As applications open for the government’s £60m Pathways to Work (PtW) Innovation Fund, disabled people say major barriers to finding and staying in work remain.
The fund aims to reduce the disability employment gap by supporting new approaches to employment support.
But disabled people in Hull say funding alone will not remove the obstacles many still face when trying to find and stay in work.
Mark Baggley, a disability rights campaigner, said: “We need to get more employers to accept disabled people, either through apprenticeships or other job related schemes, to get them on that work ladder.”
Baggley, 66, said he was told by a disability living allowance assessor that he would never work.
“I thought no way, I don’t agree with you. And I’ve worked full-time for 40 years now.”
He said one of the biggest challenges disabled people face is getting the support and workplace adjustments they need to do their jobs.
Under the Equality Act 2010, UK employers have a legal duty to make reasonable adjustments to remove or reduce disadvantages faced by disabled workers and job applicants.
Baggley said some people may have to cover costs themselves before reclaiming support through the Access to Work scheme.
“If you apply for Access to Work, there’s still a big delay with that. It can take several weeks to receive that funding.”
Baggley, who uses taxis to commute, added: “For example, my taxi bill is roughly £1000 per month. I have to pay that out and then claim it back. Luckily, because I’ve been working a long time, I’ve been able to do that. But if I was starting work tomorrow, I wouldn’t have a spare £1000.”