National Disability Strategy

[edit] Introduction

The National Disability Strategy was launched by the Government in July 2021. It sets out plans to upgrade accessibility in employment, housing and transport as well as tackling access to justice, culture and the arts.

It was prompted by the findings of the 2021 UK Disability Survey which showed that many disabled people felt held back in their everyday lives by:

• Poorly designed homes, transport infrastructure, public buildings and facilities.
• Lack of support at school and at work.
• Negative attitudes of others.

The National Disability Strategy is intended to address these issues, building on the 1995 Disability Discrimination Act (DDA - repealed on 1 October 2010 and replaced by the Equality Act 2010), which established protections for disabled people in relation to employment, transport, education and the provision of goods and services.

[edit] Employment measures

The strategy addresses inclusion in the workplace, tackling the disability employment gap through measures, including:

• Consulting on introducing workforce reporting (for businesses with more than 250 staff) on the number of disabled people.
• Introducing an online advice hub which provides information and advice on disability discrimination in the workplace, flexible working and rights and obligations around reasonable adjustments.
• Piloting an Access to Work Adjustments Passport to help smooth the transition into employment and support people changing jobs. The Adjustments Passport will capture the in-work support needs of the individual and provide them with information they need to have confident discussions about adjustments with employers. It will also set an expectation with the employer that specialist aids and appliances move when their employee progresses in work or moves post.
• Investing £300 million to improve existing provision in schools and make accessibility adaptations for children and young people with Special Educational Needs and Disabilities.

[edit] Home improvements

To Strategy plans to:

• Raise the accessibility requirements for new homes and adapt existing homes using the £573 million Disabled Facilities Grant to make changes like widening doors, installing ramps, fitting stair lifts or installing downstairs bathrooms.
• Mandate that 10% of homes built from 2021-26 under the Affordable Homes Programme will be designated as supported housing.

[edit] Transport initiatives

The strategy proposes technology to make rail journeys easier and more accessible including:

• Enabling disabled passengers to contact staff from their seat on the train, with DfT supporting additional innovative projects that will improve communication for disabled passengers and others with reduced mobility on rail services.

Ref https://www.gov.uk/government/news/new-national-disability-strategy-launches

[edit] Related articles on Designing Buildings Wiki

• Access and inclusion in the built environment: policy and guidance.
• Accessibility in the built environment.
• Designing for disability.
• Disability Discrimination Act DDA.
• Equality Act.
• People with disabilities definition.
• Planning transport for people with disabilities as the population ages.
• Protected characteristics.