Scotland’s journey towards disability inclusion in education has already been long, determined, and hard-fought. Our legislative framework is strong: disabled pupils and disabled teachers now have legal protections that would once have been unimaginable.

Yet the lived reality for disabled educators and learners shows that rights on paper are not enough. The promise of inclusion still leans too heavily on goodwill, overstretched resources, and exhausted workers.

The long history of activism and reforms for disability rights laid the foundation for the welfare state. Disability benefits, or social security, didn’t exist as we know them now until the 20th century. The creation of the welfare state in 1948 suddenly meant that disabled adults were less dependent on charity and family members, though children and non-working adults (for example housewives), were not fully included until later reforms.

The Disability Discrimination Act (1995) was the first law to protect disabled people of all ages from discrimination, whether in education, employment, access to services, etc. This brought rights for disabled people into line with protections against racial discrimination and gender discrimination, both of which had been law since the 1970s.

The current legal protections for disabled people were solidified by the Equality Act (2010), UK-wide legislation that protects against discrimination and places a duty on employers to implement reasonable adjustments that remove barriers to disabled people’s equal participation. Employers must consider reasonable adjustments to ensure disabled staff can undertake their role without disadvantage. These may include flexible working, assistive technology, phased returns, adjusted duties or workspace adaptations.

An educational establishment that values its staff doesn’t wait for them to fall apart, but asks, listens, adapts, and respects confidentiality.

The Disability Living Allowance (1992) was replaced by the Personal Independence Payment (PIP) in 2013, in an attempt by the Conservative Government of the time, to reduce the welfare bill by 20%. Scotland now has the Adult Disability Payment (ADP) in place of the PIP, which is still used in England and Wales. This is a lifeline for many disabled children, young people, and adults, who, on average, face costs in excess of £1000 per month more than those without a disability.

The welfare system is an essential tool to remedy the inequality affecting disabled people. Austerity gravely and disproportionately affects disabled families, posting a significant threat to their opportunities. Currently, 1 in 4 children in Scotland lives in poverty, and more than half of them are in families where someone is disabled. When authorities fail to fund support properly, disabled people pay the price — and so do their families, and the people who work tirelessly to support them.

From Policy to practice

Legislation has moved us forward — but disabled people continue to face threats and barriers that laws alone cannot remove.

To fully ensure disabled colleagues are included and that work is fair for everyone, a culture shift is required. An educational establishment that values its staff doesn’t wait for them to fall apart, but asks, listens, adapts, and respects confidentiality.

It doesn’t assume what someone needs based on what works for another colleague or pupil with the same condition. It creates an environment where disability isn’t hidden in fear of stigma, and where colleagues feel able to say, “This isn’t working for me — can we talk about adjustments?”

Workers and employers are often unaware what support exists. Adult Disability Payment, Access to Work, and guidance from the union can make a real difference — but only if people know how to access these sources. The EIS Disabled Members’ Network (which also includes neurodivergent members, among others) provides a safe, understanding space to share experiences and shape policy. That collective voice matters.

The threat of the Far-Right

In recent years, there has been a troubling rise in far-right rhetoric, blaming minority groups for austerity. We’ve all seen it in the news and on social media: “too much” money is being given to immigrants, to LGBT+ groups, to disabled people. Capitalism has resulted in less resources for the masses and more for the ultra-wealthy, but the masses are being told to glorify the rich while the most marginalised are blamed.

Communities that once fought side-by-side for equality are facing a resurgence of rhetoric that seeks to divide us, with minoritised and marginalised groups being scapegoated for austerity, falsely portrayed as a “burden” while they themselves are bearing the brunt of the impact of the crisis.

The far-right has a long history of targeting disabled people, whether it’s been segregation from wider society, advocating for and carrying out forced medical interventions, or, more recently, claiming that disabled workers should be paid less than non-disabled people for doing the same job.

We are living through a time when inequality is widening, when disabled children are more likely to grow up in poverty, and when disabled adults are more likely to be excluded from employment and community life. We cannot ignore the political context: austerity, scapegoating and regressive narratives harm our pupils, our colleagues, and our communities.

Standing together

Disabled people have fought for decades for the rights we now hold — often in the face of hostility, mockery or indifference. Those rights must never be taken for granted in the road ahead.

The EIS as a union champions equality, worker rights and inclusive education, committed to the principle that disabled teachers deserve to equally thrive in their profession. Equality reps and networks empower members to challenge poor practice, secure adjustments, and hold employers to account.

At a local level, members can add their support by documenting and evidencing barriers, proactively implementing adjustments, ensuring absence management is supportive, and fostering solidarity through local networks.

The EIS is also a collective shield against narratives that target minoritised and marginalised people. As cuts threaten support services, and more and more workers are becoming disabled, while political agendas seek to roll back rights, the collective must stand as a counterforce rooted in solidarity and justice.

Our collective strength is solidarity. Every worker has a role in defending hard won disability rights, because when we challenge injustice together, we cannot be ignored. And when we speak with one voice for equality, we are powerful.

• Julie Ferguson is a Biology and Chemistry teacher in Orkney. She was the EIS’s representative on the STUC Disabled Workers’ Committee for a number of years, including as Chair.
• Gerard Wilkie is a Special Education teacher in Edinburgh. Gerard is the new EIS nominee to the STUC Disabled Workers’ Committee, taking over from Julie Ferguson in December 2025.