Our Policy Work

Our policy work allows us to represent the voices of disabled learners in issues which affect them in post-school learning, training and employment across Scotland. This includes:

Centering disabled people’s lived experience in our policy work
Involving disabled people in our policy work or advocating for their involvement
Developing and maintaining links with key policy makers, such as the Scottish Government and Scottish Funding Council
Responding to, and influencing national policy to bring about effective change for disabled people
Submitting responses to consultations on issues which affect disabled learners
Representing disabled people’s interests on a number of national committees and steering groups

Policy Responses

Lead Scotland response to the Learning Disabilities, Autism and Neurodivergence Bill, 2024

Lead Scotland response Disclosure Scotland fees 2024

Lead Scotland response to Disability Commissioner (Scotland) Bill 2024

Lead Scotland response to A Human Rights Bill for Scotland, 2023

Lead Scotland’s focus group response to the Scottish Government’s National Discussion on Education (Let’s Talk Education), 2022

Lead Scotland response Skills delivery independent review 2022

Lead Scotland response to Scottish Government’s Resource Spending Review, 2022

Lead Scotland response to Scottish Parliament call for evidence on Disabled Children and Young People (Transitions to Adulthood) (Scotland) Bill 2022

Lead Scotland Adult Learning Strategic Forum for Scotland member feedback on Draft Adult Learning Strategy 2021

Lead Scotland response to Scottish Parliament call for evidence on Proposed Disabled Children and Young People (Transitions to Adulthood) (Scotland) Bill 2021

Lead Scotland response to SFC Call for evidence: A Review of coherent provision and sustainability in further and higher education, August 2020

Lead Scotland response to SQA Equality Impact Assessment on alternative certification model, June 2020

Lead Scotland response to Scottish Government’s consultation on Renewing Scotland’s full potential in a digital world, 2020

Lead Scotland response to Policy Connect’s Disabled Student Inquiry, January 2020

Research/Briefings

Improving outcomes for disabled students, 2024

Review of disability related student support, 2022 (Lead Scotland was on the steering group for this research)

Lead Scotland COVID-19 briefing for Scottish Government May 2020

Lead Scotland Advocacy Paper, March 2019

Supporting Disabled Learners to realise their Potential ECU Lead Scotland Report

Briefing for Angela Constance on Lead Transition Focus Groups

“Thank you for arranging this meeting. It’s the first time in my life I have been in an open forum with so many other students living with disability. It was very intense and powerful.”

“Collaborating with the policy team has been fantastic, together we’ve campaigned to make access to higher education more equitable for disabled students. It’s given me the opportunity to speak in parliament about my experiences, meet with MSPs and attend meetings with advisory groups. Working with the team has really helped put the lived experience of disabled students front and centre.”

We support disabled people and carers at all stages of their learner journey, from age 16 through to older adulthood. Everyone has a different goal, a different way of learning and a different pace.

We have supported thousands of learners since 1979 and we encourage you to take that first step and get in touch.

We support learners to find ways around barriers such as lack of confidence, lack of digital skills, lack of effective transition support, previous negative experience, lack of accessible Impartial Information about options, lack of support to learn, lack of travel training skills, lack of access to assistive technology, financial barriers and feelings of loneliness. Tell us how you want to Improve your life and we will do our best to support you to find a way around those barriers.