Policy paper

Annex A: list of actions

Published 5 February 2024

This was published under the 2022 to 2024 Sunak Conservative government

Support disabled people who want to be elected to public office

Action 1

DU will work with disabled people to design a new way to provide financial support for disabled people to access elected office. This will be launched in 2025. We will work in collaboration with disabled people with a range of experience of elected office. We will ensure diverse representation across impairment types and backgrounds.

Action 2

As a first step, DU will develop and publish new guidance by summer 2024 on how political parties and elected public bodies can best support disabled candidates, drawing on lessons from the Local Government Association’s work in this area and other sources.

Action 3

DU will work alongside the House of Commons to support implementation of disability-related actions where possible. 

Include disabled people’s needs in emergency and resilience planning

Action 4

The Cabinet Office Resilience Directorate will ensure that disabled people’s experiences are reflected in resilience planning. It will do this by inviting a disabled people’s organisation representative to attend the UK Resilience Forum. We will also enable disabled people (via DPOs and other disability representatives across impairment types) to contribute to UK Government guidance to Local Resilience Forums (LRFs) on supporting ‘vulnerable’ people in an emergency. 

Action 5

DU will build relationships with emergency and resilience planners across government. This will help to strengthen knowledge and understanding of disability-inclusive practices in emergency and resilience work.

Action 6

The Minister for Disabled People, Health and Work will lead a discussion with the Ministerial Disability Champions on the importance of accessible communications. A focus area will be to improve accessible communications and information about resilience and emergencies.

Include disabled people’s needs in climate-related policies

Action 7

DU will explore how to ensure that ULEZ and CAZ better consider the needs of disabled people. It will do this together with disabled people, other experts and relevant government departments.

Action 8

DU will bring together academics, disabled people and decision makers for a conference on climate adaptation and disability.

Action 9

The Disability Unit will work closely with strategic teams across national government to increase awareness of disability inclusion in existing policies. This will include teams within the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs and the Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office.

Action 10

DU will carry out a systematic analysis to better understand the information and data that policy makers and disabled people need to make climate adaptations disability inclusive. As part of this, DU will look for opportunities to fill data and information gaps, and make data more available and accessible.

Action 11

DU will set up a disabled people’s experience panel for 2024 to support the cross-government work (action 9) and research development (action 10). The panel will include people with a range of impairment types and experiences, and from different locations.

Improve information and outcomes for families in which someone is disabled

Action 12

A disabled people’s experience panel drawn from existing networks of disabled people’s organisations will work with DU and other partners on initiatives to address a number of issues raised in this consultation where there is opportunity to make a difference in the short term. This includes supporting actions 13 to 15, embedding disabled people’s experience in the products created.

This panel will be made up of disabled parents and guardians, disabled children, and carers (including young carers) to amplify their voices. It will include representation across impairment types, and will involve people born with impairments and people who acquire impairments at different life stages.

Action 13

DU will explore and develop a new, accessible online information hub for families with disabled members. This will make it easier for them to find resources and information about government policies. This work complements work led by DfE to roll out ‘Family Hubs’.

Action 14

DU will work with partners to develop new products addressing specific issues experienced by families with disabled members. These include:

• a guide for local authorities to support more constructive relationships with disabled parents
• a training module supporting education professionals to identify young and sibling carers
• improved signposting to existing anti-bullying training for teachers and teaching assistants, including resources on the impact of bullying on disabled children and how to identify it

The families disabled people’s experience panel will consider other products that might be needed and could be developed in the near future.

Action 15

DU will lead work to improve the evidence base on disability and domestic abuse. It will do this with disabled people, DPOs, the Domestic Abuse Commissioner, domestic abuse sector (including by and for organisations), the Home Office and other relevant partners. This work will consider the experiences of a wide range of disabled people with different impairment types.

Make playgrounds more accessible

Action 16

DU will create an online hub of information for local authorities on creating accessible playgrounds. The new families disabled people’s experience panel will support the hub’s development. For example, it will review potential guidance and highlight any information gaps. This could include using the hub to promote opportunities for disabled children to get involved in inclusive physical activity - for example, by linking to information about inclusive community sports. 

Action 17

DU will explore the most effective way of creating guidance on how to develop more inclusive and accessible playgrounds. This is with a view to developing and publishing such guidance, so that more children, young people and families can enjoy accessible playgrounds in their local area.  

