Fulfilling Potential – Outcomes and Indicators Framework Progress Report	
	
September 2014	

Contents

Introduction
Education
Employment
Income
Health and Wellbeing
Choice and Control
Inclusive Communities - Housing
Inclusive Communities - Transport
Inclusive Communities – Social Participation
Inclusive Communities – Friends and Family
Inclusive Communities – Information and Access
Inclusive Communities – Attitudes
Annex A: Headline Indicator Summary
Annex B: Harmonised questions on disability
Annex C: Statistical Significance

Introduction

What is Fulfilling Potential?

Last July we published Fulfilling Potential – Making it Happen, alongside the Fulfilling Potential: Making it Happen Action Plan. This strategy document built on previously published analysis and discussion. The focus of Fulfilling Potential is the need for innovative cross sector partnerships with disabled people and their organisations and promoting new ways of working to deliver meaningful outcomes. It incorporates the UN Convention on the Rights of Disabled People and the legacy of the 2012 Paralympic Games.

The Fulfilling Potential Outcomes and Indicators Framework allows us to measure the impact of activity over time. It provides a basis for how Government can measure progress towards our vision. We have a number of indicators within the Framework, which provide an indication of where progress is being made and where work needs to be done. These indicators cover six key themes: education; employment; income; health and wellbeing; choice and control; and inclusive communities.

This report is the first analytical progress report on the Outcomes and Indicators Framework. It is complemented by a separate progress report (Fulfilling Potential: Strategy Progress Report), and the updates action plan1 which summarises actions taken by Government and its partners to further the strategy set out in Fulfilling Potential: Making It Happen.

Fulfilling Potential – Making It Happen, and this report, refer to a wide variety of policies, some applicable across the whole of the UK and many specific to England only. In relation to Scotland and Wales, references to employment and social security policies are applicable and for Wales some aspects of transport and justice policy. In relation to Northern Ireland all domestic policy is devolved. The devolved administrations have their own policies with regard to devolved matters. They have their own arrangements in place to meet the obligations of the UN Convention on the Rights of Disabled People, where those obligations are devolved.

Definitions of disability

Throughout the report there are a number of different definitions of disability. The majority of definitions are based on either the Disability Discrimination Act (DDA) definition of disability or the Equality Act definition. 

The data annex of this report states what definition of disability is being used for each indicator.

Following the publication, by the ONS, of harmonised questions on disability in 2011, the majority of UK surveys and social data sources are changing their definition of disability from the Disability Discrimination Act definition to the Equality Act definition. Please see annex B for the new harmonised questions on disability. This has resulted in a break in time series for a number of our indicators. Not all people who are defined as disabled in accordance with the Disability Discrimination Act are defined as disabled in accordance with the Equality Act. For example, when the definition change was made to the Labour Force Survey this resulted in a reduction in the number of people who were defined as being disabled. This was because a number of people with the “lowest levels of disability” who were defined as disabled in accordance with the DDA were not being defined as disabled under the Equality Act.  

For this reason, comparisons between the two different definitions of disability have not been made in this report.

Headline Indicators: Educational Attainment
The gap in educational attainment between disabled and non-disabled people at two key stages:
•	GCSE (or equivalent)
•	A Level (or equivalent)

The number of disabled people completing their first degree

Supporting Indicators:
•	Unauthorised absence from school
•	Achievement at key stage 2
•	Proportion of 16 year olds in full-time education (in development)
•	Proportion of young people in higher education at age 19 (in development)
•	Students who do not continue in higher education after their first year
•	Satisfaction levels with higher education course
•	The destination of graduates six months after graduating
•	Not in Education, Employment or Training status (NEET)
•	Apprenticeships

These indicators help measure the impact of activities relating to UN Convention Articles: 7 Children and 24 Education  

Education

˜
Headline indicators - changes since baseline˜:

