Social and Medical Models of Disability

Specialist transport is provided for people who cannot access mainstream transport.

• Social

• Medical

Workplaces are made accessible for disabled people and training and development available to disabled people enables them to apply for a range of roles.

• Social

• Medical

Disabled children are educated in accessible mainstream schools alongside non-disabled children. Education provision is accessible to all with the same qualifications and opportunities open to all who wish to access them.

• Social

• Medical

People make assumptions about what someone is capable of based on information about their medical condition for example using internet searches.

• Social

• Medical

Language is focused around the barriers faced by an individual and what can be done to remove them.

• Social

• Medical

Sheltered workplaces are created for disabled people to work alongside other disabled people in a specially adapted environment doing specific work.

• Social

• Medical

Language usually refers to a person’s medical condition, what is ‘wrong’ with them and what they can and can’t do.

• Social

• Medical

Communication takes place in ‘standard’ ways e.g. letters are in size 12, if someone is unable to read them they can be given magnifiers or ask someone to read the information for them.

• Social

• Medical

Mainstream retailers (kitchen and bathroom shops) offer more options such as different heights and depths of units as standard.

Products around the home are designed with accessibility in mind so that specialist products are not required.

• Social

• Medical

Disabled children receive specialist provision in special schools and are entered for alternative qualifications.

• Social

• Medical