Neurodiversity in Business (NiB) - the Neurodiversity Charity

Trying to sort workplace adjustments and don’t know where to start? In the UK, the most useful resource depends on the problem you are trying to solve. ▶️ You need to request or agree adjustments Acas provides practical guidance for employees and employers, including example adjustments and template letters. ▶️ You need specialist equipment, coaching or support Access to Work can fund support that goes beyond standard employer adjustments. Apply as early as possible, as the process can take time. ▶️ You manage someone and are unsure how to respond Acas has guidance on disclosure, adjustments, performance, conduct and capability. ▶️ An adjustment has been delayed or refused Acas explains the next steps. The Equality Advisory and Support Service can also advise where discrimination may have occurred. 🌎 Outside the UK, useful starting points include: United States: Job Accommodation Network and the EEOC Canada: Canadian Human Rights Commission and provincial human rights bodies Australia: JobAccess and the Employment Assistance Fund This is a starting point, not a complete international directory. Which reliable resources have helped you? Please add the resource and country below so we can build a more useful shared list. 👇

The 2026 NiB and Birkbeck, University of London study found that psychological safety for neurodivergent employees has still not improved. Employers have had years of guidance, awareness campaigns and examples of good practice. Some have made substantial progress. Across the wider workforce, however, voluntary action is not producing change quickly or consistently enough. So what needs to happen next? Should large employers be required to report neurodivergent employees’ experiences, adjustment waiting times, retention and progression? Should there be minimum standards for adjustment processes, with clear timescales and rights of review? Could public contracts require evidence of effective neuroinclusive employment practices? And should employers have to publish what they will change when their own workforce data reveals a problem? Regulation alone cannot create psychological safety. But it can make employers accountable for the conditions that help create it. The last few years have focused on helping businesses understand neurodiversity. How do we now build enough collective pressure to turn that understanding into measurable change? We would like to hear from neurodivergent employees, employers, policymakers and practitioners. What would meaningful accountability look like to you? 2026 Study 👉 https://lnkd.in/e9wi_dSP

🧠 𝐍𝐢𝐁 𝐏𝐨𝐥𝐥: 𝐖𝐡𝐚𝐭 𝐜𝐨𝐧𝐭𝐫𝐢𝐛𝐮𝐭𝐞𝐬 𝐦𝐨𝐬𝐭 𝐭𝐨 𝐰𝐨𝐫𝐤𝐩𝐥𝐚𝐜𝐞 𝐢𝐦𝐩𝐨𝐬𝐭𝐞𝐫 𝐬𝐲𝐧𝐝𝐫𝐨𝐦𝐞? Many people talk about imposter syndrome as though it’s simply a confidence problem. But confidence doesn’t exist in a vacuum. For many people—including neurodivergent professionals, women, disabled people and those from other underrepresented groups—self-doubt can be reinforced by workplace experiences, bias, and narratives that make people question whether they’ve truly earned their place. 𝑾𝒉𝒂𝒕’𝒔 𝒕𝒉𝒆 𝒃𝒊𝒈𝒈𝒆𝒔𝒕 𝒅𝒓𝒊𝒗𝒆𝒓 𝒐𝒇 𝒊𝒎𝒑𝒐𝒔𝒕𝒆𝒓 𝒔𝒚𝒏𝒅𝒓𝒐𝒎𝒆 𝒂𝒕 𝒘𝒐𝒓𝒌? 🔘 Feeling you have to prove yourself constantly 🔘 Being treated differently or underestimated 🔘 Lack of representation and belonging 🔘 Other (please comment) 💬 We’d love to hear your thoughts in the comments. Can workplaces reduce imposter syndrome by changing the environment—not just expecting people to become more confident? This frames the discussion around organisational culture rather than politics, which is much more aligned with the Neurodiversity in Business community while still addressing the underlying issue raised in the article.