GCSE – Pupils achieved 5 or more GCSE’s at grades A*-C (including Mathematics and English) - 2007/08 base; current figures 2012/13: 
•	Non-SEN – base 58%, current 70%
•	SEN without statement – base 15%, current 27% 
•	School Action – base 17%, current 29%
•	School Action Plus – base 11%, current 23%
•	SEN with statement – base 5%, current 10%

A Level – Pupils achieved two or more A levels by age 19 - 2010 base, current figures 2013:
•	Non-SEN – base 58%, current 66%
•	School Action – base 24%, current 35%
•	School Action Plus − 16% base, current 23% 
•	SEN with statement − 10% base, current 13% 

Degree – 2004/05 base
At baseline 20,519 disabled people completed their first degree, compared to 40,439 disabled people in 2012/13.

Reliable information about children in full time school education by disability is not available. As a result the majority of our education indicators will use measures of Special Educational Needs (SEN) as a proxy.  

This proxy is not a good match. Firstly pupils with special educational needs have learning difficulties or disabilities that make it harder for them to learn than most pupils of the same age. These learning difficulties or disabilities may equate to a disability or may be barriers, either social or educational, which may not be considered a disability under the Equality Act definition. Similarly children with an impairment, who would be considered disabled under the Equality Act, may not be considered as having any special educational needs as their impairments do not create a barrier to education. 

Secondly, there are different categories of special educational needs with different levels of support triggered for the children so it is hard to make comparisons between pupils with and without SEN. The SEN categories are as follows: 
•	School Action – where extra or different help is given from that provided as part of the school’s usual curriculum; 
•	School Action Plus – where the class teacher and the SENCO receive advice or support from outside specialists (a specialist teacher, an educational psychologist, a speech or language therapist or other health professionals); 
•	Statement – a pupil has a statement of special educational needs when a formal assessment has been made. A document setting out the child’s needs and the extra help they should receive is in place. 

Looking at attainment levels, the proportion of pupils achieving five or more A*-C GCSEs including Mathematics and English increased in 2012/13 for all SEN groups. As you can see in Figure 1.1 the gap between pupils with and without SEN is still large, although for all SEN categories the gap narrowed in 2012/13. 

Additionally, if we look at GCSE attainment statistics not including Mathematics and English the proportion of SEN pupils getting 5 or more A*-C GCSE doubles at least. This also narrows the gap between pupils with and without SEN. 

The proportion of 19 year old pupils who achieved two A levels or equivalent (also known as level 3) was lower for pupils with SEN than for pupils without (see Figure 1.2). However, all pupil groups saw an increase in the percentage of pupils achieving the standard. Also the gap between pupils without SEN and the school action and school action plus groups has narrowed. The gap between pupils without SEN and those with a statement of SEN has increased.

The number of disabled people who completed their first degree has continued to increase. In 2013, over forty thousand disabled students completed their first degree; almost double the 2005 figure. Higher education continuation rates for disabled students after their first year has also increased. Disabled students in receipt of Disabled Students’ Allowance (DSA) continue to have higher continuation rates than non-disabled students. 

Six months after graduating, 86 percent of disabled students were either in work, studying or both. This is only three percentage points lower than the non-disabled students figure of 89 percent. 

For those pupils with or without learning difficulties or disabilities who choose an apprenticeship over academic qualifications, the number successfully completing their apprenticeship is still relatively high. In 2012/13, 68 percent of learners with a learning difficulty or disability successfully completed their apprenticeship. This is a large increase from the 2004/5 figure of 31 percent. 

Headline Indicator: Employment Rate Gap
The employment rate gap between disabled and non-disabled people

Supporting Indicators:
•	Proportion of individuals in high-level employment (managerial, professional or skilled-trade employment)
•	Proportion of working age people who have never worked
•	Proportion of working age people who would like to work more hours
•	Hourly wage rates
•	Highest education qualifications in working age population
•	Proportion of individuals not in work who would like to work
•	Retention in employment for those aged 50 or over
•	Employers’ attitudes
•	Work colleagues’ attitudes
•	Economic activity 

These indicators help measure the impact of activities relating to UN Convention Articles: 26 Habilitation and rehabilitation and 27 Work and employment  

Employment

Headline indicator - changes since baseline:

At baseline (2013) the employment rate gap was 33%. This is the same figure as 2014. 