We will work closely with the families disabled people’s experience panel, local authorities, playground equipment and facilities providers, and other organisations with expertise in this area. 

Help businesses to understand the needs and deliver improvements for disabled people

Action 18

DU will publish research into the accessibility of private sector products and services in spring 2024. This will provide more information about the accessibility of different sectors (including retail and leisure) and the end-to-end customer journey for disabled people.

Action 19

DU will work to further understand issues such as:

• existing training schemes and their success for disabled consumers and businesses 
• whether and how disability awareness training adds value to organisations and improves consumer experience
• the end-to-end customer journey, exploring how a scheme could address accessibility across sectors
• whether disabled people are aware of their rights and know how to enforce them

This work will consider the needs of a wide range of disabled people with different impairment types.

Explore if the UK could host the Special Olympics World Summer Games

Action 20

DU will work with other government departments and external experts in the coming months to explore bidding to host and deliver the 2031 Special Olympics World Summer Games. 

Support people with guide and assistance dogs

Action 21

A new working group with representatives from the guide dog and assistance animals sectors will make recommendations to the government on how to improve support for people with guide and assistance dogs. 

DU will set up and co-ordinate this group with representatives from the guide dog and assistance animals sectors. The group will include owner trainers and organisations representing other assistance animals, such as emotional support animals. 

This working group will meet in 2024 and make initial recommendations to the government after 6 months and final recommendations within 12 months. 

The working group will explore issues such as:

• a definition for assistance dogs
• how best to raise awareness of a range of assistance animals, including emotional support animals
• educating the business sector on the legal rights of assistance dog owners
• simplifying reporting of access refusals

Help the government measure how effective its policies and services are for disabled people

Action 22

DU will develop a framework of evaluation and work with other government departments on a set of indicators to measure how effective policies and services are for disabled people. 

Action 23

DU will work with other departments to improve the quality and comparability of their existing disability data. This builds on the commitment in the National Disability Strategy to lead a multi-year programme to improve government disability data.

Action 24

DU will explore steps to set up a new survey on disabled people to address gaps in evidence.

Action 25

DU will continue to improve the government’s understanding of the experiences of disabled people. It will do this by using insights from qualitative research to make government data on disabled people more relevant.

Research issues facing disabled people in the future

Action 26

DU will commission disability foresight research to better understand the emerging issues and priorities for disabled people in the next 5, 10 and 20 years. 

This research will use a research model that enables consideration of trends in:

• social changes (including demographic)
• environmental changes 
• economic changes
• technological changes

This research will aim to consider the implications of trends for disabled people across factors including:

• a range of impairment types
• all parts of the United Kingdom

This work will draw on disabled people’s experience research, and will be taken forward in collaboration with colleagues in the devolved administrations.

Make government publications and communications more accessible

Action 27

Number 10 Downing Street will work to provide in-situ BSL interpretation for all major press conferences and briefings from spring 2024 onwards. Number 10 also commits to increase the use of BSL in other communications. The government will be publishing a second report on the use of BSL in government communications by 31 July 2024. Number 10 is an operational part of the Cabinet Office, which is a relevant government department under Section 2 of the Act, and will include its data in the next government report.

Action 28

GCS, supported by DU, will continue to promote accessible communications. This includes standards, monitoring, training and guidance on accessibility and inclusion across government. This is with a view to maximising impact and significantly improving the accessibility of UK Government communications.

Action 29

DU will update guidance for government departments on providing accessible information. We will use our networks, including the Ministerial Disability Champions, to promote this across the government.

Improve understanding of the cost of living for disabled people

Action 30

DU will continue to engage across Government to highlight concerns related to disabled people and the cost of living, sharing insights from the Disability Action Plan consultation findings, stakeholder engagement and our broader disabled people’s experience panels.

Promote better understanding of the UNCRPD across government

Action 31

DU will work to promote better understanding of the UNCRPD across government. 

Monitor and report progress of the Disability Action Plan

Action 32

DU will report formally on the progress made on the Disability Action Plan after 6 months and 12 months. We will publish these updates in Parliament as written ministerial statements, and on GOV.UK. We will also share them with our strategic stakeholder networks.