📊 𝐏𝐨𝐥𝐥 𝐑𝐞𝐬𝐮𝐥𝐭𝐬: 𝐖𝐡𝐚𝐭’𝐬 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐛𝐢𝐠𝐠𝐞𝐬𝐭 𝐫𝐢𝐬𝐤 𝐨𝐟 𝐛𝐥𝐚𝐧𝐤𝐞𝐭 𝐫𝐞𝐭𝐮𝐫𝐧-𝐭𝐨-𝐨𝐟𝐟𝐢𝐜𝐞 𝐦𝐚𝐧𝐝𝐚𝐭𝐞𝐬? The results were clear: 🔹 64% said increased burnout and fatigue 🔹 30% said loss of neurodivergent talent 🔹 4% chose Other 🔹 2% believed there would be fewer distractions This was not just about arguing against the return to offices. It was also about questioning the fairness of blanket mandates that ignore the different ways people work, think and thrive. One comment summed it up powerfully: “To me, RTO mandates signify weak leadership that needs to feel in control, and has zero interest in supporting diversity of any kind. It’s a red flag because it won’t be the only outdated approach in the organisation.” Whether you agree with that sentiment or not reflects a growing concern that many mandates prioritise visibility over outcomes and consistency over inclusion. For neurodivergent employees especially, the commute, sensory demands, interruptions and loss of autonomy can significantly increased cognitive load. When that happens day after day, burnout becomes a predictable outcome rather than an individual failing. The real question is not actually about where people are working, but instead about whether the environments we are creating are sufficient for our people to do their best work. If a policy increases burnout and drives talented people away, it’s worth asking whether it’s achieving the outcome it was designed for. What do you think the future of work should look like? Hybrid by default, fully flexible, or a return to office?

Many employers worry that offering greater flexibility will be abused. It's a reasonable concern. The good news is that most universal adjustments don't rely on trust alone. They can be designed so they support neurodivergent employees without creating opportunities for poor performance to hide. For example: ▶️ Flexible working hours ✅ Agree core hours and expected outcomes. ✅ Measure performance by delivery, not by when someone starts work. ▶️ Additional breaks ✅ Focus on whether work is completed and service levels are maintained. ✅ Employees who need short breaks often regain productivity, not lose it. ▶️ Written instructions ✅ Benefit everyone and create a clear record of expectations. ✅ They often improve accountability rather than reduce it. ▶️ Remote or hybrid working ✅ Set clear objectives, regular check-ins and measurable outputs. ✅ Don't assume being seen equals being productive. ▶️ Alternative communication methods ✅ Let employees contribute in writing where appropriate. ✅ Judge the quality of ideas, not who speaks first or loudest. ▶️ Meeting agendas and notes ✅ Reduce misunderstandings. ✅ Makes it harder for people to avoid responsibility when actions are documented. ▶️ Quiet working time ✅ Protect periods for focused work. ✅ Define when people must remain available for urgent issues. The key is this: Flexibility should never mean lowering expectations. It means giving people different ways to achieve the same standards. That protects organisations from poor performance while giving neurodivergent employees a fair opportunity to perform at their best. Have you found adjustments that improved performance for everyone while still maintaining accountability? 👇

