Reports

January 2023

Access to transport is necessary for any individual to fully participate in society, creating opportunities for people to work, learn and pursue active and connected social lives. That’s why at Leonard Cheshire, we are driving for change.

With the support of Motability, we’ve conducted comprehensive research to understand how accessible taxi and PHV travel can be become a reality for the UK’s 14.6 million disabled people. Although there has been legislative progress in recent years enshrining accessibility into law, there is still much work to do to turn positive policy change into good practice.

December 2022

People with disabilities have the same right to a healthy, pleasurable and safe sexual life and to access sexual and reproductive health services as all others. It is crucial to realise these goals.

Most research on disability and sexual health has primarily focused on high income countries, and less so on lower- and middle-income countries (Carew et al., 2017). A more comprehensive body of literature on disability and access to sexual and reproductive healthcare in sub-Saharan Africa is emerging (Ganle et al., 2020). However, there are still knowledge gaps in many contexts, including Sierra Leone.

February 2022

This study looked at the robustness of policy and legal frameworks and the needs of teachers and learners with disabilities in regard to addressing school violence and bullying within the Eastern and Southern African region.

It comprised both a policy analysis and primary qualitative research within five countries in the Eastern and Southern African region (Botswana, Kenya, Lesotho, South Africa and Zambia).

February 2022

Global disability data collection has progressed considerably in recent years. However, in a world increasingly awash with data, too many countries still have poor disability data, and persons with disabilities are still hidden because of a lack of existing disability data.

That is why we have produced a report ahead of the Global Disability Summit, ‘Why Disability Data Matters’ aiming to show why it is essential that everyone has access to high-quality disability data. The report spotlights key data initiatives achieved by Leonard Cheshire within each of the Global Disability Summit 2022 thematic areas. It seeks to highlight the meaningful actions and commitments needed to advance inclusive and disaggregated data at the Global Disability Summit.

December 2021

Girls’ Education South Sudan (GESS) is an inclusive programme aiming to transform the lives of a generation of children in South Sudan – especially girls and those in the margins of society – through education. As a part of this programme, Leonard Cheshire conducted a short exploratory research.

The overall aim of the research was to ascertain the extra cost of disability faced by girls with disabilities and their families, coupled with the societal and structural barriers that exacerbate their access to educational interventions. The research also aimed to assess the use of different social protection elements (especially cash transfers) in improving access to quality education for children – particularly girls – with disabilities.

November 2021

Within the context of sexual and reproductive health rights, persons with disabilities remain disenfranchised. This is despite the fact that they have the same rights as persons without disabilities. Persons with disabilities continue to encounter multiple and significant societal, environmental and individual barriers to sexual health services, 

leading to increased vulnerabilities and poor health outcomes.

This Learning Product serves to address this need and presents a comprehensive package of information, guidance and practical tips for health service implementers. It has been designed with SRH service implementers in mind. However, much of the information is easily generalisable to other health programmes. 

November 2021

The World Meteorological Organisations estimates that, over the last 50 years, a climate or water related disaster has occurred somewhere in the world every day on average. Each event has caused an average of 116 deaths, and $202million damage. But many emergency communications, crucial for protecting people from these increasingly common disasters, are not inclusive or accessible for disabled and older people. 

Our research, which was funded by Elrha’s Humanitarian Innovation Fund, examined and gauged the accessibility and inclusiveness of emergency and disaster messaging in Bangladesh, focusing on the Kurigram area. In the report are a number of recommendations for how to improve the accessibility of communications to reach these marginalised communities.

 

November 2021

Every learner with a disability has a right to a quality education and to have a say in the issues that affect their lives. However, learners with disabilities are often overlooked in policymaking and denied a chance to raise their voice.

For this important report we have joined together with UNESCO, organisations of persons with disabilities, learners with disabilities themselves and other key stakeholders to shine a light on the situation and the recommendations they want to see implemented.

June 2021

We have been driven by a determination to understand how the pandemic has been experienced by the millions of youth with disabilities, like us, in our countries.

Through this research project, we sought to get youth with disabilities talking about the COVID-19 pandemic. The views of youth with disabilities are too often side-lined, and in times of crisis we need to hear from marginalised groups more than ever.

May 2021

In presenting the Leonard Cheshire Inclusive Education model, this report highlights the promising outcomes of this model among girls with disabilities from a resource-poor region of a Low-to-Middle-Income Country (LMIC). It also demonstrates the potential of the model to reach the most marginalised girls, and tackle additional barriers created by the intersection of gender, disability, and poverty.

The report draws upon the lived experiences of people with disabilities, their family members, and teachers participating in Leonard Cheshire’s Inclusive Education projects. These stories illustrate how inclusive education systems based on a Universal Design for Learning (UDL) model can ensure successful inclusive education opportunities for students, and greater teacher, family, and community participation.

April 2021

Every child has the right to quality education. However, nine out of ten children with disabilities in developing countries are excluded from formal education, and the majority of them are girls.

‘Leave No Girl with Disabilities Behind’ is a new advocacy brief from the UN Girls’ Education Initiative (UNGEI) and Leonard Cheshire that highlights the current status of global education for girls with disabilities and the key challenges and barriers to inclusive and gender-responsive education.

Featuring case studies from Leonard Cheshire, Humanity and Inclusion, and Sightsavers highlighting some promising strategies to overcome these barriers, the brief also provides a framework advocacy on inclusive education for girls with disabilities in particular.

December 2020

Inclusivity is a key element to exceptional travel experiences – enabling individuals all over the world to experience diverse countries, cultures and opportunities. Yet often, disability inclusion is not at the forefront of travel products and services.

This report will support travel providers to understand why disability inclusion matters to the industry whilst celebrating and learning from providers already striving to be more inclusive through their innovative practices.

June 2020

Our i2i programme supported disabled person's organisations (DPO) to complete a survey of 312 people with disabilities in Bangladesh and Kenya to understand the impact of coronavirus and measures to prevent its spread.

September 2019

Developed for the UNESCO International Forum on inclusion and equity, this background paper explores the global progress towards inclusive education, the successes achieved and learnings observed specifically in countries of the global South.

June 2019

Developed by the World Bank in partnership with us and Inclusion International, the paper establishes the learning crisis for children with disabilities and presents evidence of how and why children with disabilities are being left behind.

May 2019

The 2030 and Counting pilot project sought to give youth with disabilities a seat at the table on the SDGs – providing them with the tools and confidence they need to become their own agents of change. This report provides an overview of the project, together with learnings and recommendations for the future. 

February 2019

This report examines the challenges and barriers facing disabled people throughout their working journey, as well as considering solutions to some of the key issues. Through our own research survey and interviews we look at the impact on disabled people where they cannot access adequate support as well as what works in improving their employment prospects.

October 2018

The report examines the use of the Washington Group Questions, a disability data collection methodology originally designed for use in national data efforts, amongst development and humanitarian actors.

July 2018

Between 2000 and 2014, the global number of out-of-school children at primary education level dropped from 100 million to 61 million. While this represents significant progress, approximately one third of children that remain out of school are children with a disability.

April 2018

The report, launched at The Harkin Summit in Washington, offers practical guidance on how employers can ensure that they are inclusive to persons with disabilities in terms of hiring/recruitment practices and retention strategies.

July 2017

Our report on Disability inclusion and the Sustainable Development Goals points to a general lack of detail on how disabled people will be included in national development plans in Bangladesh Kenya, Zambia and Sierra Leone.

June 2017

Our report with the United Nations Girls Education Initiative (UNGEI), looks at the barriers to education for girls with disabilities and brings together evidence of effective or promising programme approaches that address these barriers.