The WORLD just isn't set up FOR US

One in four people in the UK identify as disabled, so why is society still ignoring their needs?

- Ella Dove

A few months ago, I was in London with a friend, who is a wheelchair user, and we decided to take the Tube. Having looked up which lines had step-free access, we arrived at our starting station, only to discover that the lift up to the platform we needed had broken. The only way to reach our destination was to take the lift up to the opposite platform, travelling in the wrong direction and changing platforms at the next available step-free station. It added nearly an hour to what should have been a short journey. By the end of the experience, my friend was tearful, frustrated and constantly apologising to me for something over which she had no control. She hasn't travelled by Tube since.

My friend isn't the only one who feels like this. 'The world just isn't set up for us,' says Carol Vickers, a campaigner for disability charity Scope who has Ehlers-Danlos syndrome and lives in Leeds with her assistance dog, Bella. 'I can't take my mobility scooter on buses or trains, unless it's one that will fold up. Even then, I can't lift a 60kg scooter by myself with an assistance dog in tow.'

Lack of accessible communication is another huge issue. Without visual aid such as sign-language interpretation in public places like transport hubs, at healthcare appointments and in emergency situations, many deaf people struggle, while those with visual impairments regularly have to cope without Braille in public places or on packaging in supermarkets.

The chances are, if you're not disabled and don't know anyone who is, you've not even thought about these things. And yet, Carol points out, 'Anyone could wake up tomorrow and be disabled.'