Wealth manager St James’s Place (SJP) has launched a recruitment drive to help those with disabilities train as financial advisers.

The drive aims to bring 10 trainees on board during the first nine months of 2023.

The SJP Academy has partnered with Kaleidoscope Group which supports people with disabilities into business and employment.

SJP will work with Kaleidoscope to make the recruitment process for the SJP Academy more accessible to people with disabilities.

The drive will include accessibility assessments for would-be recruits, disability awareness training within SJP and improving website accessibility.

Andy Payne, head of the SJP Academy, said: “A key goal of our SJP Financial Adviser Academy is to be an ‘Academy for All’, and our new partnership with Kaleidoscope offers a fantastic opportunity to people who, in the past, have been both disadvantaged and faced challenges in joining the advice profession.  We are committed to providing a welcoming home for talented advisers, regardless of their background or circumstance, and whatever restrictions or challenges they may face.

“With the Academy no longer limited by geographical location, and now enabling our new advisers to shape their own way of learning, we have created a far more accessible and inclusive environment for recruits.  And this ultimately will lead to better outcomes for our clients.

“The diversification of the advice profession not only widens opportunities for advisers, but it provides broad representation for the communities we serve and live in, and a more accurate reflection of our 21st Century society, at a time when providing high quality advice is more important than ever.”

According to Kaleidoscope, there are over 14.6m people in the UK living with some form of disability with over 8m in employment.