Everybody benefits when we work from the social model of disability, says Nigel Sedman, Executive Director of Homes at ForHousing.
“When we design for disability first, you often stumble upon solutions that are better than those when we design for the norm.” This quote from deaf human-centered designer, Elise roy, sums up a journey we are on at Forhousing.
In recent years we have shifted our culture, so we make decisions through the lens of the social model of disability. But what is this? And why is it so important?
What comes to mind when you see the word ‘disability’? There is a good chance it might mean something very personal to you, because one in five working-age adults (21%) are disabled (Scope).
When a similar question came up during a work discussion about improving accessibility, I will be honest with you — my initial thinking did not take into account the diversity and breadth of experiences and barriers disabled people face.
According to Disability Rights UK, there is no single definition of disability in use in the UK. When it comes to living independently, disability is a “physical or mental impairment that has a substantial and long-term adverse effect on your ability to carry out normal day-to-day activities.”
This conversation with colleagues opened my mind and educated me on the social model of disability.
Writer and disability activist Sinead Burke pretty much sums it up; “I often forget that I’m a little person. It’s the physical environment and society that remind me.”
In essence, the social model of disability does not focus on an individual’s disability but on the barriers in society that disable them.
Unfortunately, disability is very often presented through the ‘medical model’ in that an individual has a health issue that needs to be treated or fixed. “The medical model looks at what is ‘wrong’ with the person and not what the person needs. It creates low expectations and leads to
people losing independence, choice and control in their own lives,” explains disability equality charity Scope.
Implementing the social model
So how exactly have we been moving towards the social model at ForHousing? We first spent some time identifying places that would really benefit from design improvements to make them more inclusive.
Let’s take Harriet Street’s sheltered accommodation in Walkden as an example. Sean, who works in our adaptations team, brought a problem
area to a discussion forum following lots of feedback from tenants and staff that the walkway was too narrow and steep. The walkway to Harriet Street sheltered accommodation was causing people issues. Some were even reluctant to leave their homes due to fear of falling.
The proposed solution? “We need to speak to people first and understand what the challenges are before we do any work,” said Sean from the adaptations team.
We created surveys and spent time chatting with tenants at coffee mornings. From here, we could make some informed decisions about the changes and kept tenants updated every step of the way.
The path was widened, and the uneven surface was levelled out and resurfaced to ensure it was suitable for wheelchair users and a handrail was installed. In just eight weeks, the area was transformed. Not only does it look more welcoming, but the relatively small changes have had a huge
impact on people and their wellbeing.
People have commented: “I’m really happy because I feel safe now.”
Instead of putting the onus on people to adapt how they live, we have adapted the environment. This has also influenced the launch of our ‘Social Model of Disability Budget’. ForHousing colleagues can now nominate areas that could be improved for everybody.
Equity, diversity and inclusion is something we are really passionate about at ForHousing. As part of this, we are now committed to framing everything through the social model of disability, to improve lives and make more things possible for more people. Whilst we won’t achieve
perfection, we are confident that designing and making decisions with this approach in mind, will benefit disabled people and the whole community — just as it has done in Harriet Street.
