ADHD Aware’s Neurodiversity Awareness Training Programme
Breaking Down Barriers and Enabling Shared Understanding of Neurodiversity
What is Workplace Neurodiversity Awareness Training?
‘Neurodiversity’ is the idea that everyone’s brains are unique and the way that people think varies naturally. For 15% of the adult UK population for example, these differences in variation are diagnosed as neurological conditions which include Autism, ADHD and Dyslexia. Neurodiversity Awareness Training is an equalities, diversity and inclusion training designed to help participants understand and appreciate the differences in cognitive processing and neurodevelopmental conditions.
Diversity is important for any organisation to develop, and understanding neurodiversity comes with huge benefits. By choosing Neurodiversity Awareness Training, you can help create a work environment which enables neurodivergent people to feel safe, supported and able to perform at their best.
OUR APPROACH
We are passionate about creating inclusive workplaces and environments where those with a neurodivergence can thrive. All our trainers have lived experience of ADHD and expertise as leaders, consultants or educators. We bring our passion, our expertise, tools and techniques to share.
We believe that learning happens best when it is as the result of:
- A mix of science and anecdote
- Interactivity
- Discussion
- Challenge
- An open and supportive environment
- Tailoring in the moment
We will strive to make that happen, whether it is a 60 minute or a full day session.
AWARE
Neurodiversity can be an unfamiliar topic. Many adults are neurodivergent and unaware of it, many have no experience with neurodiverse adults and are unaware of how various neurodiverse conditions can impact people at work and in life.
This workshop, which can be delivered as a lunch and learn masterclass, or a half day workshop, will introduce and illustrate neurodiversity as a broad-spectrum, supporting participants to understand why challenges arise, how barriers can be removed and how to enable a positive and productive environment for neurodivergent minds.
OUTCOMES
You should feel confident to describe:
- Neurodiversity across the spectrum with a focus on understanding and support.
- The impact that typical work/life environments can have on physical and mental wellbeing.
- Reasonable adjustments that promote inclusion and productivity.
- Legal requirements including employment, discrimination.
- Strategies to support co-workers and employees.
- Burnout and hyperfocus, maintaining balance, wellness and sustainable energy.
CONTENT
- Introduction: meet your trainer and learn about lived experience.
- Objectives and outcomes.
- What is Neurodiversity, exploring Medical and Social Models.
- The Neurodiversity Model, illustrating a broad spectrum of divergence.
- Typical versus spikey IQ typical versus neurodivergent IQ.
- Reasonable adjustments that make disablers into enablers.
- Appropriate and supportive language.
- Legislation and governmental conditions and support.
- Qualitative and quantitative findings from the ADHD Aware employment survey.
- Real-life case studies, challenges in the workplace and at home and how these have been resolved.
- An invitation to make and share commitments to action.
THRIVE
Every person is blessed with their unique nature, skills and qualities. The diversity of the
human mind creates opportunities at work and at home for living with purpose, wellbeing,
belonging and contribution. Positive, thriving societies and business embrace this diversity as
the route to success, societal wellbeing, team collaboration and creativity. The term neurodiverse can be described as those minds that differ significantly from the normal range of diversity. Often little is known about neurodiversity, leading to ‘masking’, labelling and anxieties about accommodations and ‘saying the wrong thing’. Equality Diversity and Inclusion now factors in the highest performing quartile of businesses and is increasingly seen as a route of sustainable advantage and performance. It is the goal of responsible business to create an environment where everyone is valued, everyone is included, and everyone can be a leader. A measure of success is where those once labelled as disabled are powerfully enabled by their working environment and become valued contributors.
This course, that can be delivered as a masterclass (90 minutes) a training course (half day) or
an outcomes-based workshop (a full day) is designed to remove barriers, enhance
understanding, encourage acceptance and integration, and create an environment where all
can thrive.
OUTCOMES
You should feel confident to describe:
- Diversity, Neurodiversity, Trauma: differences and approaches.
- Neurodiversity across the spectrum with a focus on appreciating value and inclusion.
- Solutions to typical barriers that stand in the way of inclusion and performance (adjustments and enablers for all)
- Etiquette and communication styles to enable positive dialogue.
- Cultural and normative pointers to create a rich environment with curiosity, learning, acceptance, and performance.
- Owning your own reactions and responses.
- Ways to support colleagues in times of need, including but not limited to neurodivergence.
- The power of and how to implement mindfulness and wellness into the working day.
- Energy biscuits and burnout, managing and maintaining consistency of performance.
CONTENT
- Introductions, scene setting, objectives and outcomes.
- Medical and Social Models.
- Models of diversity, neurodiversity and trauma induced diversity.
- Typical challenges and impacts on neurodivergent people and those living or working with neurodivergence. ADHD aware insights.
- Typical versus spikey IQ.
- Adjustments and enablers of neurodivergent professionals’ success in the workplace. Deloitte Analysis
- The Neurodiversity Strengths Finder. Doyle and Colley.
- Terminology, definitions, and appropriate language.
- The role of professionals, EDI and the team in creating neuro inclusive workplaces.
- How to create safety, trust and have meaningful conversations.
- Creating an open and supportive culture.
