True ugliness is editing out a disabled child from a school photo

There is a difference between being shocked and being surprised. I thought of that as I read the news that disabled children had been "erased" from their class photo in a primary school in Aberdeenshire in Scotland.

- Frances Ryan

A photographer is said to have taken separate pictures: one with the children with "additional needs" and one without. Parents were then given both versions to choose from. Reportedly, a set of twins was split up. The child who uses a wheelchair was excluded from one photo, while their twin, who isn't disabled, was photographed with the rest of the class.

If that feels somewhat chilling, it is because it should. Few of us cannot understand the connotations of wanting to pretend disabled children don't exist.

Indeed, in recent days the incident has been resolved with a swift consensus. The news went viral. The public expressed its outrage online. The photography company offered an apology. Lessons will be learned.

And yet this is neither the beginning nor the end of the story. One photographer did not invent ableism and the way those disabled children were treated will not be the first time such attitudes have bled into our schools.

Over the past few days, I have heard of cases of disabled children across the UK who have been "edited" in their school photo. Some have had their disability aids removed by photographers. Others have been altered with editing software or banned from their class photos.