Leonard Cheshire

Who we are

Leading the way in enriching the lives of disabled people

We are the leader in enriching the lives of disabled people. Our founder, Leonard Cheshire, laid the foundations of our work today in May 1948, when he took a dying man into his home and nursed him by himself. From these roots, we have led the way in establishing effective ways of supporting disabled people, currently reaching over 20,000 disabled people over our global operations.

Largest disability non-profit organisation in the UK

We have built our local operations into the largest disability non-profit organisation in the UK, with around 7,000 employees. Our care structure in the UK includes providing care in:

• people’s own homes
• supported living accommodation
• residential homes
• day centres
• respite centres

Making a difference

We offer employees the opportunity to make a difference to society and to do meaningful work on a daily basis. We believe disabled people should have the freedom to live their lives the way they choose and every day we support this to happen. This is why we work at Leonard Cheshire and we are proud of the difference we make

Our culture and values

Positive - warm and empathetic - we always look to progress and improve.

Proud - strong-willed and spirited - we are firm in our beliefs.

Pioneering - confident and imaginative - we are creative change makers.

Building a more equitable society

We are committed to building a more equitable society through raising awareness on disability, campaigning on policy, and through our programmes, which include:

• training and employment programmes – which help people to learn new skills, grow in confidence and find fulfilling work;
• disability training for employers – which help them support disabled people and make the most of every individual’s skills.

Equality, diversity and inclusion policy

We are committed to building a diverse and inclusive workplace for our employees. Our diversity initiatives and strategies are designed to attract, develop and advance employees regardless of their race, sexual orientation, religion, age, gender, disability status or any other dimension of diversity.

Our distinctive approach to diversity is based on a belief that we each have a personal accountability for success in this area. We provide our people with training and tools to help increase their awareness and understanding of differences and why they matter, so their actions can contribute to our inclusive workplace culture.

Disability confident leader

We are an accredited Level 3 Disability Confident Leader. Disability Confident is a government campaign that works with employers to remove barriers, increase understanding and ensure that disabled people have the opportunities to fulfil their potential and realise their aspirations.