This represents almost a quarter of all total start-ups
funded by the New Enterprise Allowance, which launched 8
years ago to help unemployed people become their own boss
as a route off benefits.
The New Enterprise Allowance offers budding entrepreneurs
a cash injection of up to £25,000 for their business
idea, as well as the support of a personal business
mentor and weekly living allowance.
The figures come as we mark the third anniversary of the
Disability Confident scheme, which was created to provide
employers with the skills and confidence they need to
attract, recruit, retain and develop disabled people in
the workplace.
Today the Secretary of State has confirmed a series of
changes to the scheme to help businesses achieve their
goal of workplace inclusivity, including a new
requirement for leading Disability Confident employers to
practice what they preach and ensure disabled people are
on their payroll – and report how many are.
Work and Pensions Secretary Thérèse Coffey said:
I want to ensure we live in a fair society in which
disabled people are empowered to get on in their chosen
career. These figures show the huge progress being made
under this government to help them realise their
aspirations.
While we have made great gains so far, today I am
calling on all businesses to take a look at their
record on disability employment and think about what
they can do to help create a more equal Britain.
Thousands of businesses – including major employers such
as Sainsbury’s and GlaxoSmithKline – have already signed
up to the scheme.
Changes being rolled out imminently include requiring
Disability Confident Leader businesses to publicly report
on their disability employment using a Voluntary
Reporting Framework and extending membership for new
signups to 3 years, and changing the terms of membership
to make it explicit senior members must employ disabled
people.
Minister for Disabled People said:
Disability Confident and the success of the New
Enterprise Allowance scheme reflect our bold commitment
to get one million more disabled people into work by
2027.
Smart employers recognise that disabled people can
bring a wealth of skills and talents to an organisation
– and they’re making sure they’re not missing out.
To date 15,000 businesses have joined Disability
Confident.
