. Only 22% of stations in London, where I live, have step-free access from the street to the train – even fewer between platforms or tube lines.

With many agencies increasingly demanding employees spend at least three days in situ, we need to remember that commuting for the disabled community is really tough and there’s often a lack of accessibility even if we make it to the office.

Is it any surprise then that the latest All In census found that work-related stress is highest among the disabled at 22%? Retention is already a huge issue for many businesses, yet 21% say they’re likely to leave their workplaces in the next 12 months, with lack of accessibility and inclusion as the main reason.

And in all my years in this business – over three decades – I’ve seen just one other person in a wheelchair. According to the latest All In survey, only 11% in the advertising industry have a disability, including just 8% in the C-Suite. Yet disability does not equate to inability. So why this shocking lack of representation and inclusivity?

What’s more, the spending power of families with at least one disabled person is estimated at £247bn a year. We’re a valuable audience, too.

One small step the creative industry could take to improve the situation is to always ask, “Do you have any accessibility requirements?” Is there a reason this is more difficult than asking, “Do you have any dietary requirements?”

This simple action, part of the ‘All In’ action plan – the industry’s initiative to improve inclusion and representation within UK advertising – shows just how simple and inexpensive an empathic, accommodating mindset can be.

I realize employing disabled people can be hard. Is your building accessible? Are there ramps and lifts? Disabled toilets with rails? Quiet rooms for those with neurodivergence or sound sensitivities?

But the creative industry stands to gain so much by embracing our community, plus the budget to make adaptations, especially in this climate of cost-cutting and tax raising, doesn’t have to be much. We’re supposed to be a sector famed for coming up with creative, innovative solutions, so we should be doing way more.

And making the industry more accessible and hiring more disabled employees is one surefire way to boost growth. Disabled people can give so much to the creative industry, not least in terms of out-of-the-box thinking and fresh perspectives. We are brilliant problem-solvers because we have to be. Each day, we face obstacles to access services that able-bodied people take for granted.

So, my challenge to the industry is to begin thinking of us as “working people” and start welcoming us with flexibility, step-free entrances, open arms and well-designed bathrooms. Only then will you see how much value we bring.