Putting People at the Heart of Recruitment

At Autism Plus, we believe the people we support should have a real say in who works with them, and we make that part of everyday practice across our services.

Recently, one individual supported in one of our services took part in interviewing candidates for a new support worker role. With some preparation and support from the team, they helped shape the questions, met the applicants and shared their thoughts afterwards. Their feedback played an important part in the final decision.

As part of this, we’ve also worked alongside people we support to develop an interview booklet. This includes simple questions to help get to know candidates, as well as a short quiz to make the process more engaging and accessible. It’s a great example of co-production in action, designed with the people who use our services, not just for them.

This is something we are building into recruitment across our services. It gives people more choice and control, while also helping to build confidence and communication skills.

Most importantly, it reinforces a simple message: your views matter, and you should be involved in decisions about your life. By keeping people at the centre of what we do, we can make sure our services feel more personal, respectful and empowering.