Business Disability Forum Annual Conference 2025: Disability Inclusion – Business as Usual?
On 19 June 2025, Business Disability Forum brought together leaders, practitioners, and policymakers for its Annual Conference, exploring whether disability inclusion is truly embedded as “business as usual.” Sponsored by Microlink and hosted by EBRD in their Canary Wharf offices overlooking the Thames (what a view!), over 500 people joined this hybrid event to tackle the challenges and opportunities facing disabled people today.
Kicking off the day, Microlink CEO Nasser Siabi called attention to rising disability-related unemployment and emphasised that 95%+ workplace adjustments are low-cost but how to implement them is poorly understood.
“Employers can and do try to help their disabled employees, but it’s not always working” he said.
In her keynote address, Business Disability Forum CEO Diane Lightfoot reflected on the 30th anniversary of the UK’s first disability rights legislation – the Disability Discrimination Act. She reminded attendees that while legal frameworks exist, implementation often falls short. Only 10% of disabled employees say getting the adjustments they need is easy – a stark indicator of the barriers still in place.
Angela Matthews, Director of Public Policy and Research at Business Disability Forum explored potential government moves towards mandatory disability workforce reporting and reforms to Access to Work. Concerns were raised about unintended consequences, and employees who choose not to self-identify. Where employers are good at workplace adjustments, employees don’t self-report as disabled and employers then have an artificially large pay gap.
“Staff don’t want to be labelled disabled; they want to be a brilliant employee”, she said.
The ‘What Works? Making Disability Inclusion Easy’ panel discussion emphasised that workplace adjustments are about boosting productivity, not just inclusion. Employers should have open, individual conversations with staff to identify and remove barriers. A strong adjustments programme involves the right people at the right time, supported by manager training and proper funding. Fear of saying the wrong thing often prevents action. Transparency, fairness, and listening are key. The panel discussed “Equity FOMO” (Fear of missing out) and Fiona Daniel from FD2i said “employers should be transparent and explain what they are doing and why they are doing it so people don’t feel like they’re missing out, or other colleagues are being treated more favourably. Employers must stop hesitating and start engaging meaningfully to create inclusive, effective workplaces.
Sir Charlie Mayfield, leading the ‘Keep Britain Working’ review, highlighted fear, lack of systemic support, and poor data as major obstacles. He argued for a cultural shift: “Too often we’re treating people as risks not assets.”
After lunch, attendees heard from Minister for Social Security and Disability Sir Stephen Timms MP who talked through many of the Government’s proposals that will directly impact disabled people and employers.
The ‘Disability Smart Showcase’ session explored impressive disability inclusion innovations including EBRD’s inclusive building design, ground-breaking AI-generated sign language technology from Signapse and the updated Cambridge Latin Course which portrays the diversity of Roman society including women, minorities, people with disabilities and enslaved people.
A panel on ‘Pursuing the Purple Pound’ featuring Georgina Colman, AJ Nanayakkara and Kathryn Townsend stressed the commercial value of disabled consumers and highlighted the responsibility of businesses when the average monthly cost of living for those with a disability is £1,000 more.
“We have a deep responsibility to the community, making people feel seen and heard” said AJ Nanayakkara from LEGO Group.
During the ‘Stepping Up – Leadership in today’s challenging world’ session, speakers from Business Disability Forum, KPMG, the Valuable 500 and Scope explored disability inclusion in leadership, stressing the need for authenticity, role modelling and cultural change among business leaders. “The leaders set the tone, so that line managers can step up.”
Diane Lightfoot pulled together the day’s themes in a wrap of the day reminding us that real progress requires timely, relevant support – not one-size-fits-all approaches.