Swindon Advertiser Weekly Article - 21st August

This year’s summer recess has been slightly different for me. Although I have still been busy visiting local charities, businesses and organisations, as well as speaking to residents; I have also been wearing my Ministerial hat on a number of occasions.

In particular last week I was asked to do all of the national media for the new employment figures on behalf of the Department for Work and Pensions. It was an extremely hectic morning as I appeared live on Sky News, ITV News and BBC News, as well as covering local and national radio stations – quite a blur! A lot of preparation went in prior to my appearance as I was briefed on the statistics ready for questioning and intense scrutiny. On arriving at Sky News I was also required to have make-up put on me before going on camera - they assured me that this was nothing personal and that it was needed for the lighting for HD TVs!

This week I paid a visit to the Headquarters of Wiltshire Police to see the fantastic work that they do in hiring people with disabilities. I met with the local Police and Crime Commissioner, Angus MacPherson, as well as John Flynn, Deputy Head of Contact Management, who deals with the control room which is responsible for receiving calls and deploying police officers to incidents.

We were shown the control room and given the opportunity to meet with employees who had a disability and had come through Pluss, the social enterprise which supports thousands of disabled people into work. The employees had each been supported by the police, and the Government's "Access to Work" programme, which offers grants to pay for practical support to help employers accommodate somebody with a disability. In particular they had provided specialist equipment, from hearing technology to assist those with a hearing impairment; to glasses for those with dyslexia and dyspraxia.

It was an inspirational visit and again I was struck at how fantastic we are as a region in leading the way when it comes to closing the disability employment gap. Now we have the task of encouraging more businesses and organisations to follow Wiltshire Police’s example and look to take on more disabled people. 

This involves breaking through barriers and removing the stigmas so that everybody can acknowledge what a wealth of talent there is ready and willing to work. As both the at Minister and local MP, I will be hosting a Disability Confident event on Friday 23rd October at STEAM, where I will be gathering as many local employers together as possible to showcase the many benefits that employing people with a disability can have, as well as the Government help that is available to make it happen.