Belonging Isn’t a Buzzword, It’s a Power Shift

What starts as a conversation about birthdays, Robbie Williams, and rescue dogs quickly becomes something much deeper.

In this episode, Max Horton, Global Head of Inclusion and Belonging at Smith & Nephew, joins the podcast to talk openly about how lived experience shapes leadership, culture, and the way organisations choose to show up for their people.

Max shares his journey of living with Crohn’s disease, the moments that shaped his understanding of belonging, and the experiences that made it clear when a workplace wasn’t built with everyone in mind. From being challenged on what he wore after surgery, to recognising how deeply those moments affect confidence, performance, and identity, the conversation stays grounded in what inclusion actually feels like day to day.

Alongside the personal stories, the episode gently unpacks why these experiences matter at scale. With around one in five working age adults identifying as disabled, inclusion is not a marginal issue. When people feel they belong, performance improves, engagement increases, and teams make better decisions. These aren’t abstract ideas, they are realities that show up in how people work, stay, and contribute.

The conversation also explores how Max went on to found and grow a global disability employee network, why listening comes before fixing, and why belonging is not created through policy alone but through trust, relationships, and everyday behaviours.

Thoughtful, honest, and at times light hearted, this episode is as much about people as it is about practice. It is for anyone interested in building cultures where people do not have to shrink themselves to succeed.

SIGNPOSTING AND RESOURCES

Max Horton: https://www.linkedin.com/in/max-horton-480933113/

Crohn’s & Colitis UK Support, guidance, and peer networks for people living with Crohn’s disease and colitis. Link: https://www.crohnsandcolitis.org.uk

McKinsey & Company – Diversity and Inclusion Research Evidence based research linking inclusion and belonging to performance, innovation, and business outcomes, including the Diversity Wins series. Link: https://www.mckinsey.com/featured-insights/diversity-and-inclusion

Employee Inclusion Networks (EINs / ERGs) Workplace networks that create community, support, and collective voice for disabled and chronically ill employees.

Self ID Campaigns Ethical and transparent approaches to inviting employees to disclose demographic information, including disability.

Listening Sessions and Employee Voice Structured ways for organisations to hear directly from employees before designing solutions or interventions.

Mindfulness and Mental Health Practices Approaches such as meditation, breathing exercises, or yoga to support mental wellbeing alongside disability or chronic illness.

Peer and Community Support Condition specific groups, online communities, and informal networks that reduce isolation and build connection.

In this episode of The Equality Edit, Esi Hardy is joined by EDI specialist, confidence coach and fellow podcast host Katie Allen to unpack why conversations about equality can feel so risky and what leaders can do to make them feel safer, clearer and more human.

Together, they explore the fear of “saying the wrong thing”, why language keeps evolving, and how psychological safety is built through consistent actions (not a nice speech in a meeting). They also discuss lived experience, identity, and what it looks like to handle topics like access requirements, race, LGBTQIA+ inclusion and power dynamics with care and consent.

We cover:

· Why people feel unsafe speaking up (and why that fear is real, not silly).

· Psychological safety: what it is, why it’s contextual, and how leaders role model it.

· Why access requirements are part of feeling valued (physical comfort affects confidence).

· How to have “first time” conversations: setting intention, naming discomfort, asking consent.

· Why feedback without action damages trust and how to avoid cherry-picking what you hear.

Links mentioned in the episode:

· Katie Allen Consulting (website): www.katieallenconsulting.com

· Katie’s podcast: Speaking Of Inclusion (Spotify, Apple Podcasts, and YouTube)

· The Guilty Feminist podcast (Deborah Frances-White)

· ParaPride (London-based LGBTQ+ disabled people’s charity) : www.parapride.org

· TV references: Heartstopper and Sex Education (as examples of growing ace visibility)

Don’t miss future conversations subscribe to The Equality Edit on YouTube, Spotify, or your favourite podcast app. You can also connect with Esi and Celebrating Disability on LinkedIn.

In this episode of The Equality Edit, Esi Hardy is joined by content creator, advocate and MBE Isaac Harvey to explore what disability advocacy and leadership really look like behind the scenes beyond the polished social posts and inspirational headlines.

Together, they trace Isaac’s journey from adventurous vlogger to recognised disability advocate and community leader, and the internal battles that came with that shift from comparison and burnout to redefining success on his own terms. Isaac shares candidly how external “success markers” (views, awards, relationships) didn’t fix how he felt inside, and how learning about wellbeing and mental health changed the way he shows up online and offline.

This conversation also digs into the extra emotional, physical and administrative labour that comes with being a disabled person in an inaccessible world especially when you’re also using your lived experience to create content, speak, and advocate for change.

Links mentioned in the episode:

• Connect with Isaac on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/isaacharvey-videoeditor/
• Contact Isaac by email: info@isaacharvey.co.uk
• Celebrating Disability: https://www.celebratingdisability.co.uk
• Kat Paylor-Bent & Seated Sewing https://seatedsewing.co.uk/ https://uk.linkedin.com/in/kat-paylor-bent-98631397
• Nick Wilson, Disabled Adventurer https://www.disabledadventurer.com/ https://www.linkedin.com/in/disabledadventurer/
• Michael Grimmett and Jack Tompkins, Fighters Documentary https://www.fightersdocumentary.com/ https://www.linkedin.com/in/michaelgrimmett-disabilityinclusionspeaker/ https://www.linkedin.com/in/jack-tompkins-53a61640/
• Wheels and Wheelchairs https://www.wheelsandwheelchairs.co.uk/ https://www.lnwh.nhs.uk/news/muhayman-skates-his-way-to-an-mbe-9435/
• Scott Whitney, All 4 Inclusion https://www.linkedin.com/in/scottjwhitney/ https://www.all4inclusion.org/

Don’t miss future conversations subscribe to The Equality Edit on YouTube, Spotify or your favourite podcast app. You can also connect with Esi and Celebrating Disability on LinkedIn to keep unpacking equality in your workplace.

FOLLOW US

LinkedIn - https://www.linkedin.com/in/esihardy/
Newsletter - https://2dykvk.share-eu1.hsforms.com/2-mRmxbD6QkKL0_px3pDo4A
Celebrating Disability website - https://celebratingdisability.co.uk

Equality in the workplace blog

#CelebratingDisability #LeaderInterviews #TheEqualityEdit #InclusionInTheWorkplace