The Inclusive Workplace Experience award celebrates an organisation that demonstrates that it really values the physical and mental health and wellbeing of all its workers, including disabled people.

Evenbreak created a personalised recruitment process and individualised support for all employees. Evenbreak enables potential employees to demonstrate their skills in any format they choose. Once employed, colleagues are provided with a holistic, individualised support package of coaching, counselling, mental health and well-being. They are also offered the ability to work in ways that best suit their circumstances. Adjustments are reviewed regularly.

Evenbreak is a social enterprise run by and for disabled people. They aim to reduce the disability employment gap in three ways:

• Supporting employers to become more inclusive and accessible through training and consultancy and an online best practice portal.
• Offering inclusive and accessible careers support for disabled people looking for new or better work.
• Helping each group to find each other through an award-winning disability job board.

Evenbreak offers flexible working and offers adjustments from the outset (from application to onboarding).

When candidates apply for jobs they are often asked to submit CVs and endure interviews. Evenbreak opts to assess candidates based on attributes and behaviours instead. They remove the barrier to applying for work by asking candidates to submit a statement (in any format) on the relevant strengths they bring to the role and organisation, instead of asking for CVs or application forms.

Work-based tasks are offered instead of interviews, meaning candidates are assessed on their ability to do the job, rather than their ability to talk about it. This inclusive recruitment practice helps candidates who might have had a career gap due to a health condition, or who perform badly at interviews, feel included and able to apply without prejudice.

Evenbreak provides its employees with training and development to help everyone progress in their careers. If someone joins the team in one role but finds their skills and interests lie elsewhere in the organisation then they have the opportunity to explore other roles.

As well as supporting colleagues in work, Evenbreak also provides its employees with support services such as coaching, counselling and well-being support.

Line managers at Evenbreak support their teams with Access to Work co-coaching sessions to help them make work, work for them.

Evenbreak aims to be a living example of how inclusive recruitment and employment practices can and do work in a successful organisation.

Judges’ comments:

“Evenbreak have created a truly innovative and personalised recruitment process, therefore promoting a truly inclusive approach to the workplace from day one. Their holistic support package for employees then enables their staff, including disabled people, to grow, develop and thrive in the organisation. This in turn feeds into the service that they provide – Evenbreak is an organisation that demonstrates inclusion can be achieved in everything an organisation does.”

The finalists in this category were:

• BT Group
• Charlotte Street Hotel (Firmdale Hotels)
• Evenbreak