The employment rate for disabled people has been relatively stable over the last couple of years. This is despite the country’s economic difficulties. Nevertheless, the gap between disabled and non-disabled people is still large, at 33 percentage points. Latest figures from 2014 show that disabled people are significantly less likely to be in employment than non-disabled people, with 45 percent of disabled people being in employment compared to 79 percent of non-disabled people.

When looking at the employment rate by age, the employment gap differs at certain age points. Figure 2.1 shows that the largest gap between the proportion of disabled and non-disabled people in work is in the 50-64 age group at 39 percentage points, whilst the smallest gap is in the 16-24 age group at 21 percentage points.

Of the 3.52 million disabled people who are not in work 39 percent of them would like to be in work. This is compared to 40 percent of the 6.96 million non-disabled who are not in work.

Looking at attitudes towards disabled people in the workplace, the indicators suggest that attitudes are generally positive. Figure 2.2 shows that 87 percent of disabled and 92 percent of non-disabled people said that employer attitudes towards disabled people in the workplace are supportive (either fairly or very supported). 

Additionally when looking at colleagues’ attitudes towards disabled people in the workplace, the picture is also positive. Over 90 percent of disabled and non-disabled people said that work colleagues’ attitudes towards disabled people is supportive, 91 percent and 94 percent respectively.  

Comparisons between the 2013 and 2014 figures in this report and past data should not be made. In 2013 the Labour Force Survey, which is the data source for the majority of the employment indicators, changed its definition of disability from the Disability Discrimination Act (DDA) definition to the Equality Act definition.  Please see annex B for the new harmonised questions on disability. This has affected the disability prevalence rates in the survey, with a number of people with the “lowest levels of disability” who were defined as disabled in accordance with the DDA not being defined as disabled under the Equality Act. This has consequently affected the disabled and non-disabled employment rates. 

Income 

Headline Indicator: Living in Low Income 
The gap between the proportion of individuals in families where at least one person is disabled living in low income, and individuals in families where no-one is disabled living in low income

The gap between the proportion of children living in families in low income with a disabled member and children living in families in low income where no-one is disabled

Supporting Indicators:
•	Children living in low income and material deprivation
•	Households living in fuel poverty
•	Individuals living in persistent poverty (in development)

These indicators help measure the impact of activities relating to UN Convention Articles: 7 Children and 28 Adequate standard of living and social protection

Headline indicators - changes since baseline:

Due to changes in the definition of disability, 2012/13 will be used as the baseline year. As such, changes since the baseline year cannot yet be measured.

Those living in families with a disabled member are more likely to be in low income households than those in families without a disabled member. In 2012/13, 19 percent of individuals in families with at least one disabled member lived in relative low income compared to 14 percent of non-disabled families (Before Housing Costs). This means that out of the 19.2 million individuals living in families where someone is disabled, approximately 3.7 million of them are living in low income households. 

The proportion of individuals in families with a disabled member in relative low income has decreased over the last ten years. The current gap between individuals in low income families with and without a disabled member is six percentage points. 

Our second headline indicator looks at the proportion of children who are living in low income families, which has also fallen over the last ten years. 

In 2012/13, 21 percent of children lived in low income families where at least one member is disabled. The gap between this group and children in families where no-one is disabled is currently five percentage points. 
There were 800,000 children living in low income families with at least one disabled member, out of a total of 2.3 million children living in low income (Before Housing Costs) in all families in the UK. 

Fuel poverty for disabled people can mean the diverting of resources from essentials to heat the home. Fuel poverty statistics show that there has been a drop in the proportion of households living in fuel poverty since 2009ˉ. 

