You’ve recruited an amazing new Deaf team member. They’re ready to hit the ground running.
All you need to help them get off to a flying start is support from the Access to Work scheme. But it’s taking a while.
At Sign Solutions, this is something we encounter an awful lot. Delays, long waits for assessments, silence after forms are sent off, worry, stress. Meanwhile, the clock is ticking, and your people are trying to do their jobs without the support they need.
The good news? There’s a lot you can do to help speed up the Access to Work application process. If you’re an employer, manager or HR lead, this blog explains how we can help you.
What is Access to Work?
Access to Work is a Government scheme that funds essential support for Deaf, Deafblind and hard of hearing individuals. This support includes British Sign Language (BSL) interpreters, note-takers, specialist equipment, speech-to-text tools and much more.
However, even though it’s a fantastic scheme, it’s no secret that things can get slow. Very slow.
Some people wait several weeks to a few months for assessments and funding decisions. For your Deaf colleagues and employees, it can create weeks of awkward workarounds, missed meetings and generally feeling left out. It’s frustrating. And avoidable.
The first thing to do is to be proactive. Don’t wait for approval to take action. Most adjustments that a Deaf person might need aren’t at all expensive or invasive. In fact, you have a legal duty, under the Equality Act 2010, to provide reasonable adjustments for your employees, whether your Access to Work application is successful or not. So, while your application is in progress, consider temporary support options such as:
- Booking an interpreter for essential meetings
- Using remote BSL interpreting services like InterpretersLive!
- Providing written meeting summaries or using live captioning
- Helping set up a quiet workspace with visual alerts
- Encouraging employees to learn a little BSL
Although you often need pre-approval for things like interpreter costs, you might be able to claim some expenses back once your application is approved.
Avoid these common Access to Work pitfalls
The application process for Access to Work can take some time to process. However, sometimes, the delays are worse because your application gets bounced back. These temporary rejections usually come about because of minor but fixable things. Here are a few simple steps to help you avoid the usual snags:
- Be clear, detailed and specific. For example, don’t just say ‘communication support’ when filling in the form. Say what kind. Face-to-face BSL interpreting? Remote interpreting? Speech-to-text reporting?
- Get the job details right. What does your employee actually do, day to day? What support will they need, and how often? The more accurate, the better.
- Include contact information. Make sure the assessor knows exactly who to call to book an assessment and where it will take place.
- Follow up. Once the form’s in, follow up after two or three weeks. A polite phone call to check it’s in the queue shows you’re engaged.
Navigating the application process can be overwhelming, especially for someone new to the scheme, but as an employer, you can really make a difference.
Building a culture of support and helping someone maximise their productivity at work doesn’t stop with your Access to Work application, but it is a good place to start. So, offer help filling in forms and gathering information.
Be flexible with deadlines or time off for assessments.
Attend the assessment with your employee if they’d like backup.
And check in regularly so they don’t feel they’re going it alone.
Also, keep good records of what’s been agreed, what support is being used and how it’s working. This will make future renewals faster and easier.
And if the application is rejected (it does happen), don’t panic. There’s a reconsideration process. You can submit additional evidence, fill in any gaps and ask for the decision to be reviewed. Plenty of people succeed on the second try, so don’t feel discouraged.
How Sign Solutions can help speed up your Access to Work application
Need help navigating all this paperwork? That’s where we come in. At Sign Solutions, we’ve worked with hundreds of organisations to help with Access to Work paperwork, liaise with advisers and provide communication support while everything’s being processed.
Supporting a Deaf employee shouldn’t feel like guesswork. And it definitely shouldn’t be held up by red tape. With the right steps and a bit of expert help from our team, you’ll get things moving and make sure everyone has what they need to do their job.
So, if you’d like help speeding up the process, let’s talk. In addition to our Access to Work support, Sign Solutions offers interpreting services, BSL courses and Deaf Awareness Training to keep communication flowing while you wait for the paperwork to catch up. To find out more and get expert advice on applying for Access to Work funding, call us on 0121 447 9620, email bookings@signsolutions.uk.com or contact us via a BSL video interpreter.
