September 14, 2026 - 189 views
Businesses across North Wales are being urged to rethink how they recruit and recognise the skills of neurodivergent people.
The message will come from Dr Faye Favill, Special Educational Needs Coordinator at St David's College in Llandudno, when she addresses business leaders in Wrexham next month.
Dr Favill, who has spent 15 years working at St David's College, believes traditional recruitment methods can overlook people whose strengths do not necessarily show up through conventional academic qualifications.
She will tell a meeting of Wrexham Business Professionals that people with conditions including dyslexia and ADHD can bring valuable skills to the workplace, including creativity, problem-solving, attention to detail, pattern recognition and lateral thinking.
She says employers should focus more closely on the skills actually required for a particular role, rather than relying too heavily on qualifications as an indicator of ability.
At St David's College, Dr Favill leads a team of 18 teachers specialising in education for students with dyslexia, ADHD and other conditions associated with neurodiversity.
The school uses smaller classes, additional support and a range of teaching approaches designed to play to students' strengths. Its specialist team also delivers around 400 one-to-one lessons each week.
Dr Favill says the experience demonstrates what can happen when teaching and support are adapted to individual needs.
She believes the same principle can be applied in the workplace, with employers providing appropriate support while allowing people to use their particular strengths.
She also sees technology and artificial intelligence as potentially valuable tools for neurodivergent workers, helping with tasks they may find more difficult and allowing them to concentrate on areas where they are strongest.
Dr Favill will point to organisations such as GCHQ as examples of employers placing importance on problem-solving and analytical abilities alongside traditional measures of academic achievement.
She is calling on North Wales employers to consider what skills they actually need from potential employees and then look for those abilities when recruiting.
The issue is particularly relevant as businesses across the region face ongoing challenges in attracting and retaining skilled workers.
Wrexham Business Professionals committee member Ian Edwards says neurodiversity should be viewed as an opportunity rather than simply a challenge for employers.
Fellow committee member Louise Harper says businesses need to be more open-minded about how they identify talent and create working environments where neurodivergent employees can thrive.
Dr Favill will be joined at the event by Hawarden entrepreneur Steph Hind, co-founder of health and wellbeing company Heka Happy, who has dyslexia.
They will be speaking at the Wrexham Business Professionals breakfast meeting at Hotel Wrexham on Holt Road on Thursday, October 1.
The event is being held under the theme 'Powering Regional Prosperity: Powering North Wales with the Neurodiversity Advantage'.
The meeting begins at 8.30am. Places can be booked by emailing wbp@allingtonhughes.co.uk.