As can be seen in Figure 3.1, in 2011 17 percent of households including a disabled person were living in fuel poverty. This represents a large drop from its peak figure, in recent years, of 24 percent in 2009ˉ.  The gap between disabled and non-disabled households in fuel poverty has narrowed since this peak from seven to four percentage pointsˉ. This is the narrowest the gap has been since 2005. 

When we published our Outcome and Indicator Framework in July 2013, we said that we would also publish a supporting indicator on households living in persistent poverty. Persistent poverty looks at poverty levels over the last five years. The data source we intend to use to monitor this indicator, Understanding Society, has not been running long enough for us to be able to measure persistent poverty at this time. Once Understanding Society has the capabilities to measure persistent poverty we will report this indicator.

The majority of the income indicators in this report use data from the Family Resources Survey. To comply with the Equality Act definition of disability the Family Resources Survey in 2012/13 replaced the previous disability questions with a new suite of harmonised questions on disability. Please see Annex B for the new harmonised questions on disability. 

As such comparisons between 2012/13 figures and past data should be made with caution as estimates could be affected by the change in the definition of disability.

The figures quoted in this report for both of our headline indicators look at the proportion of individuals in families in relative low income Before Housing Costs. The accompanying data annex contains relative low income figures calculated After Housing Costs.

Further data on income, including analysis which excludes Disability Living Allowance and Attendance Allowance from the calculation of income can be found in the latest Households Below Average Income report. 

Headline Indicator: Life Satisfaction
The gap between the proportion of disabled and non-disabled people reporting medium or high satisfaction with their life

Supporting Indicators:
•	Management of own health condition
•	People with long-term health conditions supported to manage their condition
•	Having good general health
•	Experience using the NHS

These indicators help measure the impact of activities relating to UN Convention Articles: 19 Living independently and being included in the community and 25 Health  

Health and Wellbeing

Headline indicator - changes since baseline:

At baseline (2011) the gap between the proportion of non-disabled and disabled people who had positive/medium life satisfaction was 19%, the same as in 2012.

There is a strong link between how people rate their health and how they rate their personal well-being. Recent analysis by the ONS found that people’s assessment of their health matters more than any other factor to their personal wellbeing.

Our health and wellbeing headline indicator on self-reported life satisfaction shows that there has been a slight increaseˉ in the proportion of disabled and non-disabled people who said they either have positive or medium levels of life satisfaction. The gap between disabled and non-disabled people is currently stable at 19 percentage points.

When looking at health services both disabled and non-disabled people seem to be very confident in the management of their own health condition. In 2013/14, 89 percent of disabled and 97 percent of non-disabled people said they are confident when it comes to managing their own health. These are the similar levels as the previous year.  Around 64 percent of people with a long-term health condition receive some sort of support to manage their health condition. 

Headline Indicator: Choice and Control
The proportion of disabled people who believe that they frequently had choice and control over their lives

Supporting Indicators:
•	Proportion of people using social care who receive self-directed support
•	Take up of direct payments
•	Influence on decisions
•	People supported to live independently through social services
•	Proportion of disabled people who feel that protection provided by the Equality Act is effective

These indicators help measure the impact of activities relating to UN Convention Articles: 12 Equal recognition before the law, 19 Living independently and being included in the community, 28 Adequate standard of living and social protection and 21 Freedom of expression and opinion, and access to information  

Choice and Control

˜
Headline indicator - changes since baseline:

At baseline (2008) the proportion of disabled people who frequently had choice and control over their lives was 76%, compared to 66% in 2013˜. 

The proportion of disabled people who believe that they frequently have choice and control over their lives had been fairly stable from 2008 until 2012, although it has fallen in 2013. Currently two thirds of disabled people believe that they frequently have choice and control over their lives.    

Nevertheless, the proportion of people receiving self-directed support has risen rapidly over the last couple of years. In 2012/13, 56 percent of people using community based services were receiving self-directed support. This includes people receiving their care via a personal budget.

