AHEAD Ireland is a prominent non-profit organization dedicated to fostering inclusive environments in education and employment for individuals with disabilities. By focusing on further education, higher education, and graduate employment, AHEAD strives to remove barriers that hinder the participation of students and graduates with disabilities. The organization provides crucial information and support to students, educators, guidance counselors, and parents on disability-related issues in education. AHEAD also conducts national research, contributes to policy discussions, and offers professional development to enhance the inclusivity of further and higher education institutions.

One of AHEAD’s key initiatives is the Willing Able Mentoring (WAM) Programme, which offers paid, mentored work placements to graduates with disabilities. Launched in 2005, WAM aims to facilitate entry into the job market for these graduates while helping employers integrate disability inclusively into their workplaces. The program provides structured support for both graduates and employers, including pre-placement disability awareness training. Since its inception, over 690 graduates have benefited from the program, with 81% securing employment directly as a result of their placements. The WAM Programme not only empowers graduates with valuable work experience but also equips employers with the tools and knowledge to foster a more inclusive work environment.

I interviewed WAM Employment Manager Deirdre Moore to find out more:

1. To someone who may not be aware of AHEAD Ireland, what does the company do?

 AHEAD is an independent non-profit organisation working to create inclusive environments in education and employment for people with disabilities. The main focus of our work is further education and training, higher education and graduate employment. AHEAD provides information to students and graduates with disabilities, teachers, guidance counsellors and parents on disability issues in education. We undertake national research relating to the inclusion of students with disabilities, contribute to national policy forums and provide professional development opportunities to develop the capacity of staff in FET and higher education to be more inclusive.

2. Can you tell me more about AHEAD’s WAM Programme? What are some of the benefits for both the participant and the employer?

Willing Able Mentoring (WAM) is a work placement programme which aims to promote access to the labour market for graduates with disabilities and build the capacity of employers to integrate disability into the mainstream workplace. WAM is unique in that it seeks to engage and support employers in order to simultaneously develop the potential of employers and graduates with disabilities. The WAM Programme offers graduates with disabilities the chance to undertake a minimum 6 month, paid, mentored work placements with high profile Irish employers. We provide support to both the graduate and the employer during the first six months of the placement, and we provide disability awareness training to the employer prior to the placement starting.

3. What has been the impact of the WAM Programme since its launch? How many participants have gone through the program and how many went on to secure meaningful work afterwards?

Since The WAM Programme was established in 2005, over 690 graduates have secured paid and mentored placements with employers in both the public and private sector.  In our recent WAM statistics 2023 publication, we found that 81% of WAM graduates secured employment as a direct result of their WAM placement. WAM has a big impact on both our employers and the graduates who are successful in gaining a placement. We’ve found that 91% of graduates rated their WAM placement as good or excellent. 95% of graduates felt they gained practical experience in the workplace and 92% gained confidence in their ability to work in the mainstream.

4. If someone has a disability and a level 8 degree and is looking for work, what would you advise them to do? What supports and resources do AHEAD offer in preparing for work?

Our GetAHEAD Programme is a great starting point for any student or graduate with a disability looking for work. This initiative focuses on the transition from education to employment and works to upskill graduates by running events as well as providing valuable resources and information covering topics like job seeking, CV writing, interview preparation and disclosure. GetAHEAD runs free employability workshops on topics like soft skills and CV writing, which we would highly recommend attending as stepping stones in your job search journey. Building the Future, AHEAD’s annual careers event for students and graduates with disabilities, is also an excellent event to attend when searching for work where you will have the opportunity to start connecting with employers, sharing your CV and getting insights into the roles and industries that interest you.

There are a number of excellent resources available to students and graduates with disabilities on AHEAD’s website like the key pieces of employment legislation specifically affecting students and graduates with disabilities, the various workplace grants and schemes available and guidance around reasonable accommodations in the workplace. We also have some practical booklets to support you including our guide to disclosing your disability and a practical workbook to help you maximise your job application. We would also advise those looking for work to read the GetAHEAD blogs, many of which are written by graduates with disabilities about their own experiences in the workplace. Some of the topics include asking for accommodations in the workplace and self-advocating at work, which are all critical for students and graduates with disabilities making the transition to work.

5. What are some of the benefits to employers of being involved in AHEAD’s WAM programme? If a company was interested in getting involved with the programme, what should they do?

Having a diverse workforce increases productivity and graduates with disabilities can bring a unique drive and perspective to your organisation. WAM offers employers a supportive space for companies to learn about disability proofing their recruitment practices and implementing the small changes required to support talented people with disabilities & help them flourish in the workplace.

Benefits for employers engaging with the WAM programme include; a safe space to ask questions and learn more about disability awareness, partake in disability awareness training, seek advice on workplace supports, a comprehensive needs assessment recommending supports to be put in place for the graduate, enrolment on our WAM eLearning courses and free attendance to our employer training events.

Companies interested in getting involved in the WAM programme can reach out to us on WAM@ahead.ie. We host a number of Employer Information sessions per year, where employers can learn more about the programme, what’s involved and ask questions. We can then talk to you on a one-on-one basis about the next steps involved in a WAM placement.

6. Often companies can be scared of some of the reasonable accommodations that people with disabilities may need in the job to be successful. Do you have any statistics on what are the most common reasonable accommodations that WAM placements have requested?

 Our WAM programme statistics 2023 report outlines information relating to the programme and reasonable accommodations requested by graduates and implemented by employers over the years.

Two-third (66%) of accommodations were in relation to work tasks which included a range of practical and easy to implement changes to the workplace for example providing clear structure, guidance and regular feedback; communication style; allowing for regular breaks and extra time for tasks or someone to proofread large bodies of work. It should be noted that these accommodations, while being the most common, do not incur any additional cost for the employer.  Rather, they represent approaches to style of management, training, and communication needs, etc.

The other accommodations requested for the workplace included hardware (10%), assistive technology (8%), time off for medical appointments (8%), work environment accommodations (7%) and other (1%) which were slight adjustments to working hours, ISL interpreter and a designated parking spot.

In general, WAM found that the majority of workplace accommodations do not incur any cost to the employer.

WAM also found in relation to accommodations for recruitment that 4 out of 5 applicants do not require any accommodations for a traditional face to face interview and 1 out of 7 requested accommodations for virtual interviews.

Employers can read full details in relation to the reasonable accommodations for WAM placements in the The WAM Programme Statistics 2023 (ahead.ie)

7. What employers say about their experience of working with WAM

• ‘it is still rare to work with a person with a disability and there is no reason why graduates with disabilities shouldn’t be in the workforce…’
• ‘It has changed my approach to the staff that I am managing. A lot of the methods and principles can be applied to all staff e.g. open questioning and listening skills’.
• ‘I’m more aware of the difficulties that graduates with disabilities have in securing employment or work experience opportunities. I have also learned that mentoring offers value across all strands of an organisation’.
• ‘It has been a fantastic experience and a privilege to work on this Programme! I have a far greater awareness of the difficulties that people with disabilities are likely to face’.
• ‘…the biggest barrier is perception’.

8.      “What are some ways that employers can be more inclusive of employees and potential employees with disabilities?”

AHEAD in partnership with FIT developed a tips booklet called Tips for Employers on Being Disability Inclusive in Apprenticeships (ahead.ie)

The aim of the booklet is to assist employers how to better understand and support apprentices with disabilities and disabled employees more generally. The section called Top Tips on Being an Inclusive Employer (page 17) covers:

1.      Reviewing your recruitment practices

2.      Building an inclusive culture

3.      Providing a platform for success