A Year On-How inclusive is higher education really for its disabled staff?

This webinar shares insights from the National Disabled Staff Survey (NDSS), which was launched in December 2024, to temperature check the Higher Education sector for disabled employees.

Carried out by RIDE Higher (Realising the Inclusion of Disabled Staff in Higher Education), and led by Professor Carol Evans, this survey explored the inclusive nature of Universities, the role of self-advocacy, the morale of disabled staff and their perceptions around career progression opportunities. With 837 disabled staff from 127 institutions bringing the disabled voice to the fore, this webinar offers an opportunity to unpick where the sector is on its disability inclusion journey.

Aimed at disabled staff, line managers, EDI leads and anyone else invested in the inclusion of disabled staff within HE, the webinar raises concerns about and offers recommendations for the sector. Set against the backdrop of the broader work of RIDE Higher (part of NADSN), this webinar concludes that action is needed if disabled staff are truly to be seen, valued and thrive, and that disabled staff must be at the heart of this process. I.e. ‘Nothing About Us Without Us.’

It offers take-away messages for attendees to reflect upon within their own spaces, and signposting to tangible resources to support any actions, in the form of the RIDE Higher website, which will be launched in early 2026.

Professor Carol Evans

Carol is the Pro-Vice Chancellor Education and Student Experience and Professor of Higher Education at Salford University. She is a global leader in research-informed inclusive practices and pedagogy. She has held many senior leadership positions within higher education including Principal Assessor for England’s Office for Students (OfS), Pro Vice-Chancellor (Learning and Teaching) at Griffith University (Australia), Chair of Higher Education and Academic Lead of HEFi at the University of Birmingham, Professor and Co-Director of Southampton’s Centre for Higher Education, and Board member at the University of Bournemouth. Carol has produced world-leading research in assessment and individual differences and is a strong advocate for disability inclusion for staff and students in higher education. She is a member of the Office of the Independent Adjudicator’s Disability Experts Panel. Working with Transforming Access and Student Outcomes (TASO) and colleagues in the UK and Australia she developed a sector-leading disability inclusion framework and integrated approach to inclusion (IIF). She works closely with the British Council to promote disability inclusion for students.

Professor Gayle Brewer
Gayle is Equality, Diversity, Inclusion, and Wellbeing co-Lead and Athena SWAN Lead for the Institute of Population Health at the University of Liverpool. In 2022 she published Disability in Higher Education: Investigating identity, stigma, and disclosure amongst academics, and was subsequently shortlisted for the British Educational Research Association (BERA) Educational Research Book of the Year. She holds doctorates in Psychology and Education.

Dr Melanie Best
Mel helped to conceptualise RIDE Higher and now leads the work. She stepped out of a senior academic role to dedicate her time to promoting the inclusion of disabled staff within HE. She now focusses her time on driving forward the work of RIDE Higher, whilst working as a Senior HR Advisor in Equality, Diversity & Inclusion (Disability) at the University of Wolverhampton. Mel leads on the University’s Disability Equality Action Plan with this work helping the University’s DSN to win ‘Outstanding Ability Network’ at the 2025 Employee Network Awards, and ‘Highly Commended’ at the 2025 British Diversity Awards. Mel is also a disability researcher, having focussed research on Paralympic athletes and HE communities. She is part of the NADSN Steering Committee.