Of the 56 percent of people receiving self-directed support, 17 percent received their self-directed support as a direct payment, as can be seen in figure 5.1 below. 

Inclusive Communities - Housing

Headline Indicator: Accessibility in the Home
The gap between the proportion of disabled and non-disabled people who are able to access all parts of their home without difficulty

Supporting Indicators:
•	Decent accommodation

These indicators help measure the impact of activities relating to UN Convention Articles: 9, Accessibility 19 Living independently and being involved in the community and 28 Adequate standard of living and social protection  

Headline indicator - changes since baseline:

2013 will be used as the baseline year, as such changes cannot yet be measured.

An issue for many disabled people is access in the home. In 2013, the majority of disabled people, 88 percent, said that they are able to access all parts of their home. This compares to 99 percent of non-disabled people. 

Meanwhile our supporting indicator shows that the proportion of people with a long-term illness or disability living in non-decent accommodation has been declining in recent years. In 2012, only 21 percent of people with a long-term illness or disability lived in non-decent accommodation. This is the same figure as people without a long-term illness or disability, showing that there is no gap between disabled and non-disabled people.

A home is considered to be ‘decent’ if it meets the following four criteria:
•	It meets the current statutory minimum standard for housing;
•	It is in a reasonable state of repair;
•	It has reasonably modern facilities and services;
•	It provides a reasonable degree of thermal comfort.

Headline Indicator: Access to Transport
The proportion of disabled people who do not experience difficulties using transport

Supporting Indicators:
•	Number of trips
•	Satisfaction with bus and rail journey experience
•	Full size buses accessible to disabled people10

These indicators help measure the impact of activities relating to UN Convention Articles: 9 Accessibility and 20 Personal mobility 

Inclusive Communities - Transport

ˉ

Headline indicator - changes since baseline:

At baseline (2005) the proportion of disabled people who did not face difficulties using transport was 73%, compared to 74% in 2013ˉ. 

The proportion of disabled people who do not experience difficulties using transport has been stable over the last eight years, as can be seen in Figure 6b.1.

In 2013, 26 percent of disabled people said that they experienced difficulties using transport. The difficulties experienced were most likely to relate to using rail, bus or coaches (with 6 out of 10 people). 

Inclusive Communities – Social Participation 

Headline Indicator: Participation in Cultural, Leisure and Sporting Activities
The gap between the proportion of disabled and non-disabled people who participate in various activities:
•	Arts
•	Museums and galleries
•	Sport
•	Heritage sites
•	Cinema
•	Libraries

Supporting Indicators:
•	Civic involvement
•	Volunteering
•	Neighbourhood belonging

These indicators help measure the impact of activities relating to UN Convention Articles: 29 Participation in political and public life and 30 Participation in cultural life, recreation, leisure and sport  

˜

Headline indicator - changes since baseline˜:

At baseline (2005/06) the gap between the proportion of non-disabled and disabled people who participated in:
•	Arts was 9%, compared to 7% in 2013.
•	Cinema was 21%, compared to 19% in 2013.
•	Libraries was 6%, compared to 0% in 2013.
•	Heritage sites was 8%, compared to 5% in 2013.
•	Museums and galleries was 9%, compared to 6% in 2013.
•	Sport was 23%, compared to 21% in 2013.

Disabled people are less likely to participate in social, leisure and sporting activities than non-disabled people. 

Figure 6c.1 shows that, in general, more disabled people are participating in social and leisure activities than they have done in previous years. The only exception to this is visiting libraries, where there has been a decline in the number of disabled and non-disabled people visiting. However, for the first time the proportion of disabled people visiting libraries is higher than the proportion of non-disabled people.

The widest gap between the proportion of disabled and non-disabled people participating in cultural and leisure activities is when looking at cinema attendance. In 2012/13, 64 percent of non-disabled people said they had gone to the cinema at least once in the past 12 months. This is compared to only 45 percent of disabled people.

