SDSS reflections on International Day of Persons with Disabilities 2025
Today, on the International Day of Persons with Disabilities, we join the global call to create societies that are truly inclusive, equitable, and sustainable for disabled people. This year’s theme, “Fostering disability-inclusive societies for advancing social progress”, reminds us that social development cannot be achieved without the full participation and inclusion of disabled people.
Across all countries, disabled people and their households continue to face significant challenges and barriers:
- Disabled people are more likely to live in poverty.
- Disabled people experience discrimination in employment, often receiving lower wages and being overrepresented in informal work.
- Social protection systems remain uneven and inadequate, frequently failing to account for disability-related costs and excluding those in informal sectors.
- Many still encounter denial of dignity, autonomy, and agency within care and support systems.
This is where the work of Self Directed Support Scotland (SDSS) is vital. By championing choice, control, and independence in social care, we work to dismantle systemic barriers and promote equality. We work to ensure that individuals have the power to direct their own support, reinforcing dignity and autonomy at the heart of social care.
Our staff and board remain committed to advancing disabled people’s rights. Our treasurer and Glasgow Centre for Inclusive Living’s Policy and Participation Lead, Joanne McGee, speaks powerfully about these issues and why change is needed for disabled people, in this. STV News piece here.
