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Welsh Recruitment

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(Picture: RNID logo)

‘Changing the world for deaf and hard of hearing people’ - this is the awesome task RNID, the charity working for the UK’s 9 million deaf and hard of hearing people, has set itself and nothing personifies this mission more clearly than its Employment, Training and Skills Service.

Are you listening?

Deaf people are four times more likely to be unemployed than hearing people, so RNID’s service exists to redress the balance by helping people fulfil their potential and ensure equal access to employment for all. Established in March 1998, the service supports deaf and hard of hearing people in their search for, and progression within, employment as well as advising employers on becoming more accessible.

RNID’s employment advisers work with people on a one-on-one basis to maximise their employment potential and encourage skills development and training. We also run group sessions covering topics such as CV writing and completing application forms as well as providing continued support and advice once in post.

We also work with our clients to identify the area of work they want to move into and find suitable employment or placements. This then opens up a world of opportunity - access to bank accounts, mortgages and a home – which may not have been an option prior to using our service.

Working at the employment service means we are at the forefront of RNID’s work. Providing a directly accessible service and knowing that with our support deaf and hard of hearing people can fulfil their potential in the workplace, and that we help thousands of people gain opportunities that they may not have previously had access to, is what gets me out of bed in the morning!

Offering encouragement to employers and supporting them to make adjustments for deaf or hard of hearing staff members is also key to ensuring a ‘stepchange’ in the way organisations recruit and cater for disabled staff. RNID works with employers to encourage them to adopt positive attitudes and suitable working environments for deaf and hard of hearing people. We do this by delivering a range of training such as Deaf Awareness Training and Start to Sign courses.

The financial group Legal & General approached RNID for assistance on becoming more accessible to deaf and hard of hearing people five years ago. The employment team offered advice on recruitment, helped set up a deaf staff forum and ran deaf awareness courses for all staff.

This kind of relationship also ensures organisations think about challenges that may face their customers. RNID introduced its ‘Louder than Words’ kite mark to raise the standard of service received by deaf and hard of people in everyday life and to give them a choice of where they conduct their business. The mark is awarded to organizations that offer a high level of deaf aware service for deaf and hard of hearing customers and employees.

Lynne Sheehy of Legal and General told me: “Ensuring that everyone can use our service is imperative to what we do, and makes good business sense. RNID’s service advised and guided us and made it easy to improve our accessibility quickly and cost-effectively.

“We have now been awarded the ‘Louder than Words’ mark of best practice so deaf and hard of hearing people know they will receive an excellent, accessible service they can bank on.

“We are now an employer that offers employment and careers to all those who can enrich our organisation.”

Until RNID’s vision of a world where deafness and hearing are not barriers to opportunity and fulfilment is realised, our employment team will work to ensure access to work for all deaf and hard of hearing people and to inform, educate and advise employers and services providers to make their organizations accessible.

For further information contact RNID’s Employment, Training and Skills Service in Wales via Jemima.Buoy@rnid.org.uk Page 1  |  Page 2  |  Page 3  |  Page 4  |  Page 5  |  Page 6  |  Page 7  |  Page 8  |  Page 9  |  Page 10  |  Page 11  |  Page 12  |  Page 13  |  Page 14  |  Page 15  |  Page 16  |  Page 17  |  Page 18  |  Page 19  |  Page 20  |  Page 21  |  Page 22  |  Page 23  |  Page 24