Swindon-based not-for-profit adult social care and community health provider SEQOL has won a national award for its work supporting people with disabilities into paid employment.
SEQOL’s supported employment team picked up the award for Innovation in Assessment at The Recruitment Industry Disability Initiative (RIDI) Awards which highlight progress made on disability in recruitment nationwide.
The award recognises SEQOL’s innovative approach to assessing people who might not be able to demonstrate their skills and talents through more traditional assessment methods.
Disabled people make up a fifth of the population, and the RIDI awards – the UK recruitment industry’s only disability awards – aim to remove barriers to work, increase understanding and help people with disabilities reach their aspirations and potential.
The awards ceremony in London was attended by SEQOL business partner Simon Billingham with SEQOL’s employment coordinator Sarah Mullery, who was herself a supported employee before completing her traineeship and being appointed to her current role.
Simon said: “It was so thrilling to hear that we had won. We have a fantastic team who work so hard to tailor our placements to each individual as much as possible, and equip trainees with the skills and experience to progress into unsupported workplaces, and they can be very proud that their efforts have been recognised.”
The award judges described SEQOL as a great example of how often the simple things make the biggest difference.
“This social enterprise has limited resources but plenty of passion,” they said.
“By removing the traditional interview and replacing with a less formal assessment method they have trebled the number of job outcomes for disabled people.”
SEQOL CEO Heather Mitchell said the win confirmed the cutting-edge quality of the supported employment team’s work.
“Because SEQOL is employee-owned and reinvests its surpluses into the community we are able to work far more creatively than many organisations,” she said.
“It is heartening to hear the judges highlight how we are making a considerable difference with limited resources. I know that my colleagues are hugely creative in finding ways to deliver a top-quality service, but to have that confirmed on the national stage is very gratifying indeed.”
Pictured, from left: Janine Chidlow of category sponsor Resource Solution, SEQOL employment coordinator Sarah Mullery and SEQOL business partner Simon Billingham
