SEEPH 2026: our best activity ideas to raise disability awareness at work

Every November, the Semaine Européenne pour l'Emploi des Personnes Handicapées (SEEPH) is France's national awareness week on disability in the workplace. In 2026, it runs from November 16 to 22, marking its 30th edition. If you are looking for activities, workshops, or awareness actions to organize during that week, this article brings together the formats that genuinely work in a company setting, from personal testimonies to an inclusive escape room, including a ready-to-run collective challenge.

SEEPH 2026 at a glance: dates, theme and origin

SEEPH is France's national awareness week on disability employment. It is an annual event held every November to raise awareness of disability in the workplace. In 2026, it takes place from November 16 to 22, for its 30th edition.

The official 2026 theme is "Demystify, simplify, support. Employment for everyone". The week is co-organized by the LADAPT association, Agefiph and FIPHFP. It also includes DuoDay, a national job-shadowing day, set this year for Thursday, November 19 (source: Agefiph).

SEEPH has existed since 1997, created by LADAPT under the name SEPH. It has taken on a European dimension over the years, and since 2015 has been held under the High Patronage of the European Parliament.

Why this week should not stay a one-off communication gesture

SEEPH's goals can be summed up in a few words: raising awareness among teams, informing on existing support schemes, connecting companies with jobseekers, and challenging the stereotypes that still weigh on disability at work.

That last point is worth dwelling on, because it changes how you should design an activity. 80% of disability situations are invisible, and 85% of them appear over the course of a lifetime, not at birth (source: Agefiph). In other words, disability in your company almost never looks like what people picture by default. That is exactly the angle chosen this year by H-GAMES, the solidarity challenge run by United Heroes and the Fédération Française Handisport: "disability beyond appearances." A good awareness activity does not stop at a symbolic gesture, it helps teams see what is not visible.

8 concrete activity ideas for SEEPH 2026

These formats combine well with each other. Some take half a day and a bit of internal organizing, others rely on a ready-to-run programme.

1. Bring in a speaker with lived experience of disability

Inviting someone to speak about their journey remains one of the most memorable activities for a team. Figures such as Philippe Croizon (an amputee swimmer), Marie-Amélie Le Fur (a Paralympic athlete), Axelle Lemaire (visually impaired, a former French Secretary of State), Inès de la Fressange (a model advocating on the topic) or Jérôme Adam (a blind entrepreneur) are all used to this format in a corporate setting. A webinar with a Paralympic athlete also works very well remotely, across a multi-site organization.

2. Run a simulation exercise to build empathy

Nothing replaces direct experience for making sense of the 80% invisible disability figure mentioned above. A few formats that work well in a corporate setting: a wheelchair course, a blindfolded meal, trying prosthetics, an introduction to sign language, a course with a white cane, a braille learning session, a cognitive-impairment simulation, or a creative workshop adapted to different disabilities.

3. Join a ready-to-run challenge: H-GAMES 2026

If you want an action that is ready to go rather than built from scratch, H-GAMES is designed for that. The 6th edition runs from November 9 to 29, 2026: one warm-up week (November 9-15), followed by two weeks of competition starting November 16, which covers the whole of SEEPH 2026 and extends one week beyond it. The app opens on November 2.

The full programme includes a before-and-after diagnostic, in-app awareness content (quizzes, articles, testimonials), the connected challenge itself, a physical Olympiad in Paris, and a closing ceremony. A webinar is scheduled for Thursday, November 19 at 11:30am with Christophe Carayon, Technical Director of the Fédération Française Handisport, the event's official partner federation, with more than 60 years of action. That date falls right in the middle of SEEPH 2026, the same day as the national DuoDay, which is not a scheduling coincidence.

The 2026 closing event will be held on December 3 at the Prisme de Bobigny, from 3pm to 6pm, with 150 people expected at workshops covering blind football, wheelchair basketball, wheelchair rugby and goalball. To give a sense of scale: the 2025 edition brought together 23 companies and 150 Olympiad participants at INSEP, raising 56,750 euros. Since H-GAMES began, more than 401,750 euros have been raised and over 170 companies have taken part. Donations are 60% tax-deductible under French rules, and several prizes recognize participating companies: overall ranking, rankings by company size, engagement award, societal impact award, audience favorite, outreach and legacy.

Find the full programme on the H-GAMES page.

4. Launch an idea contest driven by the teams themselves

Making teams the actors of SEEPH rather than spectators changes the dynamic. The Observatoire de l'Engagement en Entreprise (a United Heroes and OpinionWay study of over 5,000 employees) shows that employees involved in CSR actions are more engaged than average. An internal idea contest, with a vote and implementation of the winning proposals, turns the week into a collective project rather than a top-down event.

5. Set up an inclusive mentoring programme

A peer mentoring programme, open to people with disabilities or other non-traditional career paths, can start during SEEPH and continue year-round. Several associations already run this type of programme: Article 1, Mozaïk RH, NQT (Nos Quartiers ont des Talents), Eloquentia, Télémaque, Force Femmes.

6. Train managers on disability

Unconscious bias around disability is best addressed through training, with specialized organizations: IMS-Entreprendre pour la Cité, Mozaïk RH, AFMD (the French association of diversity managers), the Institut du Capitalisme Responsable, or VIA-ID (Mobivia group). According to the Observatoire de l'Engagement en Entreprise, 74% of active French employees expect action on working conditions, and 47% expect initiatives on equal opportunities. Training managers remains one of the most durable levers, well beyond the single awareness week.

7. Build an interactive awareness quiz

A short format, easy to roll out company-wide, including across multiple sites. Structure it around a few themes: types of disability, the legal framework, accessibility, myths versus reality, good communication practices. Tools like Kahoot!, Slido, Mentimeter or a simple Google Form are enough. End with an open discussion, that is often where the real questions come out.

8. Take part in an inclusive escape room

Several French escape rooms are specifically designed to raise awareness of disability and exclusion, such as "Le Labyrinthe de l'Exclusion" run by the L'Hippocampe association, or formats offered by Mission Handicap. The playful format helps land messages that a classic presentation does not always get across.

What these actions produce, beyond the week itself

A successful awareness week is not judged on attendance alone. According to United Heroes' 2025 SROI report, companies that run regular collective actions see a stronger sense of belonging among 66% of the employees involved, and a positive effect on mental health for 74% of them. These are effects that build over time, not in a single week, but SEEPH is often the moment the action gets started.

On internal communication, the most effective approach is to tell the story while it is happening, not only after the fact: a short message each day of the week, relayed by managers, and a numbers-based wrap-up once the event ends (number of participants, amount raised, team feedback). That wrap-up is what makes people want to run it again next year, and what justifies the budget with leadership.

To go further on the topic, two related resources: our article on myths and realities of disability at work, and our guide to acting on diversity and inclusion at work.