The figures become starker when we look at participation by age.  Figure 6c.2 shows participation in various activities by working age and retirement age in 2012/13. In general, the gap between disabled and non-disabled people at working age is relatively low (between one and four percentage points), apart from cinema attendance. The gap between the proportion disabled and non-disabled working age people attending a cinema is 12 percentage points. 

Looking at retirement age people, the gap between disabled and non-disabled people participating in the various activities is a lot wider. The smallest gap between disabled and non-disabled people at retirement age is when attending a library, where the gap is only two percentage points. The remainder of the gaps lie between 10 and 13 percentage points.

Disabled people are participating in sports more than ever before. In 2012/13, 19 percent of disabled people were participating in sport at least once a week. This is compared to 39 percent of non-disabled people, as can be seen in Figure 6c.3. The gap between the proportion of disabled and non-disabled people participating in sport at least once a week is largest in the 35-44 and 45-54 age groups, both at 18 percentage points. The smallest gap is in 16-25 age group, where the gap is only nine percentage points.

The most common sport for disabled people was swimming. This pattern remains the same even when looking at working and retirement age people separately. 

Inclusive Communities – Friends and Family

Headline Indicator: Support Networks
The gap between the proportion of disabled and non-disabled people who have acquaintances to whom they are close 

This indicator helps measure the impact of activities relating to UN Convention Article: 23 Respect for home and the family  

Headline indicator - changes since baseline:

2013 will be used as the baseline year, as such changes cannot yet be measured.

Social isolationism and exclusion is a major issue for people in today’s society. This is even more important when looking at disabled people. Family and friendship groups are extremely important to disabled people, and can be the difference between engaging and not engaging fully in society.

In 2013, 99 percent of disabled and non-disabled people said they had acquaintances that they are close with.  The majority of people said that they had between three and five people they were close with and whom they had met with or spoken to a week prior to interviewing. 

As can be seen in Figure 6d.1 only 27 percent of disabled people had six or more close acquaintances that they had met or spoken to a week prior to interviewing, compared to 35 percent of non-disabled people. 

Inclusive Communities – Information and Access

Headline Indicator: Accessing Goods or Services
The proportion of disabled people reporting problems accessing goods or services, specifically public services

Supporting Indicators:
•	Access to the internet
•	Adults without saving and bank accounts

These indicators help measure the impact of activities relating to UN Convention Articles: 9 Accessibility and 21 Freedom of expression and opinion, and access to information  

˜
Headline indicator - changes since baseline:

At baseline (2005) the proportion of disabled people who did not experience difficulties accessing goods or services was 60%, compared to 66% in 2013˜. 

In 2013, around two thirds of disabled people said they did not experience any difficulties in accessing good or services. As can be seen in Figure 6e.1 below, this is an increase from our base figure of 60 percent (in 2005). However, the proportion of people has been relatively stable over the last six years.

The most commonly cited difficulty disabled people faced was shopping, with 3 out of 10 disabled people saying that they faced difficulties accessing it. Social activities in general seemed to be the most frequently stated difficulties disabled people faced. Looking solely at public services, the most commonly cited public service disabled people said they had difficulty in accessing was health services, with 12 percent of disabled people saying that they experienced problems accessing them in 2013.

Inclusive Communities – Attitudes

Headline Indicator: Public View of Disability
The gap between the proportion of people who reported that they thought of disabled people as the same as everyone else and those who did not

Supporting Indicators:
•	Hate crime
•	Risk of being victim of crime
•	Confidence in Criminal Justice System
•	Unfair treatment at work
•	Public opinion on whether disabled people are as productive as non-disabled people

These indicators help measure the impact of activities relating to UN Convention Articles: 8 Awareness raising, 13 Access to justice, 16 Freedom from exploitation, violence and abuse, and 27 Work and employment 

Headline indicator - changes since baseline:

2013 will be used as the baseline year, as such changes cannot yet be measured.

