Shropshire charity launches new workplace diversity campaign

The We See You campaign will tell the inspiring stories of some of the 3,000 people helped into training or employment by the charity, highlighting the benefits to organisations which commit to a more inclusive culture.

The initiative was unveiled yesterday to coincide with the start of Autism Awareness Week and will continue throughout 2021 to encourage vulnerable people looking for employment and training opportunities to seek help and employers to pledge their support.

Sonia Roberts is CEO of Landau, which has a successful 25-year history of delivering supported employment and training services across the UK.

She said: “Around 700,000 people in the UK have been diagnosed with autism yet only around 16 per cent of them are in full-time education.

“Launching the We See You campaign this week allows us to shine a spotlight on those people with hidden disabilities and challenges who with the right help and training can be supported into the workforce.

“But throughout the year we will be focusing on a range of workplace equality and diversity issues and encouraging employers to really ‘see’ the individuals and the talent pool available to them.

“All of our services are heavily focused around delivering individual interventions. That means we work very hard to get to know every person who walks through our doors so that we can understand their aspirations. We then develop a pathway to learning or employment which builds on their existing skills and strengths so that we can help them achieve their life-long goals.

“Our expertise lies in matching people’s experience and skills to the right training programmes or jobs, and we have a highly successful track record of making sure these opportunities are sustainable long term.

“We See You is about making sure people know we see them as an individual, regardless of any challenges they may face – disability, learning difficulties, vulnerability or otherwise.

“We want to celebrate the achievements of those we provide support to and make sure those who need help know where to find us.

“Getting more businesses to adopt a diverse and inclusive culture in their workplaces is also central to this campaign as this will help to broaden the opportunities for the most vulnerable people in our society and help reduce unemployment.

“Together we can make a real change and we hope this campaign will have an impact.”

Landau works with more than 3,000 people, including military veterans and those with mental health and other personal challenges, which over time may have become a barrier to gaining employment or training.

Throughout Autism Awareness Week, Landau, will be celebrating several key achievements including the success of its online autism course which is being delivered on a national scale for the Department for Work and Pensions.

It will also showcase a range of success stories from individuals who have received ongoing support from the charity and these will be shared online through the charity’s social media platforms in the form of podcasts and short interviews.

To follow the campaign visit @landaulimited on Facebook, Landau Limited on Linkedin and @landaulimited on Twitter.