What are we?
Disability Employment Network (DEN) is a group of organisations who have come together to promote training and employment opportunities for people with disabilities and employers in the Derry City and Strabane District Council area. DEN provides support and assistance to:–
- People with disabilities to access training and to find and maintain employment
- Local employers to recruit, employ and retain people with disabilities in employment
Support for people with disabilities
Disability Employment Network believes that people with disabilities (including physical, learning, mental health, sensory and hidden disabilities) should have the same opportunities as everyone else to access training opportunities and to find and maintain employment in a career of their choice. For those who need support to achieve their aspirations, accessing appropriate support, advice and guidance could help them to achieve their full potential.
What support is available to the person with a disability?
Disability Employment Network will support people with disabilities to access training, find, maintain and/or retain employment by signosting individuals to local disability support organisations which will assist them with:-
- Gaining qualifications
- Training for employment (including qualifications and practical experience)
- Pre-employment training (confidence building, job search, preparing CV’s, completing job applications and pre paring for interviews)
- Work experience and work trails
- On the job and off the job support
- Ongoing support
- Careers advice
The benefit of training and employment includes:-
- Increased spending power (wages)
- Learning and developing new skills
- Increased confidence
- Make new friends and new connections
- Be more involved in your local community
For further information contact DEN by emailing – disabilityemploymentnetwork@gmail.com
Employers
Recruiting people with disabilities makes good business sense by ensuring that you recruit and maintain the best person for the job. International research has consistently found that people with disability often make better employees because of higher attendance rates, lower turnover and good performance and safety records.
The benefits of employing job seekers with disabilities include:
- Widening your employment pool to get that good job match
- Higher retention rates, so less to spend on training and recruitment
- Increased awareness of workplace practices and conditions
- Potential growth of customer and staff loyalty.
- Promote a diverse workforce and may reduce skills shortages
- Corporate Social Responsibility – shows your business is socially responsible.
DEN will support employers by signposting them to local disability organisations which will assist them to recruit and/or retain people with disabilities. Local disability organisations will provide:
- A FREE service
- A coordinated approach to recruitment and selection
- Expert disability advice
- Advice on specialist government programmes (i.e. Workable NI, Work Connect, Access to Work, Job Introduction Scheme, Condition Management Programme & Occupational Psychology Service)
- Access to skilled and motivated staff
- Secure a good job match
- Advice and support when you need it
- On going support
- Building good business practice
- Helping you to meet your obligations under the Disability Discrimination Act
For further information contact DEN by emailing – disabilityemploymentnetwork@gmail.com