The way ahead

Over the last two and a half years, we’ve worked with others to change attitudes and influence businesses and government. We’ve also given disabled people of all ages the tools, confidence and security they need to live independent lives.

But to achieve the everyday equality disabled people deserve, we still have more work to do.

Our plans

We will increase our work on employment, where there is enormous potential to drive down the disability employment gap over the next few years.

This means:

• continuing to deliver best-in-class employment support services nationwide, demonstrating the effectiveness of voluntary support
• growing the #WorkWithMe network together with Virgin Media and others, supporting committed businesses to become ever-more inclusive workplaces
• increasing our understanding of what enables more disabled people to stay in work for longer
• backing social entrepreneurs and working with funders to directly support disabled people into business
• campaigning for government to change the law to introduce a voluntary employment support system and fairer benefits tests
• getting companies to fully embrace disability and wellbeing reporting

We will work relentlessly to ensure disabled people can be more independent, with the tools to make change themselves.

This means:

• growing our information and support offer online and offline
• supporting more young disabled people to campaign on the issues that matter to them through our Scope for Change programme

We will also continue to influence government and industry, driving down extra costs and increasing accessibility and inclusion in consumer markets.

This means:

• campaigning for a fairer deal for disabled people using essential services, public transport and everyday technology
• working and partnering with utility companies, transport providers, digital businesses and market regulators to deliver more accessible and inclusive products and services to disabled consumers

We want to test and learn more about what works to improve outcomes for disabled children and young people so that all disabled people can experience everyday equality.

This means:

• undertaking new research on social mobility and social capital, helping us prioritise our work for young disabled people
• working with government, service providers and disabled people to identify improvements to the support available to families at the point of diagnosis
• continuing to test, monitor and improve our information, advice and support for families

Delivering social change together

Over the past 2 years, we’ve proven that our success relies on carefully selected partnerships designed to help grow our reach and impact.

Looking ahead, we will build on the success of our programmes with VirginMedia and UnLtd. We’ll also find partners who will work with us to grow existing programmes that make a difference – like the Big Hack, Scope for Change, and our information and advice service. And we’ll continue to bring disabled and non-disabled people together to create new ideas and test new ways to make change happen.

We’re going to build on the strong local presence provided by our 200 high street shops. This means nurturing the relationships we have with disabled people and organisations in communities. And forging new ones. We’re making everyday equality a local and national aspiration, becoming a trusted partner to networks of disabled people, employers, entrepreneurs and support organisations across the country.

Our research panel, storyteller networks and robust evidence and insight all put disabled people at the heart of everything we do. We’re continuing this work, ensuring everything we do is objectively measured and led by the insights of disabled people and disabled people’s organisations.

We welcome approaches from all those who share our goals for a better society – to work with us to deliver everyday equality and to tell us where we can do better.

We won’t always get everything right, but we will always be ambitious in our goals. And we won’t stop until we achieve a society where all disabled people enjoy equality in their everyday lives.