Essex County Council

Living with disability provides an extra layer of complexity when it comes to achieving everyday goals and ambitions.

Our research highlights the perspective of people living with physical impairment (PI) across Essex – really emphasising the range of unmet needs. Many describe living with physical impairments as ‘a battle’; others felt there must be ‘more to life than this’.

By speaking to people with PI at length and in their own environment, we learned that they often feel side-lined from society, and as such can experience loneliness, isolation and a range of mental health problems for which they receive inadequate support. These not only affect them in the present; but can have a major impact on their aspirations for the future.

Many people are already contributing in this space, and Essex is proud to boast a range of dedicated social workers, nurses, doctors, care providers, housing providers, volunteers and more. But a more robust and collaborative approach to improving the lives of those with physical impairments is needed.