Attitudes towards disabled people have improved over time. Latest data from the Opinions and Lifestyle Survey shows that 93 percent of people think of disabled people as the same as everyone else. Additionally, around half of disabled and non-disabled people thought that the 2012 London Paralympic games had a positive effect on the way they view disabled people (Opinions and Lifestyle Survey 2013).

Despite this, disability hate crime figures increased by five percent in 2012/13 from the previous year. Data from the 2013/14 Crime Survey for England and Wales shows that disabled people are more at risk of being a victim of crime compared to non-disabled people. This increased risk, however, varies by age. Those in the 16-34 age group are nine percentage points more likely to be a victim if they are disabled, whereas the difference in the 65 and over age group is just one percentage point. 

Annex A: Headline Indicator Summary

Indicator	Trend	
Education
Attainment levels for pupils with SEN or a disability has increased at all education levels.

At GCSE level, attainment for all SEN groups increased at a faster rate than non-SEN pupils in 2012/13, resulting in a narrowing of the gap.

At A-Level, the gap between pupils with no SEN and pupils in school action and school action plus groups has narrowed. 

While the number of disabled people who complete their first degree has continue to rise.	

Employment

The employment rate for disabled people currently stands at 45 percent, with an employment rate gap of 33 percentage points. 
	N/A	
Income 

The current gap between individuals in low income families with and without a disabled member is six percentage points. 

The equivalent gap between children in low income families with and without a disabled member is five percentage points
	N/A	
Health and Wellbeing

There has been a slight increase in the proportion of disabled people who are satisfied with their lives. The gap between disabled and non-disabled people is stable at 19 percentage points.
	N/A	
Choice and Control

Currently two thirds of disabled people believe they have choice and control over their lives. This represents a drop from previous years.		
Housing

88 percent of disabled people are able to access all parts of their home. This is lower than the figure for non-disabled people.
	N/A	
Transport

The proportion of disabled people who do not experience difficulties using transport has been stable over the last eight years, at around three quarters.		

Social Participation

In general, more disabled people are participating in social and leisure activities. For example, the proportion of disabled people visiting heritage sites has increased in recent years, with the gap between disabled and non-disabled people narrowing from 8.4 percentage points in 2005/6 to 4.8 percentage points in 2012/13.

Disabled people are also participating in sports more than ever before.

	
Friends and Family

Only 26 percent of disabled people had six or more acquaintances that they had met or spoken to a week prior to interviewing in 2013. This is lower than the non-disabled figure of 35 percent. 
	N/A	
Information and Access

Around two thirds of disabled people said they did not experience any difficulties accessing goods or services. This figure has been stable over the last couple of years.		
Attitudes

93 percent of people think of disabled people as the same as everyone else.
	N/A	

Annex B: Harmonised questions on disability 

In 2011 the ONS published a set of harmonised questions on disability. These questions were designed to measure disability in accordance with the 2010 Equality Act, following the change in disability legislation from the Disability Discrimination Act to the Equality Act. The majority of UK surveys and social data sources are now using, or are planning to use, these new harmonised questions to measure disability.  

The harmonised questions on disability are:

Do you have any physical or mental health conditions or illnesses lasting or expected to last 12 months of more?
Yes; No

Does your condition or illness\do any of your conditions or illnesses reduce your ability to carry out day to day activities?
	Yes, a lot; Yes, a little; No, not at all

If a respondent answers yes to both questions then they are defined as disabled in accordance with the Equality Act.

Annex C: Statistical Significance

Some changes in estimates from one year to the next will be the result of different samples being chosen, whilst other changes will reflect underlying changes across the population. Statistical significance is a way of identifying whether a change is likely to be an underlying change across the population, rather than simply the result of chance. 

Throughout this report, wherever possible, changes over time have been tested to see whether they are statistically significant. The report clearly specifies where these tests have, and have not, been made in the ‘changes since baseline’ boxes. Only statistically significant changes over time have been referenced in the main body of the report, with the exception of the fuel poverty and life satisfaction indicators where we unable to run the tests.