Employers
Become a pioneer: join our network of forward-thinking employers and benefit from the competitive advantage that a diverse workforce brings.
Our employability programme helps you to push the boundaries in this ever-changing world. Providing a paid experience of work to an autistic person will result in a more inclusive working environment, allowing all your staff to prosper.
Reasons to get involved
By offering a placement to an autistic intern you will:
- access a pool of untapped, diverse talent
- increase the morale and retention of your staff
- raise productivity levels and improve your bottom line
- promote diversity of thought and problem-solving
- support your existing workforce to thrive
- reflect the diversity of your clients and communities
- become an employer with Autism Confidence.
The difference employers see
Our employer partners report an increase in their awareness and understanding of autism and confidence in working with an autistic staff member. Read more about the employer benefits.
“At Eaton we aspire to be a model of inclusion and diversity in our industry. Those are not only words, those are daily actions enabling every employee to be themselves at work. It is so important to embrace diversity for our employees’ wellbeing and for our company’s future. On the occasion of autism month and lead by our employees resource group – iERG enABLE EMEA – we partnered with Ambitious About Autism to help us identify key areas to be taken into account when working with people on the autism spectrum. As a team we gained greater awareness of sensory and communication difficulties that people with autism may experience and potential impact upon the individual in the workplace. As a leader, I personally found the webinars and training very useful because it gave practical tips to use daily. I feel better equipped today to support and discuss neurodiversity.’’ - Mike Trikoilis, EMEAI Manufacturing Strategy Director
Ready to join the network? Sign up and the team will be in touch.
Employers will need to complete a one-day course provided by us before the start of the placement. You will be required to review your current internal recruitment and selection processes. This includes developing autism-friendly resources and making any adjustments to accommodate candidates at interviews and to complete the work placement.
Placements can last from four weeks to six months, depending on the employer. During the work placement, each young person will need to have support from a line manager and a mentor, who we will train and support.
Every employer undertakes Understanding Autism in the Workplace training, delivered by our experienced professionals at Ambitious about Autism.
The style and length of the training provided will depend on the number of placements you are offering, the number of employees you have and the overall needs of the business.
We ask that every line manager and mentor complete the full one-day training. We also recommend the intern’s future colleagues and peers attend the training, so they know how to work successfully with their new colleague.
This is decided on a case-by-case basis and depends on the size and capacity of the employer, and the range of opportunities available.
There are different tiers of involvement for employers. We can offer anything from a single placement to a full talent recruitment programme with onsite expert support.
We have already worked with lots of great employers from a variety of industries. Some of our partners include:
- Civil Service
- Deutsche Bank
- SAP UK
- BP
- Credit Agricole
- Essex County Council
- Nest
- Ketchum PR
- Santander
- m/SIX
- The&partnership
- TalkTalk
- Kennedy Pearce
- Public Health England
See our current list of work experience opportunities.
We would be delighted to talk to you in more detail about how we can work together. Please complete the sign-up form and one of the team will be in touch