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SAME BUT DIFFERENT
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We are all different from each other. Look around, not one person in your school is exactly like another. Even identical twins have different personalities. And being different is a good thing. Think how boring it would be if we were all the same! Having a disability is just another difference. Sometimes it’s an obvious difference, sometimes it’s barelynoticeable. In the following pages we’ll explain what it means when somebody is disabled, how it affects their day-to-day life and what you can do. We hope it will answer any questions you have about disability and we’ll provide information if you want to find out more about any topic we cover. The most important fact, though, is that having a disability shouldn’t affect how anyone is treated. We areall different but we all deserve the same respect and consideration. That’s why this leaflet is called Same but Different.

DISABLED DOES IT MEAN? WHAT
There are over eight and a half million disabled people in the UK. That means that about one in seven of us has a disability. There are lots of kinds of disability and they can affect people of all ages and backgrounds. People become disabled inseveral ways. Some people are born with a disability and some people become disabled through accidents. