Models of Disability
Contents
Contents
INTRODUCTION
We believe the most inclusive and user-friendly disability model to follow is the Social / Human rights version.
Below we’ve outlined the three models available, ranking Social / Human rights as our clear favourite and recommendation to you:
Charity Model
According to the Charity model, people may view persons with disabilities as not having the capacity:
- to live independently or live together with other people without disabilities, with the implication.
- that they must be ‘cared for’ in separate facilities from the rest of the community and that they are.
- unable to make their own decisions.
MEDICAL Model
According to the Medical model, people may believe that persons with disabilities need to be ‘cured’ or need to be treated through medical interventions before they can actively join or participate in the community.
In practice, this means that most persons with disabilities cannot access equal opportunities for participation in society.
Can you think of an example of either of these models in action?
Resources
Below, you will find other resources to support you in making your event/venue more accessible for learning disabled people. These include examples of:
-
Visual Stories Example
This can help physically disabled people to plan; their visit to your event, accessible entrances and exits into your venue, how they can interact with activities taking place, and what facilities are available to them. These documents can include information on transport links, start, interval and finishing times, ticket purchasing and validating on arrival, venue facilities, venue auditoriums and breakout spaces, and artists and staff members that the viewer may expect to meet on their visit. You can offer these as documents with pictures in (as seen here) and/or as a video version (that shows a recording of the journey from various transport links to your event destination, details of your venue layout, entrance/exit routes and its facilities, and your staff members/artists).
-
Lateness Policy
This is a policy created to recognise that lateness can be a result of the ways in which ableist society disadvantages the deaf, disabled and neurodiverse community. With this in mind, this policy can be put in place at your workplace to ensure your workplace is less ableist. This includes applying a ‘latecomers welcome at all times’ attitude to your event.
-
Access Icons Guide
These can be used when marketing your event. These icons aim to make accessible performances/venues easily recognisable to those who require it. Events happening across London Borough of Culture – This is Croydon should be using these icons whenever they have one of the access provisions listed provided at/for their event.
-
Models of Disability
These descriptions of the different models of disability can help inform (or refresh) an understanding of disability terminology and approaches.
-
Role breakdown of an access Coordinator
This page is an example of the different roles that an Access Coordinator working in a theatre company could cover. These roles should regularly be assessed and updated to consider new learning, understanding and awareness.
-
Relaxed Performance Announcement Script template
This script can be adapted for different audiences and performances.
Social/Human Rights Model of Disability
The social model introduces a very different thinking: disability is recognized as the consequence of the interaction of the individual with an environment that does not accommodate that individual’ needs/ differences. Under the Social model, the focus is on removing barriers so that disabled people have the same opportunities to participate as others.
In the social model. It is society that needs to change to eliminate physical, social and communication barriers that hinder participation in the community. With the social model, disability is nota “mistake” of society, but rather an element of its diversity which everyone can gain from and celebrate. Perfect Show For Rachel, we hope, shows this inaction!
The Human Rights-based model of disability builds on the social approach by acknowledging persons with disabilities as subjects of rights and the State and others as having responsibilities to respect these persons. It treats the barriers in society as discriminatory and provides avenues for persons with disabilities to complain when they are faced with such barriers.