MORE than half the small firms which employ disabled people say it costs their business nothing because they have adopted a flexible approach to work.

That's according to a new report by the Disability Rights Commission (DRC).

They say that 51 per cent of small firms, and nearly two-thirds of larger enterprises, find that disabled employees can be easily accommodated by adopting "family friendly" policies.

These include flexible working hours and patterns or by allowing reasonable time off to attend hospital or clinic appointments. And the cost impact on business is negligible.

Since setting up a year ago, the DRC has taken around 60,000 calls from disabled people, businesses and service providers, taken 41 legal cases and given detailed legal advice and help to more than 2,000 disabled people.