Disabled professionals are still being overlooked, underestimated, and pushed to the sidelines. The worst part? It’s often by workplaces that claim to be inclusive. Kate Stevenson uncovers the realities for employees
Job interviews are a crucial part of the hiring process. They’re meant to highlight your skills and potential, and shouldn’t be overshadowed by inaccurate assumptions.
Yet some hiring teams routinely pass over disabled talent because they believe disabled employees will be too slow, too high maintenance, or simply too risky.
This is the reality many disabled professionals face: shut down not because of a lack of talent, but by a system that’s been built for non-disabled candidates. Even though employers love to shout from the rooftops about their diversity pledges, the realities of getting hired and being supported are dubious compared to these seemingly PC campaigns. Barriers in the workplace remain everywhere; not least in the attitudes, structure and culture of many organisations.
“There’s still this obsession with stamina over skill,” explains Keely Cat-Wells, founder of Making Space, an inclusive hiring consultancy. “A job will require someone to be able to lift 15 kilos or drive, even when the role has nothing to do with either of these things. That’s how people get filtered out – before they’ve even had a chance to apply.”
THAT’S NOT INCLUSION
Bella Roberts knows this first-hand. As an editor in the UK television industry, she spent months sending applications, doing trial shifts, and chasing call-backs. Nothing stuck: “I was showing up and working well,” remembers Bella. “It made me wonder if it was because someone else was better, or because of my disability. I felt like they took one look at me and put me at the bottom of their list.”
She wasn’t imagining it. The film and TV world, like many industries, prides itself on being fast-paced and physical. Entry-level jobs often revolve around physical tasks such as running gear across sets, which automatically excludes people with mobility needs like Bella. She has a rare form of lymphoedema called Hennekam Syndrome, which causes swelling throughout her entire body and limits her growth.
“I was always the one struggling to keep up,” explains Bella. Although she takes medicines to manage her condition and uses a mobility scooter, a day on a demanding set can be physically challenging: “But I didn’t want to be the one asking for help, or to be seen as a burden.”
MAKE ROOM OR MOVE OVER
Thankfully, things changed when she joined the BBC’s Access Scheme, designed specifically to support disabled talent in production. Suddenly, support wasn’t something she had to request: it was built in. “They asked if I needed anything upfront,” she laughs. “That was new!”
This is what Keely means by going beyond compliance. “You can have ramps and still have an inaccessible culture,” she explains. “If someone has to enter through the back door, it might be legal, but it doesn’t feel equal. Inclusion means a seamless experience, not a separate one.” It’s why she believes most workplaces are still confusing inclusion with compliance.
That’s despite figures that show it could be profitable for businesses to invest in accessibility. Research shows that by not investing, the exact opposite could happen: businesses may suffer revenue loss, legal risks, reputational damage, reduced market reach, and missed innovation opportunities.
Those losses themselves make quite a case to improve workplace accessibility, but the fact is that 15% of the global population is disabled. Keely argues that if you’re not supporting them, you’ll end up missing out on or losing talented employees.
“Disabled staff stay longer when they’re supported,” she adds, “and they bring adaptability, technical skills, and resourcefulness developed through navigating an inaccessible world every day.”
In the last year, Bella’s social media accounts have grown – partly due to her role in the successful Netflix programme Adolescence, but mainly because the BBC Access Scheme gave her the space to show what she could do.
Her Instagram reels chronicling a ‘day in the life’ on set have racked up millions of views, and off er a behind- the-scenes look at TV production from her point of view. “It’s allowed people to see that not only am I capable, but I’m good at my job.” She shakes her head. “It’s crazy because my disability hasn’t disappeared, but their doubt has.”
And even though Bella bounces from job to job – typical of a freelancer – the Access Scheme has proven to the rest of the world what she already knew: she’s an asset to any team.
AND BE PART OF THE CHANGE
That said, Bella rarely works alongside others with disabilities. “I’ve never shared a set with someone else who uses a wheelchair,” she reveals. “It’s not that there’s a shortage of disabled creators. The system just doesn’t make space for all of us.”
That’s the gap Keely is aiming to close, although admittedly it won’t be easy. She’s pushing companies to hire disabled consultants, train all staff in disability inclusion, and shift the hiring power to disabled people. “Stop asking us to explain why we deserve to be here,” exclaims Keely. “Build the structure so we already are.”
Bella nods firmly in agreement, but adds that “an inclusive workplace is one where you don’t have to prove you belong. It shouldn’t be an afterthought.”
That’s the kind of future Keely and Bella are working towards: not one where access is added in later, but where inclusivity is part of the blueprint from the start.