Reasonable Adjustment

A reasonable adjustment is where an employer makes changes to a colleague’s working environment to remove and reduce a disadvantage they may experience due to their disability or long term health condition, which could be physical and/or mental.

These adjustments are specific to individual’s circumstances and may include changes in working arrangements, providing specific equipment or training, or altering how work is performed.

  Requesting Reasonable Adjustments

Reasonable adjustment requests can be made through several routes, most commonly from recommendations by Occupational Health, Access to Work, other medical professionals, management or individual suggestions.

We would encourage managers to ask individuals about possible adjustments and having open discussions before they’re implemented. A template document has been developed and is available at the side of this page in our relevant documents tab; to support individuals and managers with the conversation around reasonable adjustments and provide a record of this discussion. This can be kept locally or sent to PPC to include on an individual’s employment record.

Considering Requests

When requests for reasonable adjustments are made, a manager should carefully consider this and accommodate them where possible. There may be reasons why some adjustments cannot be implemented, for example:

• Will the adjustment reduce or remove the disadvantage? Seek medical advice (for example through Occupational Health) if further information is needed to understand the requested adjustment, whilst considering the individual’s needs and their role. It is important the manager talks to the individual regarding this.
• Is the adjustment practical to make?
• Is the request affordable? Funding could be provided through other routes such as Access to Work if this is a barrier.
• Will the adjustment impact others?
• Does the adjustment fundamentally change the requirements of the role? In such instances, a conversation with the individual, manager and PPC representatives should be had to review suitability of the role.

If an adjustment cannot be implemented, it should be clearly discussed with the employee and there should be further exploration to identify alternative support measures. This should have the individual’s agreement and documented.

Implementing Adjustments

When implementing adjustments, wider discussion may be needed with support services in the University, such as Digital Technologies or Estates.

Managers should contact Digital Technologies initially if any of the requested adjustments involve any technology equipment or software (eg TextHelp Read and Write, Dragon software, Mouse/keyboard, iPad).  Digital Technologies may be able to provide equipment/software where this is readily available and supported by University systems. 

Confidentiality and Communication

As part of the adjustments, coworker support or awareness may be required to achieve what is being requested. Managers should respect the confidentiality of individuals’ circumstances, however may need to explain that an adjustment cannot be implemented without sharing some information more widely. The messaging of this should be openly discussed and agreed with employees.

Regular Reviews

Dependent on the disability, adjustments change over time and therefore it is good practice for managers and individuals to agree regular review periods to monitor and update these.

If you have any questions, or need specific advice relating to an individual’s circumstances, please contact your PPC Business Partner.