April 21, 2006 - DISABILITY ORGANISATION BACKS SMARTER WORKING CAMPAIGN
Scope, the national disability organisation, is the latest backer of Work Wise UK, the major three-year initiative which will encourage the widespread adoption of smarter working practices, such as flexible working, mobile working, remote working and working from home.
Scope is supporting the campaign because it knows that smarter working practices will not only make lives easier for the general working population, they will also assist people who have traditionally found getting and keeping jobs difficult.
Bob Benson, Scope’s executive director of community development, said: “There are around one million disabled people in the UK who want to work but are prevented from doing so. In addition, disabled people are twice as likely to be unemployed than their non-disabled peers. A major obstacle is employers not being adaptive or responsible when it comes to staff who have impairments. But firms that adopt flexible working practices, based on reasonable adjustments, will be helping people to work more productively, whilst fulfilling their legal responsibilities as an employer.
“For example, working from home, even for a proportion of the working week, will be a major benefit to some whose journey to and from the place of employment can be the greatest hindrance.“
Work Wise UK aims to revolutionise the way people work, increasing the number currently benefiting from smarter working from 3.1 million to 14 million - half the working population - within three years. This will lead to significant benefits such as increased business productivity and competitiveness, reduced transport congestion and pollution, improved health, assisting disadvantaged groups, and will harmonise work and family commitments.
Work Wise UK will start with Work Wise Week, Wednesday 3 May to Tuesday 9 May, intentionally not the traditional working week. It will begin with a major summit at the QEII Conference Centre in London where 500 influential delegates from government, the unions and business will debate how to deliver a smarter working Britain.
Phil Flaxton, chief executive of the IT Forum Foundation, a not-for-profit organisation which is behind the campaign, said: “Although Work Wise UK will make life easier for many in the working population, it will have a far more significant impact on other groups, such as disabled people.
“ Scope is one of the leading organisations in this sector, working with disabled people. Scope’s support will help ensure that everyone is aware of and will benefit from this campaign.”
Further information about Work Wise UK can be found on the website (www.workwiseuk.org).
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Notes to editors:
- Work Wise UK is being organised by the IT Forum Foundation, a not-for-profit organisation.
- Further information about Work Wise UK can be found on the website www.workwiseuk.org.
- A dedicated electronic news room has been established for journalists to obtain further information, to download print-quality materials, and to register for media updates about Work Wise UK. This can be accessed either through the main website or directly at www.pressrooms.net/workwiseuk.
- Supporters of the Work Wise UK campaign include the TUC, Henley Management, Scope and the British Chambers of Commerce.
- Scope is a national disability organisation whose focus is cerebral palsy. Its aim is that disabled people achieve equality: a society in which they are as valued and have the same human and civil rights as everyone else. www.scope.org.uk
- Scope’s Time to Get Equal campaign, launched in May 2004, aims to raise awareness of the problems and barriers faced by disabled people in their everyday lives, and demand improvements in the attitudes and actions that disabled people experience. www.timetogetequal.org.uk
For further information, please contact:
Work Wise UK: Michael Hardware, Chelgate PR, on 020 7939 7939, 07775 925 274 or meh@chelgate.com.
Scope: Rob Dyson , Press & PR Officer, on 020 7619 7287.