Disability awareness
What is a disability?
Definition of disability under the Equality Act 2010 states anyone with..
‘a physical or mental impairment that has a ‘substantial’ and ‘long-term’ negative effect on your ability to do normal daily activities’
..has rights not to experience discrimination, harassment or victimisation.
‘Substantial’ means more than minor or trivial.
‘Long-term’ means it has lasted or is likely to last more than 12 months. Terminal conditions are automatically covered, as are many fluctuating conditions, where symptoms may vary but are likely to recur.
All of the following could lead to an impairment and ultimately a disability:
| Condition | Description |
|---|---|
| Sensory Impairments | Such as Sight or hearing impairment |
| Impairments with fluctuating or recurring effects | Such as Rheumatoid Arthritis, Myalgic Encephalitis (ME), Chronic Fatigue Syndrome (CFS), Fibromyalgia, Depression and Epilepsy. |
| Progressive conditions | Motor neurone disease, Muscular Dystrophy and forms of Dementia |
| Auto-immune conditions | Such as Systemic Lupus Erythematosis (SLE) |
| Organ Specific conditions | Including respiratory conditions such as Asthma and cardiovascular diseases, including Thrombosis, Stroke and Heart Disease |
| Developmental | Such as Autistic Spectrum Disorders (ASD), Dyslexia and Dyspraxia. |
| Learning Disabilities | Including Down’s Syndrome, Global Development delay and Cerebral Palsy. |
| Mental health conditions | With symptoms such as Anxiety, Low mood, Panic attacks, Phobias and Unshared Perceptions and Post Traumatic Stress Disorder. |
| Mental Illnesses | Such as Depression or Schizophrenia. |
| Conditions produced by injury | Including Brain Damage, Loss of limb, Spinal Damage and Disfigurement. |
There are nearly 67 million people in the UK.
The Government estimates that almost 14 million people in the UK have an impairment, that’s about 1 in 5 people.
There are around 1.2 million wheelchair users in the UK according to NHS England.
40% of persons over 50 and 70% of persons over 70 experience significant hearing loss.
NHS figures show 10 million people living with arthritis in the UK.
2 million people live with sight loss of these around 360,000 are registered as blind or partially sighted.
7.4 million people live with heart or circulatory diseases, long term effects can include problems with memory, fatigue and dizziness.
1.5 million people have autism spectrum conditions.
700,000 people have learning disabilities.
850,000 suffer with dementia.
Most recent figures show 1 in 3 people state they have suffered from a mental health issue in the past week.
It is important to remember that most disabilities are hidden and not immediately apparent or visible. You will not be able to see all disabilities.