Talking about disability and disabled people

The language we use has an enormous impact on the way in which disabled people are perceived.

The social model of disability says that is not the disabled person that needs to be changed – it is society. It is society’s physical and social barriers that disable, not a person’s impairment. The social model of disability is preferred by most disabled people and by Scope.

Disability is the loss or limitation of opportunities to participate in society on an equal level with others, due to society’s physical and social barriers.

Impairment is the loss or limitation of a physical, mental or sensory function within an individual, on a long-term or permanent basis.

If in doubt what to say, please ask. If you respect disabled people as individuals (not a collection of medical labels) and treat them like everyone else, you won't go far wrong.