RIDI Awards 2016 Announced

The Recruitment Industry Disability Initiative (RIDI) has confirmed that its eagerly awaited Awards will return for a third consecutive year.

RIDI has also announced the appointment of four new executive board members as it confirms its 2016 activities.

Joining the team are; Tom Hadley, Director of Policy and Professional Services at the REC, John Craig, Immigration Manager at Eversheds, Mark Lomas, Head of Equality, Diversity & Inclusion at HS2 and Sharon Pegg, Inclusion and Diversity Manager at the Co-operative Group.

The RIDI Awards celebrate progress and recognise the success of organisations that are making headway in increasing the inclusion of disabled professionals. In 2015 the Awards attracted over 70 applications across categories including Innovation in Assessment, Inclusive Partnerships, Employers Choice and Overall Candidate Experience. Previous winners have included Lloyds Banking Group, the BBC and Sainsbury’s, as well as many smaller employers and recruiters.

The 2016 awards ceremony, kindly hosted by Eversheds, will be held on 3rd November. Other confirmed partners this year include Guidant Group, The Clear Company, Lloyd’s of London, E.ON, DWF and Pontoon Emerging Talent.

Submissions are invited from the 4th April and entries close on the 19th September 2016. The awards are free to enter and attend.

Commenting on the awards, Kate Headley, Director of Consulting at the Clear Company and spokesperson for the Recruitment Industry Disability Initiative said:

“Around 11 million people in the UK are living with a limiting long term illness, impairment or disability and I’d like to urge organisations which are taking a pro-active approach to aiding the inclusion of these individuals to get in touch and share their journeys and successes. While traditional recruitment processes can be a barrier to disabled candidates, as previous winners have demonstrated, even small changes in approach can make a huge impact on accessibility. Last year’s winners are a true inspiration to other organisations focusing on strategies to boost diversity. I have no doubt that this year’s process will reveal equally influential examples.”

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Notes for journalists:

The Recruitment Industry Disability Initiative (RIDI) is an independent not-for-profit group of employers and recruiters that have come together to drive change for disabled people in the UK jobs market.

Now in its third year, the RIDI Awards is an opportunity to celebrate best-practice towards managing disability in the recruitment supply chain. This year’s event will take place on 3 November and will be supported by a full marketing and PR campaign throughout the year.

The RIDI board and judging panel is made up of influential individuals from the private and public sector; people with the drive and authority to genuinely make a difference to disabled peoples working lives.

Carly Smith
BlueSky PR
T: +44 (0)1582 790 708
E: carly@bluesky-pr.com
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