countries - United Kingdom

The information contained on this page was compiled in April 2009 by our country team.

Contact:
Simon Prideaux and Colin Barnes
Centre for Disability Studies
University of Leeds
LS2 9JT 

Email: s.prideaux@leeds.ac.uk
Web: www.leeds.ac.uk/disability-studies

The full text can be downloaded here.

The key national bodies with responsibility for disability law and policy implementation include:

The Office for Disability Issues (ODI) is the government agency that works across all departments to help deliver a national strategy for disabled people's equality.

The UK has ratified the United Nations Convention and the Optional Protocol.

Important national laws, policies and strategies concerning disabled people include:

Key features of the national system include (including adapted items from the MISSOC database December 2008):

Disability benefits

The number of working-age people in the UK receiving ‘out of work' benefits fell from around 6 million in 1997 to less than 5 million in 2007, although the number receiving sickness or disability related benefits within this group remained constant at around 2.7 million (the number receiving such benefits for more than two years increased from 1.9 million to around 2.2 million in the same period) (Department of Work and Pensions)

Data on population indicate that:

17.6% of the general population have a ‘limiting long-term illness or disability' (9 million people in England Wales), of which 46.7% male and 53.2% female. Of these, 5.6%% were aged under 18; 50.7% aged 18-64; 43.6% aged over 65. New disability questions are planned for the 2011 Census (2001 National Census).

The UK Disability Studies Association (DSA) provides opportunities for networking amongst disability researchers and holds an international academic conference every two years.

There are several relevant academic research journals. The main title based in the UK is Disability & Society

The national organisation representing disabled people at the European level (European Disability Forum) is:

The United Kingdom's Disabled People's Council (UKDPC), which represents more than 80 full member organisations. These organisations must have at least 51% of their voting membership and at least 75% of their executive body made up of disabled people.

Useful sources of more detailed information about the situation of disabled people, and the policies and support available, include:

Official guide to all of the support and benefits available to disabled people (DirectGov)