Work experience

The Reasonable Adjustment Passport has been designed for you to capture what helps you to work best, feel included and get the support you need during your work experience placement at Runnymede Borough Council.

The aim of the passport is to have a record of the reasonable adjustments that have been agreed for the convenience of both the employee and the employer, which can stay with the passport holder if the placement is in more than one service area or the individual is requested to support team projects. It can move with them if after their placement if they decide this would be useful for future work placements with us or a new organisation. It should remove the need to have repeated disability assessments. This passport is individual to you and you are in full control of the information you wish to share. The passport will provide colleagues with greater flexibility and smooth transitions between projects and help build employer understanding of disability and adjustments.

It is designed as a 'talking tool' for colleagues to have positive and constructive conversations with their line managers about adjustments that they might need in the workplace. The passport is designed to ensure continuity of adjustments. If you decide to use this passport at future placements, the passport should be reviewed at agreed intervals and as and when necessary to ensure that the adaptations remain appropriate.

The language in this template is based on the Social Model of Disability that people are disabled by barriers that exist in the environment or policies in place. This means reasonable adjustments are not required due to a person’s condition or impairment, reasonable adjustments are required due to the impact of interactions between a person’s condition or impairment and barriers in the environment or policies in place.

What is the purpose of a Reasonable Adjustment Passport?

To ensure that you feel valued, included and supported to reach your highest potential, irrespective of any health conditions and personal circumstances you may be experiencing. The Council want to recognise you as a whole individual at work and to do that, we want to facilitate positive reasonable adjustments in your working day, work environment or ways of working.

Why should I complete a Reasonable Adjustment Passport?

There are several benefits to completing a passport, for both you and your line manager. These include

• Facilitating open, honest, practical, positive and productive conversations between you and your line manager about your additional needs and the reasonable adjustments which can be made to your working environment, work style and/or hours of work.
• To support you in discussing your needs/circumstances in your own words and with the assistance of your own knowledge, understanding and experience.
• Supporting managers and employees in the assessment and making of reasonable adjustments.
• To act as a record of workplace support agreed and ensure continuity of any support in temporary or changing circumstances for you and/or wider team wherever possible.

Ownership and disclosure of information

Ownership of the passport remains with the individual, but the manager and HR should retain a copy for information. The passport should not be shared with others unless the individual has agreed that it should be shared. Any sharing of the passport should be done on the basis of confidentiality.

You may wish to disclose your condition verbally but not in writing or simply disclose how your condition affects you, but not disclose the specific condition or impairment.

These referrals are facilitated through HR either at the start of your placement and your school/college will be notified of the adjustments that have been agreed for the duration of your work experience placement.

Review timetable and agreement

The passport and agreed reasonable adjustments should be reviewed regularly or at least on an annual basis.

Further reviews should be done at the employee’s request or if there are changes to the employee’s role to ensure the adjustments are still appropriate and effective in eliminating workplace barriers.