NiB is seeking an experienced Partnership Lead to help shape and grow our Partnership Programme. This is a senior volunteer role for someone who is commercially minded, passionate about neurodiversity and motivated to build a trusted ecosystem of products, services and organisations that can deliver meaningful value to employers and neurodivergent people. The role will include: • Developing and refining the programme’s structure, value proposition and long-term strategy • Identifying, evaluating and onboarding relevant partners, including service providers, product vendors, consultancies and technology providers • Creating a robust vetting process to assess quality, ethics and impact • Building and maintaining strong relationships with partner organisations as their main point of contact • Working with NiB’s communications, events and operations teams to integrate partners into wider activities • Monitoring performance, gathering feedback and recommending improvements • Supporting the development of partnership tiers, benefits and potential income opportunities that align with NiB’s charitable mission • Establishing clear, repeatable administrative processes for onboarding, invoicing and ongoing partner management • Representing NiB at meetings, events and external engagements We are looking for someone with experience in partnership management, business development, account management or commercial relationship roles, together with: • The ability to evaluate and vet products or services, ideally in HR, workplace inclusion, wellbeing or technology • Strong relationship-building skills and confidence engaging senior stakeholders • Excellent planning, organisation and project management • The ability to work independently, take initiative and move work forward with minimal supervision • Clear written and verbal communication • A strong understanding of neurodiversity and workplace inclusion You should also have experience working in or with charities, membership organisations or professional networks at middle-management level, plus experience of partnership strategy and programme development, procurement, due diligence or quality assurance. Experience leading teams and working across a matrix organisation is required. Existing relationships with businesses developing products or services for neurodivergent teams or workplaces would be particularly useful. The right person will be self-motivated, proactive, collaborative, detail-oriented and comfortable helping to build a programme from the ground up. This is a fully remote, unpaid volunteer role requiring around 4 to 6 hours per week, with occasional virtual meetings. In return, you'll have the opportunity to shape a national-level programme, build relationships across leading employers, service providers and inclusion specialists, and contribute to improving working life for neurodivergent people. To apply, visit our website or email your application to: volunteer@neurodiversity.org

Workplace processes can accidentally out neurodivergent employees. And it can happen more easily than organisations realise: An employee is provided with specialised assistive software. While they are away, IT needs information about the setup and emails the wider department rather than the employee’s line manager. No diagnosis is mentioned. But colleagues now know the employee has been given individual support, which may be information they had not chosen to share. Similar risks can arise when: • adjustment requests are visible in shared IT queues • support tickets include a condition rather than the functionality required • occupational health appointments are clearly labelled in calendars • HR copies unnecessary people into adjustment-related emails • managers discuss someone’s support needs with the wider team • old names reappear across connected systems • software notifications reveal that an employee has been given specialist access or equipment These are often process failures rather than deliberate breaches. The problem is usually that information is shared with everyone who might be able to help, rather than only those who need to know. Organisations can reduce the risk by: • giving each adjustment a named HR or management contact • telling IT what needs to work, not why the employee needs it • agreeing who can answer questions when the employee is absent • restricting sensitive tickets and records by default • using neutral wording in calendars and system notifications • asking the employee before sharing information with colleagues • checking how personal details move between connected systems Providing an adjustment is only part of inclusion. It also needs to be implemented without exposing anyone’s private information to people who do not need it. Have you witnessed workplace processes that can accidentally out neurodivergent employees? Tell us what else businesses should watch out for. 👇

🏢 𝐍𝐢𝐁 𝐏𝐨𝐥𝐥: 𝐑𝐞𝐭𝐮𝐫𝐧-𝐭𝐨-𝐨𝐟𝐟𝐢𝐜𝐞 𝐦𝐚𝐧𝐝𝐚𝐭𝐞𝐬 — 𝐰𝐡𝐚𝐭’𝐬 𝐛𝐞𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐨𝐯𝐞𝐫𝐥𝐨𝐨𝐤𝐞𝐝? Many organisations are increasing office attendance, often citing collaboration, culture and productivity. But for many neurodivergent employees, the workplace itself can introduce additional challenges—from sensory overload and long commutes to constant interruptions and reduced opportunities for focused work. The question may not be where people work best, but whether workplaces are designed for different ways of working. 𝐖𝐡𝐚𝐭’𝐬 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐛𝐢𝐠𝐠𝐞𝐬𝐭 𝐫𝐢𝐬𝐤 𝐨𝐟 𝐛𝐥𝐚𝐧𝐤𝐞𝐭 𝐫𝐞𝐭𝐮𝐫𝐧-𝐭𝐨-𝐨𝐟𝐟𝐢𝐜𝐞 𝐦𝐚𝐧𝐝𝐚𝐭𝐞𝐬? 🔹 Increased burnout and fatigue 🔹 Reduced productivity from workplace distractions 🔹 Loss of neurodivergent talent 🔹 Other (please comment) 💬 We’d love to hear your experiences. Have return-to-office policies helped you do your best work—or made it harder?

