Our Story & Purpose
Our roots lie in the wider disabled people’s movement – a struggle that transformed society from segregation and charity to rights, equality, and representation.
From the 1970s onward, the Social Model of Disability and the Independent Living Movement showed that people are disabled not by their impairments, but by barriers in society.
That radical shift shaped today’s rights framework, including the Disability Discrimination Act and Equality Act, and continues to inspire our mission. At disAbility Cornwall, we carry that spirit forward by using respectful, rights-based language and by ensuring disabled voices lead change.
Founded in 1997 as a user-led Disabled People’s Organisation, we’ve grown through merger and legacy, carrying forward the histories of Cornwall’s oldest disability charities while reshaping them through the Social Model. We’ve championed rights-based, person-centred approaches in health and social care, and expanded our work to include networks such as the Memory Café Network and HIV support services. At every step, our purpose has been more than delivering services, it’s about representation, rights, and inclusion
Today, our mission is to RISE – to Represent, Include, Support, and Empower. Always grounded in the leadership of disabled people themselves. These four pillars guide everything we do.
Our Mission
To Represent, Include, Support & Empower people living with a long-term health condition or disability, their carers and families in Cornwall & Isles of Scilly.
Our Vision
A fully inclusive and equitable society, with equality of opportunity for all.
Our Values
Our Passion for Equality: Inspiring, commitment, accountability. Respect for Self & Others: Open-minded, approachable, integrity. Being Supportive: Inclusive, positive, empathetic.
Our Strategic Aims:
Represent
We raise awareness of the lived experience of people to help overcome discriminatory attitudes and practices through and social media, focus groups and partnership working.
Support
We deliver professional, accessible information and advice to ensure people achieve and maintain economic and social well-being.
Include
Through our membership, services, events, initiatives, consultations and our values-based working culture, we facilitate a positive, conclusive community of interest.
Empower
Our rights-based ethos, peer support and the provision of self-help information resources, tools and guides, build confidence, capability and resilience.
Our Journey
