Building an inclusive workplace; an Affirmative approach

About the role

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 it intersects with ageing, health, caring, and life itself.

However, when it comes to career opportunities, disabled people are still routinely overlooked. Not because we lack talent or ambition, but because many organisations operate with outdated assumptions about disability, often unconsciously. If the future of work is genuinely inclusive, businesses must rethink how they approach work experience, apprenticeships, and early career opportunities.

How you understand disability shapes how inclusive your workplace really is. The main models of disability provide a helpful framework:

• Medical model: The oldest and most traditional view, treating disability as a problem within the individual – something to be fixed or managed so a person can fit into existing ways of working. While organisations may no longer officially endorse this model, many still hesitate to offer placements or opportunities due to lingering assumptions.
• Social model: Recognises that people are disabled by barriers in systems, environments, and attitudes – not by their impairments. Emerging from the Disability Rights movement in the 1970s, this model has driven progress and underpins many workplace adjustments today.
• Affirmative model: The approach we use at We Are All Disabled. While acknowledging the importance of both the Medical and Social models, the Affirmative model goes further. It recognises disabled people as valuable members of the workforce from the outset – bringing insight, adaptability, and lived experience that strengthen teams. Inclusion becomes less about managing risk and more about designing work that works for a wider range of people.

This distinction is critical when improving employment opportunities for disabled people.