Did you know that:

• Around 10 million people in Great Britain have a disability or long-term health condition.
• One in five people of working age has a disability or long-term health condition.
• Each year in Britain an estimated 1 in 4 adults will experience at least one diagnosable mental health problem.
• In 2011-12 33% of Cornwall College students on long courses had a disability or learning difficulty and 3% of Cornwall College staff members declared that they had a disability.

Disability is one of the protected characteristics under the Equality Act 2010.

From 1 October 2010, the Equality Act replaced most of the Disability Discrimination Act (DDA). However, the Disability Equality Duty in the DDA continues to apply. The Disability Equality Duty marks a commitment towards actively promoting equality of opportunity for disabled people. The duty covers all functions and activities, including budget setting, commissioning, procurement, regulatory functions and setting the framework within which the Organisation will deliver services. Disability equality schemes require organisations to consider and include the following:

• Eliminate unlawful discrimination
• Promote equal opportunities
• Eliminate disability related harassment
• Promote a positive attitude on disability
• Encourage participation by disabled people in public life
• Active involvement of disabled people in the ongoing development of the scheme
• Assess policies for their impact on people with a disability
• Development of an action plan
• Gather and publish information

Definition of 'disability' under the Equality Act 2010, in the Act, a person has a disability if:

• they have a physical or mental impairment
• the impairment has a substantial and long-term adverse effect on their ability to perform normal day-to-day activities

For the purposes of the Act, these words have the following meanings:

• 'substantial' means more than minor or trivial