Kingston University recognised for action to improve outcomes for staff with disabilities

Kingston University’s commitment to ensuring disabled people have the opportunities to fulfil their potential and realise their aspirations has seen the institution awarded Disability Confident Employer Level 2 status.

The achievement builds on Kingston’s Level 1 award and meets the University’s ambition in its 2024 Public Sector Equality Duty Workforce Profile Report and Disability Network Action Plan to achieve Level 2 status by July 2025 – highlighting the institution's commitment to diversity and inclusion.

The Disability Confident scheme is a UK government initiative that encourages employers to recruit and retain disabled people in the workforce. It provides free guidance and resources to employers to help them think differently about disability and take action to improve recruitment, retention and development of disabled employees. 

Chair of the Disability Network at Kingston University Professor Sara Upstone, supported by a sub-group of Network members and EDI experts, led the project to progress to Level 2 which included the completion of a self-assessment template and focused on two key themes of staff recruitment and staff development and retention.

The self-assessment included evidence of successful schemes and enhanced processes and systems demonstrating Kingston’s commitment to being disability inclusive. Work done by the University to achieve Level 2 included:

• Interview guarantee scheme for disabled applicants who opt in and meet the essential job criteria.
• The (disabled and mental health) staff network action plan.
• Recruitment guides for disabled applicants and guides to support disabled staff members and line managers.
• The Learning Disability Research Group, which provides paid work for people with disabilities (the researchers)
• The ‘Diversity in the workplace’ compliance training module.

Talking about Kingston’s achievement of being awarded Level 2, Sara Upstone said: "This achievement of Disability Confident Level 2 is a major step for Kingston University in recognising our commitment to staff with disabilities across the institution. The work represented a genuine collaboration between colleagues in HR and members of the staff network, who were involved in all stages of the application process”.

Senior Leadership Team Sponsor for Disability and Mental Health Professor Amir Alani added: "This achievement reflects our unwavering commitment to creating an inclusive environment where every individual, regardless of ability, can thrive, contribute, and succeed. We remain committed to continuous improvement, ensuring that Kingston University is a place where disabled staff and students feel empowered and supported."

• Find out more about the Disability Confident scheme on the UK Gov website.