“The Breadth of Vocational Rehabilitation Throughout the Employee Lifespan”

The VRA is a multi-disciplinary UK-wide organisation supporting and promoting all those working in vocational rehabilitation and commissioning services whether in the public, private, voluntary or third sector.The Association exists to:- help people working in the field of disability and employment;- to promote and develop their personal, professional and practical skills; and also-to maintain their awareness of a broad range of rehabilitation issues.We run a range of events including free CPD webinars most months.Please sign up to our mailing list on our website to be notified as not all events are posted here.

Vocational Rehabilitation Association

This conference will showcase how VR has an important part to play in overcoming changes across all life stages for work-based outcomes

Join us for a day of learning and discussion. This conference will showcase how Vocational Rehabilitation has an important part to play in overcoming and managing changes across life stages for successful work-based outcomes to be sustained.Our expert speakers will highlight key areas for VR professionals to consider in their work with adults, as they progress through these life stages of working. These include:* Understanding the needs of younger and older people,* The option of career redirection,* Impacts on financial wellbeing,* Inclusive workspaces and neurodiverse needs,* The impact of the menopause.Adults encounter life changes across their working lives affecting their employment and work opportunities. These changes can impact the person’s financial, physical, emotional and cognitive abilities, and require re-evaluation of career and work needs. Sessions will consider topics across the different life stages of work from first employment through to retirement giving VR professionals a chance to listen and ask questions on each topic.By being more aware and using VR on the life changes of an employee could in turn help reduce the 2.5 million people who are reportedly currently out of work due to long term sickness, helping people stay in work return to work and remain in work.P﻿ROGRAMME10:00 – 10:10   - Julie Denning - VRA Chair - Welcome   10:10 -10:50  - Prof. Amanda Kirby MBBS MRCGP PhD  - Neurodiversity in the workplace - supporting people to stay in and return to work  10:50 – 11:30  - Kate Alexander and Cristiana Orlando  - Research Fellows, Institute of Employment Studies - Supporting young people entering employment  11:30 – 12:10  - Dr Christine Grant - Associate Professor, Research Centre for Health and Communities - Flexible hybrid working for different life stages   12:10 – 12:30  - LUNCH  12:30 – 13:10  - Stuart Miller  - SDM Training Services &amp; Sharon Patmore Occupational Psychologist - Career redirection across the ages   13:10 – 13:50  - Deborah Garlick  - CEO, Henpicked - Becoming a Menopause Friendly Employer  13:50 – 14:00 - BREAK 14:00 – 14:40  - Kim Chaplain - Centre for Aging Better - Older workers - What do we need be aware of? 14:40 – 15:20 - Debra Clark - Head of Specialist Consulting Towergate Health &amp; Protection -Looking after the financial health of employees throughout their working lifespan 15:20 – 15:30  - Julie Denning - VRA Chair - Closing Summary Each speaker will have a Q&amp;A session so please do take advantage of this opportunity to ask your questions live and get the best advise and resources available on the day.For those who do attend on the day, we will be running a little competition so make sure you log in for the welcome chat for full terms and conditions.Recordings of the event will be made available to all ticket holders after the day has concluded so if you do get called away, not to worry, you can catch up later.M﻿eet our Speakers:Professor Amanda Kirby MBBS MRCGP PhD  Amanda is an emeritus professor at the University of South Wales and an honorary professor at Cardiff University. She has clinical and research experience and founded and ran a transdisciplinary clinical and research team for 20 years relating to neurodiversity. She is a qualified GP and has a Ph.D.  relating to emerging adulthood and neurodiversity.  Amanda is the founder and CEO of Do-IT Solutions, a tech for good company that provides neurodiversity screening and web-based support tools for schools and for adults in education and employment.  Amanda has been on government advisory boards (e.g., Hidden Impairment National Group) as well as advising UK and international charities in the field of neurodiversity.  She has written 10 books and more than 100 research papers in the field and one of her recent books published in 2021:&#x27;Neurodiversity at Work, Drive Innovation, Performance and Productivity with a Neurodiverse Workforce&#x27; won the Business Book Awards 2022 for EDI. Amanda has been voted one of the top UK HR Thinkers in 2022 and one the lifetime achievement awards at the National Diversity Awards as well as being voted in the top 50 Diversity power list.   In 2023, she has been named one of: Think Women’s 40 outstanding global women’;  Top ‘33 UK Business Influencers’.  She has also been one of the UK LinkedIn voices as well as being one of their first creators and has a following on her weekly newsletter of more than 75,000 followers.  She has new book for 2023 called ‘Neurodiversity in Education’ with authors Paul Ellis and Abby Osbourne.   Amanda has lived experience of neurodiversity. Cristiana Orlando:Cristiana is a Health Foundation Research Fellow at the Institute for Employment Studies. She leads the IES Better Quality Youth Employment policy research programme, focused on improving access to good quality youth employment as part of the employment strand of the Young people’s future health inquiry. Over the past two years Cristiana has been leading research across the four nations into young people and employers’ views and experiences of good work, and challenges and opportunities in accessing and providing good work, as well as young people’s experiences of mental health in the workplace. Cristiana’s background is in policy research on employment, health, welfare and education, with a focus on the interaction of health, inequality and employment outcomes among young people.Kate Alexander:Kate  is a Research Fellow at the Institute for Employment studies specialising in employment policy. Her research focuses on precarious employment, the gig economy, higher education, and young peoples’ transitions from education to employment. As a mixed methods researcher Kate has worked on a wide variety of projects for clients including government departments, charitable organisations and industry bodies to provide an evidence base around the UK labour market and what works in supporting people into good quality employment. Debra Clark:Debra is the head of specialist consulting at Towergate Health &amp; Protection.  She has been in the employee benefits industry for over 25 years now, working in a number of specialist intermediaries.  In all roles she has been dedicated to delivering first-class service to clients to ensure maximum retention and growth.  She is passionate about mental health and all forms of wellbeing, particularly in the workplace as she strongly believes that people are any business&#x27;s best asset and can ensure the success of a company if they are well.  