LTC Launches Guide To Building Neuroinclusive Workforces For Hospitality Businesses
Learning Disability Week (15 – 21 June) is a timely reminder that people experience the world, learning and work in different ways. To support more inclusive hospitality workplaces, LTC is launching the 2026 edition of its Neurodiversity Guide to help hospitality businesses build a neuroinclusive workforce, covering common forms of neurodivergence including dyslexia, dyscalculia, autism and ADHD.
Originally released in January 2025, the new version has been refreshed with the latest data and insights. With a stronger emphasis on leadership and senior level support, it is focused on creating cultures where neurodivergent people can thrive at every level of an organisation.
Free to access on the LTC website, the new ‘Building a Neuroinclusive Workforce’ guide has been shaped through close collaboration with industry leaders with lived experience. The guide contains practical advice for ensuring inclusivity, attracting, retaining, and nurturing neurodiverse talent, and resources to support teams at each stage of the employee journey.
Chris Welham, CEO at LTC, said: “Currently 58% of people working in licensed hospitality identify as neurodiverse. Hospitality is all about its people, and businesses that prioritise neuroinclusion often see more cohesive, resilient teams, with neurodiverse colleagues bringing fresh and innovative perspectives.
“At LTC, we value and celebrate these differences and want everyone to be able to pursue and maintain rewarding careers in hospitality. That’s why we’ve developed the second version of our Neurodiversity Guide as a practical up-to-date resource for hospitality managers, supervisors, and teams. It aims to build a shared understanding of how we can create truly neuroinclusive cultures where everyone is able to thrive.”
In compiling the guide, LTC worked with industry professionals leading the conversation on neuroinclusive workforces in hospitality. This group included Mike Phillips, Head of Talent Attraction at Nightcap*, who commented: “I am both dyslexic and autistic, and I genuinely believe I am in the position I am today because of, not despite, those traits. My ASD allows me to see patterns others miss, think systemically and focus intensely on solving complex problems. I’m comfortable operating in detail and strategy simultaneously, which is invaluable in a fast-moving hospitality environment.
“Hospitality suits me because it’s fast-paced, commercially driven and constantly evolving. Neurodivergence hasn’t held me back, it’s shaped how I think, how I lead and how I build high-performing teams. For me, it’s a competitive advantage.”
Mike’s experience reflects a wider shift across hospitality, with growing recognition of the value that autistic and other neurodivergent traits bring to the workplace. Autistic Pride Day and Learning Disability Week provides an important moment for the industry to celebrate this progress, helping to shift the narrative away from outdated perceptions of autism as a hindrance, and instead recognise it as a natural variation of human neurodiversity, with strengths that contribute to more resilient, innovative and high-performing teams.
The new guide is tailored to the unique requirements of licensed hospitality and includes step-by-step sections on:
• Recruitment – from simplifying job descriptions to offering accessible interviews and work trials
• Onboarding – clear communication, structured training and sensory-aware environments
• Retention – planning, focus, in-work support and managing change
• Team training – empathy, legal responsibilities and organisation-wide understanding
• Leadership and neurodiversity – covering strengths based leadership, senior level adjustments, and culture change
• Measuring progress – tracking recruitment outcomes, retention, adjustments and training impact
The new digital guide is available to access here. For employers interested in printed copies to share with colleagues, or to discuss the employer support that LTC can provide, please contact marketing@ltcharity.org.uk for further information.