- Practicing an ongoing attention to mindfulness and wellbeing.
- Empowering neurodivergent voices.
- Understanding hyperfocus, burnout and sustainable energy flows.
- Qualitative and quantitative findings from the ADHD aware employment survey.
- Your commitments to action.
A Lifelong Journey
While awareness and action to embrace diversity, equity and inclusion is on the increase AND while the evidence that diverse teams achieve market-leading performance, the neurodivergent community is still underemployed, undervalued and often unseen. We have developed three programmes to help enterprise and groups to enable neurodivergent people to do their best work and to be a valued and valuable part of the community.
Aware – Breaking Down Barriers and Enabling Shared Understanding of Neurodiversity.
Thrive – Inclusive Environments where Everyone Is Valued and Everyone Can Thrive.
Lead – Strategies and Techniques to Empower, Enable and Develop a Neurodiverse Team. [This course is currently in development and available later in 2024]
Why choose ADHD Aware?
Every penny of profit from this training facility goes directly to fund our day to day, free peer support programme and community of over 6,000 people nationally, living with neurodiversity. We are the only charity to focus on adults impacted by ADHD.
For more information about our peer support groups, and see the positive impact that that have, take a look at our testimonials page.
About ADHD Aware
We are a national charity, based in Brighton. We have been supporting adults impacted by attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) for over a decade and are led by volunteers with lived experience of neurodiversity.
Since our early days meeting informally in a pub in Brighton, we’ve helped adults impacted by ADHD live happier lives and gain access to numerous services and information to help them function and thrive with their neurodiversity.
ADHD Aware became a formally constituted group in 2015 and local charities TDC (The Trust for Developing Communities) and The Resource Centre, Brighton, helped us get to this point. We reached another milestone in November 2021, when we were granted the status of registered charity. We now have over 6,250 members of our ADHD Aware community who regularly attend meetings and benefit from our eNewsletter, as well as the over 500K people who reach out to us each year for help (through this website, our support email, and social media).
We currently support our members with 7 monthly group sessions all of which are completely free:
- In-Person and virtual Drop In
- Parents of children and young people
- Group Discussions (in-person and virtual)
- Partners
- Parents of Adult Children
We exist thanks to the amazing work of our volunteers to whom we are very grateful. All of our funding comes from our training function, grants and donations. The development of our training arm is supported by The National Lottery until end 2025.
As well as our Aware and Thrive training programme, we also offer a 7-week Couples Course and 8 weeks of facilitated closed peer support sessions. Please check our website and newsletter for information about when these courses are available to book.
How to get started?
If you are interested in our Neurodiversity Awareness Training for your workplace, please get in touch with us to discuss your needs and schedule an AWARE and/or THRIVE training session.
INDIVIDUALS CAN BOOK ON A COURSE.
We are delighted to announce a series of OPEN AWARE and THRIVE courses for individuals to book. These will be 90-minute workshops, £95 each and can be booked through Eventbrite.
Contact our training team by emailing training@adhdaware.org.uk
Our Trainers
Helen Davies
Helen is a qualified lecturer, workshop facilitator and coach and is indeed neurodivergent herself. She is an expert within the neurodivergence field and has been a trustee of ADHD Aware. She worked at City University as a senior lecturer in management and leadership as associate director for the public health masters programme.
Helen is a single parent to a wonderful adopted boy, and is passionate about trauma-informed approaches becoming more mainstream.
Adrian Pagdin
Adrian is a learning director with 20 years of experience consulting, designing, and delivering learning programmes for a wide range of corporate clients around the world, including Abu Dhabi Water and Electricity Authority, HSBC, AIG, Credit Suisse, The Saudi Royal Exchange (Tadawul) Invensys and Siemens.
Adrian has considerable experience facilitating change, he was recently responsible for a 3-year, people, and brand transformation with Unilever Leadership Development.
Adrian is the founder of the collaboration group PIA (Purpose into Action) focusing on ways to create a more equal and sustainable society through creating environments where people can thrive with meaningful work, authenticity, value and connection.
Adrian was diagnosed as neurodivergent as an adult and is passionate about challenging stereotypes and developing inclusive narratives and practices.
Charlie Parker
Charlie has over 2 decades of experience in education as a teacher and senior leader. She currently works as a consultant, supporting families, schools and teachers to challenge the status quo and change learning environments and teaching methods to better suit neurodivergent young people. She passionately believes that a few changes can make a huge difference to the wellbeing of neurodivergent students. Charlie lives in Brighton with her husband and two children, the oldest of whom is autistic and ADHD. She brings this lived experience to her training and support.
Martin Bunker
Martin has over 30 years of experience as a trainer and educator, and is studying for a Masters in Neuroscience. Having worked with children and young adults with ADHD, Autism and/or other Special Educational Needs (SEN), he has a unique perspective on how neurodiverse young people go on to cope with and adapt to the adult world.
As someone with ADHD, and as a highly experienced host of ADHD Aware’s support groups and webinars; Martin has a deep understanding of the struggles frequently faced by adults with ADHD and Autism, as well as extensive knowledge of practical solutions for flourishing in the “neurotypical” world.
Martin lives in Brighton with his wife, and their three daughters.