She is on the Board of Trustees for her local Relate centre and also National Relate supporting the business and charity to help more people be better with their relationships.  Debra has been recognised for her commitment to mental health by Cover magazine in their 2022 annual awards, winning the Mental Health and Wellbeing Champion category. Dr Christine Grant:Dr Christine is a leading applied researcher in the field of remote working.  Her work explores the psychological factors and behaviours that affect remote workers including, work-life balance, job effectiveness and wellbeing. Christine also develops psychometric measures in this area including the globally renowned  E Work-Life scale that enables individuals and organisations to measure the quality of remote working.  She has published a book entitled: Agile working and Well-being in the Digital Age Agile Working and Well-Being in the Digital Age | SpringerLink and developed a digital competency framework for remote workers based on her research. Recently completing a funded project to explore remote working for those people with a disability and/or are neurodivergent, entitled ‘Remote4All’ seeking to influence government policy and guidance in this area. During the pandemic Christine worked with the British Psychological Society COVID19 ‘Working Differently’ Working Group providing guidance on homeworking: https://www.bps.org.uk/coronavirus-resources/public/working-from-home . Christine has widely received funding for her research including Digital Futures Innovation (ESRC/UKRI) and the Balance Network funding (ESPRC). Deborah Garlick is the CEO of Henpicked: Menopause in the Workplace, founder of Henpicked.net and author of Menopause: the change for the better. Her team have been working with UK-wide and international organisations for over 7 years to make it easier for them to introduce the right training, policies and practices to raise awareness, education and support of this critical area. In 2021, she supported the launch of Menopause Friendly Membership and accreditation. The membership is now supporting leading employers to achieve Menopause Friendly Accreditation. With over 300 members, and 35 who’ve actually achieved the award including Boots, HSBC UK, John Lewis and Leicestershire County Council. On 22 September 2022 the industry-recognised Menopause Friendly Employer Awards took place to highlight and celebrate best practice, and to recognise those employers who are leading the way in supporting their colleagues. Also raising vital funds for menopause charities and research. Kim Chaplain supports one of the Centre for Ageing Better’s priority goals of Work. Kim has over 30 year of experience in the employment and skills sector spanning both operational and policy roles. She specialises in community engagement and regeneration and has extensive experience of fostering partnerships between local authorities and employment services in both the third and public sector. In particular, she has worked with local partnerships to develop solutions tackling long term worklessness. In her early career, Kim spent time working for The Prince’s Trust as the Northern Director of the Volunteers Programme in some of the most economically deprived areas of the North of England, Scotland and Northern Ireland. She has worked at a national level on a number of central governments training schemes including as the Director of the Job Transition Service at Jobcentre Plus, tackling the impact of significant redundancies. She was the Director of the East London City Strategy Pathfinder, leading the employment and skills agenda, including sub regional programmes with combine value of £59m, for the 5 Olympic host boroughs over the period of construction and hosting of London 2012. Most recently she was the Director of Charitable Activity at the Mayor’s Fund for London, a social mobility charity launched by Boris Johnson in his first term as Mayor of London. S﻿tuart Miller:As a soldier in the British Army and an Officer in HM Prison Service, Stuart has worked in some of the most demanding environments and been able to do so in a positive and determined manner. He delivers specialist employability training and coaching to those with barriers to employment. Working in an energetic and engaging manner he has knowledge and understanding of the challenges faced within the workplace and can adapt his style to suit. By taking a practical and proactive approach to key employability subjects, he can assist with planning a pathway to achieving job goals, in particular around developing job searching skills. Additionally, he can provide insight into disclosing of criminal convictions from understanding the status of an offence right through to questions that may be asked at interview.Stuart’s work is varied and includes work within the Criminal Justice System, armed forces &amp; veterans’ community, sport and vocational rehabilitation. A highlight across his career was winning a national award for &#x27;Managing Young People&#x27;, part of the HM Prison Service Prison Officer of the Year Awards. This was for his work on a dedicated unit, managing some of the most challenging young people in the justice system.Sharon PatmoreChartered Psychologist (Occupational), AFBPsS, HCPC Registered Practitioner PsychologistSharon Patmore is Chartered Occupational Psychologist with over 25 years of experience of supporting people who experience a range of health and disability related difficulties, including mental health. She is an Associate Fellow of the BPS and registered with the Health and Care Professions Council as a Practicing Occupational Psychologist. She is also a Professional Member of the Vocational Rehabilitation Association.Sharon has experience of working in the Public, Private and Charitable sectors and has a background in HR, Training and Development that spans over 30 years across a wide range of sectors, providing a strong focus of supporting people to develop and thrive in work. She has extensive experience in psychometric assessments using these for recruitment and transitioning purposes, including assisting members of HM Armed Forces in their transition to Civvy Street after having been wounded or injured. During the first 2 years of the pandemic, she trained over 800 managers in understanding how to better support their teams with their mental health and wellbeing, that enable them to cope better during those uncertain times. She has been able to help others understand the full extent of psychological difficulties experienced by employees, including the implications of transitioning to working at home, returning to the workplace, changes in the structure of employment and the impact of COVID-10 physically, cognitively and psychologically within the work context. More recently she has been working with organisations that want to develop their Mental Health and Wellbeing strategy where understanding the implications of stress is an important factor.

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“The Breadth of Vocational Rehabilitation Throughout the Employee Lifespan”

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