We believe every learner deserves the opportunity to step confidently into the world of work, and that means shaping experiences and environments where everyone can thrive.
As part of our commitment to building a more inclusive future for our students and our region, we asked Dr Lucy Reynolds, founder of We Are All Disabled, to share her experience and how businesses can ensure work experience is tailored for all.
I’ve spent much of my life navigating systems that were never designed with people like me in mind.
At We Are All Disabled we start from a simple truth that too many workplaces still struggle to accept: Disability is not a problem to be solved; it is a natural part of the human experience. At some point, most of us will experience disability — temporarily or permanently and, as such, it intersects with ageing, health, caring… and life itself.
However, when it comes to work experience, placements, and early career opportunities, disabled people are still routinely overlooked. Not because we lack talent or because we lack ambition, but because many organisations are still operating with outdated assumptions about disability — often without even realising it.
If the future of work is genuinely inclusive, then businesses need to start where careers begin. That means rethinking how you approach work experience. How you understand disability shapes how inclusive your workplace really is, and looking at the main models of disability can provide a helpful starting point.
The Medical model is the oldest and most traditional way of viewing disability. It treats disability as a problem in the individual — something to be fixed or managed so a person can fit into existing ways of working.
In theory, organisations no longer work to this model. However in practice, many people still view disability in this way and often leads to hesitation around offering placements or opportunities, particularly at early career stages.
The Social model recognises that people are disabled by barriers in systems, environments, and attitudes — not by disabled people themselves. This model came about through the Disability Rights movement in the 1970s, creating a huge shift in attitudes which has driven important progress and now underpins many workplace adjustments.
At We Are All Disabled, we work from the Affirmative model of disability. Whilst acknowledging the importance of both the Medical and Social models in shaping attitudes towards disability, the Affirmative model goes further. It recognises disabled people as assets from the outset — bringing insight, adaptability, and lived experience that strengthen teams.
Using an affirmative approach, Inclusion becomes less about managing risk and more about designing work that works for a wider range of people. This distinction matters enormously when we talk about work experience.
Work experience is often treated as informal or low priority, whereas in reality, it is one of the most powerful gatekeeping mechanisms in employment. Placements are where people build confidence, learn unspoken workplace rules, gain peers and mentors and begin to see themselves as professionals.
When disabled people are excluded at this stage — through inaccessible design, silence around adjustments, or fear-driven decision-making — the impact can be devastating. From an Affirmative-model perspective, the question is not “Is this disabled person ready for work?” The real question is “Is our workplace ready for disabled people and how can we support them?”
Some of the most meaningful work experiences I’ve had weren’t in environments that were perfectly accessible from day one, they were places where people were willing to listen. Where someone asked me, “What do you need to do your best work?” — and trusted my answer. Where flexibility was seen as good leadership, not a favour, and my disability wasn’t ignored or awkwardly apologised for, but understood as part of how I navigate the world.
In those organisations, my disability didn’t limit my contribution but strengthened it. That is the affirmative model in practice — not inspiration or ‘overcoming’, but respect and equity.
I recommend five affirmative ways to make work experience inclusive:
Work experience is not a box to tick — it is the moment where many people first see themselves belonging in the world of work. When disabled people are included, everyone benefits: teams become more creative, cultures become more authentic, and organisations become places people are proud to work.
An inclusive future is absolutely possible.
It doesn’t require perfection — it requires empathy, curiosity, and the courage to do things differently.
The question is no longer whether your business is “ready” — it’s whether you’re willing to change.
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