From enforcement to engagement: The role of the EHRC and Higher Education Institutions in considering the lived experience of disabled people

Kember, Martha

Abstract

This paper is based on the findings of a doctoral participatory research study which explored how the lived experience of disabled people is, and could be, considered in the design and delivery of equality and diversity training in UK Higher Education Institutions (HEIs). The paper considers how, learning from the lived experience of disabled staff in HEIs, equality and diversity training can be enhanced to provide spaces in which all staff can discuss, and improve, the experience of disabled staff and students on University campuses. The paper will introduce a conceptual map of the Affirmative Model of Disability (Kember, 2020) as a lens through which to consider the Equality and Human Rights Commission (EHRC) and HEIs approach to equality and diversity training, and presents the views of disabled staff, working in Higher Education. The paper will suggest that the role of the Equality and Human Rights Commission (EHRC) and HEIs is not to 'enforce' (2020) fair treatment, as announced by the Minister, but is to establish a culture of 'freedom, choice and opportunity'.

Citation

Kember, M. (2021). From enforcement to engagement: The role of the EHRC and Higher Education Institutions in considering the lived experience of disabled people. Journal of Inclusive Practice in Further and Higher Education, 13(1), 7-19

• Journal Article Type: Article
• Acceptance Date: Jul 28, 2021
• Online Publication Date: Aug 27, 2021
• Publication Date: Aug 27, 2021
• Deposit Date: Sep 2, 2021
• Publicly Available Date: Sep 3, 2021
• Journal: Journal of Inclusive Practice in Further and Higher Education
• Print ISSN: 1759-2224
• Electronic ISSN: 2398-5976
• Peer Reviewed: Peer Reviewed
• Volume: 13
• Issue: 1
• Pages: 7-19
• Public URL: https://hull-repository.worktribe.com/output/3830848
• Publisher URL: https://nadp-uk.org/issue-13-1-summer-2021/