Cindy Weber and Jo Wood created the Partners Fund to help academic and professional services staff facing disability or long-term health barriers stay in work, by providing them with urgent and scaled-up assistance. As former Sussex University staff who faced workplace disability barriers, we recognise how these barriers undermine the healthy working conditions of all staff - staff like us and our colleagues who too often were called upon to pick up our workloads. The Partners Fund aims to promote the healthy working conditions of all staff.

The fund is guided by the social model of disability support, which recognises that staff facing disability or long-term health challenges have the same potential for excellence as non-disabled staff. The fund aims to scale up statutory medical support to a level of excellent support by providing 'best-fit' assistance rather than 'just-fit' assistance to meet staff needs.

We make a substantial annual donation to the fund, but even this is inadequate to meet staff needs. Our aim with this drive is to expand the depth and reach of Partners Fund support to Sussex University staff, which presently is limited to staff in the International Relations Department.

Unique Features of the Partners Fund:

- Disability-led origin and implementation

- Staff Focused, including academic and professional services staff

- Anti-abilist, anti-disablist, and anti-stigma

- Scales up statutory medical support to a level of excellent support to enable staff to thrive in work

Testimonials:

‘The Partner’s Fund has made it possible for me to undertake travel for work without risk of injury and pain due to a hereditary connective tissue disorder. As a single parent, I can’t afford to upgrade train tickets or pay for extra rest nights in hotels beyond my research budget, so this extra support has been life-changing in the difference it has made to my ability to stay in work and undertake the necessary travel.’

- Lara, Sussex Lecturer