What if employees didn't need to disclose a diagnosis before accessing many of the adjustments that help them work effectively? Universal design means creating workplaces, processes and ways of working that are accessible to a wider range of people by default. Some of these practices are already becoming familiar: ✅ Flexible start and finish times ✅ Hybrid and remote working options ✅ Quiet spaces and noise-cancelling headphones ✅ Written instructions alongside verbal communication ✅ Meeting agendas shared in advance ✅ Regular breaks and flexibility to move around ✅ Assistive technology, including speech-to-text and text-to-speech tools ✅ Clear priorities, deadlines and expectations ✅ Additional time for processing information or completing certain tasks ✅ Alternatives to open-plan working where possible But there are many less obvious changes to consider: • Sharing interview questions shortly before an interview, reducing the emphasis on rapid processing without removing the need to demonstrate competence • Allowing employees to contribute to meetings through chat, shared documents or written follow-up rather than treating spontaneous verbal participation as the default • Recording the decisions, actions and responsibilities arising from meetings, rather than relying on employees to remember or interpret what was agreed • Providing examples of completed work where appropriate, so employees can understand the expected standard rather than having to infer it • Separating urgent work from work that is merely important, and limiting the number of communication channels used for genuinely urgent requests • Creating agreed periods of uninterrupted work when employees are not expected to monitor email, messages and meetings simultaneously • Giving advance notice of organisational changes, desk moves, changes to responsibilities or unfamiliar events whenever reasonably possible • Designing progression criteria that do not disproportionately reward networking, visibility, self-promotion and confident verbal communication • Allowing employees to decline optional social activities without this being interpreted as a lack of commitment or engagement • Reviewing job descriptions to remove unnecessary requirements around communication style, multitasking, flexibility or working under pressure • Making workplace policies shorter, clearer and easier to navigate • Giving employees greater control over how they receive feedback None of these practices will remove the need for individual reasonable adjustments. But making more flexibility and accessibility available by default could reduce the number of people who have to disclose personal information, obtain a diagnosis or formally demonstrate that they are struggling before they can access the conditions that help them work effectively. How many adjustments in your organisation could simply become normal ways of working? 👇

Big announcement: today we are contributing to real change. The latest Neurodiversity in Business academic research has been released: our 2026 study with Birkbeck Faculty of Science, University of London. We believe it will reshape how organisations think about inclusion at work. The data is clear. Neurodivergent employees continue to report significantly poorer wellbeing, psychological safety and work–life balance than the wider workforce. Burnout risk remains high. Return‑to‑office mandates are pushing people to reconsider their future with their employer. And line managers are still carrying the weight of inclusion without the specialist support they need. Headline findings: - 72% of participants reported more than one neurotype. ADHD and autism were most common. - Nearly half of neurodivergent employees had received a return‑to‑office mandate; over half said it made them reconsider staying. - Psychological safety remains the strongest driver of wellbeing and retention, yet it has not improved since 2023. - Burnout risk is highest for people with multiple neurotypes, driven by cognitive load and inconsistent organisational support. - Neurodivergent entrepreneurs thrive on autonomy and flexibility, but face financial strain and administrative pressure. - Employers want to improve inclusion but face barriers: limited disclosure, unclear processes and persistent myths about adjustments. This research is not just a mirror. It is a roadmap. It calls for clearer adjustment processes, specialist manager training, more thoughtful approaches to hybrid work, and a strategic commitment to neuroinclusion, not as benevolence, but as a driver of performance, retention and workforce sustainability. We are proud of this work. We are proud of the community who shaped it. And we are confident that it will help organisations build workplaces where every mind can thrive. 📓 View the 2026 research here: https://lnkd.in/e6mqDy5k