Employers across the UK are being held back from hiring people with a learning disability by a ‘misplaced fear’ of getting it wrong, not by cost or capability, new polling reveals.
The research conducted by the learning disability charity Mencap reveals a significant gap between employer attitudes and action, with 80% believing people with a learning disability can be productive, yet nearly half employ none due to the fear of saying or doing the wrong thing.
It highlights one of the UK’s largest employment gaps, despite strong demand for work, while employer concerns about safety, confidence and adjustments persist.
Among those employers who do hire people with a learning disability, numbers are often very small at 26.7% (potentially as low as 5% according to last year’s Charlie Mayfield Review). This suggests representation across the workforce remains low overall.
Despite the low statistics, Mencap is using this year’s Learning Disability Week (15th to 21st June) to showcase many positive examples of people with a learning disability entering the workforce and securing paid employment.
Read: Mencap Campaign Officer Vijay Patel On Visibility, Inclusion, And Breaking Barriers
How a neurodivergent teaching assistant is supporting SEND children in school
One individual who got herself a paid job thanks to the support of Mencap is 27-year-old Diviyha from Surrey, who works as a teaching assistant at the school she attended as a pupil. She has been in the role for six months.
Diviyha has autism and ADHD, which affect her learning. She says she finds reading and writing long sentences difficult and struggled with Maths and English at school.
Before securing this position, Diviyha shared that her first paid job was at Kidzania, a children’s entertainment company. She was there for six months doing shift work, but then it went into liquidation and closed down. Even with the previous experience, she initially found it difficult to find alternative employment.
“I was applying for lots of jobs, and I was frustrated and annoyed because none of these people in retail or soft play jobs wanted to hire me. When I went for some interviews, they kept saying that I didn’t have the right qualifications and that my CV and cover letters were not done properly,” said Diviyha.
“I was told ‘you don’t have the right qualifications, and we don’t take people on with disabilities because we don’t have the right staff support to give you’.”
Diviyha went on to explain how Mencap supported her in becoming a teaching assistant at her former school:
“I met someone from the learning disability charity Mencap at the library, and they suggested I join the Mencap internship programme. I applied myself, and they helped to job coach me. They showed me how to go online to look for jobs, but we couldn’t find anything suitable for a while.
“I knew I wanted to be a Teaching Assistant, so I contacted my old school. I emailed the Headteacher to see if they had any roles I could do. My Mencap Job Coach helped me to write a CV and a covering letter. The Headteacher invited me in for a meeting. She asked me what my skills are and what I would be good at doing in the school. She was impressed that I had already had a job at Kidzania, so she offered me work experience to begin with.
“I did three months’ work experience. Then a role came up as a lunchtime supervisor, so I increased my hours. I also started helping in after-school clubs. The Headteacher, Celia, thought I was capable enough, so I was then offered a paid job as a teaching assistant.”
When discussing the benefits of supporting other children with learning disability is, Diviyha said:
“I like being a role model for other children with a learning disability, and I think it is important to support them the way I was supported when I was younger… I can relate to what the children are going through. I know what they might need a bit of help with. I can see that they need the same support that I did when I was young. I’m very helpful and very friendly with all the members of staff and the students. I give them the right support.”
Celia Dawson, Diviyha’s employer and Headteacher of the school, shared how they actively seek candidates with additional needs and the ways they support them throughout the recruitment and hiring process:
“We are an equal opportunities employer in every sense of the word, recognising the ‘abilities’ and not ‘disabilities’ of neurodiversity. This strengthens our workforce, is an active demonstration of our core beliefs and provides role models for our learners, who all have learning challenges.
“We offer work trials, support with applications and modified questions, to allow for processing time and to guide the potential employee to be able to showcase themselves to the best of their ability.
“We provide a mentor who explains the school workings and expectations, can answer any queries raised by the employee, support at Inset training sessions and be someone to touch base and check in with.”
Advising other employers, Celia added, “Know that your organisation will be enhanced by these employees. You will be demonstrating to society that everyone has something of value to offer, whatever their challenges appear to be.”
Ceila also highlighted the positive impact Diviyha has brought to the school:
“Diviyha demonstrates every day her enjoyment of work, positive relationships, intuition and continuing ability to learn. She is truly an asset to the school, bringing her warmth and positivity through the front door every day.”
Read: Ellie Goldstein Becomes The Face Of Mencap For Learning Disability Week
Misplaced fear, not cost, is stopping employers from hiring people with a learning disability
More than 1,600 UK employers responded to the survey conducted by Survation for Mencap, highlighting a gap between positive attitudes and hiring practices for people with a learning disability.
While 80% of employers believe people with a learning disability can be productive employees, 48% employ none. Employers cite barriers including health and safety concerns (37%), worries about saying or doing the wrong thing (30%), and uncertainty about what reasonable adjustments to make (23%). However, 53% say adjustments are not expensive, and 69% believe they are straightforward with the right support.
Around one million people with a learning disability in the UK are of working age, yet many remain excluded from employment despite wanting the opportunity to earn, contribute and live independently. Mencap argues that employer uncertainty, rather than financial pressure, is the key barrier to inclusive hiring. Polling shows 40% of employers would consider hiring someone with a learning disability but have not yet done so, while only 8% say nothing would change their mind.
The findings come amid wider concern about economic inactivity and labour shortages, highlighting a large, overlooked workforce being shut out of jobs. Only a few weeks ago, Alan Milburn warned of a “lost generation”. At the same time, growing debate about people not in education, employment or training (NEET) risks underplaying the role of reasonable adjustments and employer support in enabling people to work. For people with a learning disability, Mencap says, generations have already been shut out of the workplace.
Work and Pensions Secretary Pat McFadden said:
“Everyone who wants to work should have the chance to do so – it’s good for individuals and good for the economy.
“These findings show that for too many people with a learning disability, the barriers are about employer confidence, not cost or capability. That’s something we can fix.
“We are committed to breaking down barriers to work, which is why we are investing in a £3.5 billion package of employment support for sick or disabled people by the end of the decade. I’d encourage every employer to take that first step, because we can’t afford to let talent go to waste.”
Other examples of people with a learning disability securing employment include Aaron, from London, who overcame repeated rejections to build a successful full-time career as a kitchen porter; Arjhay, from Brent Cross, who spent years seeking a paid role before securing what he describes as his dream job; Janis, from Cornwall, whose long-standing career at Tesco challenges common assumptions about what people with a learning disability can achieve; and Xavie, from London, who progressed from a supported internship to a paid role at a Hilton hotel, where he is gaining confidence, independence and recognition as a valued member of the team.
Mencap says practical guidance and support are readily available through its Mencap Training Academy, which offers intensive support with recruitment, training and job coaching.
During Learning Disability Week, the charity is calling on employers to make recruitment more accessible, provide clear guidance on reasonable adjustments, create entry-level opportunities, and build manager confidence through training.
Employers and people with a learning disability can find out more at Mencap Training Academy.
Are you somebody who lives with a learning disability and is looking for employment? Or have you succeeded in securing a paid job? Let us know your experiences in the comments box, on social media or contact us to share your personal story.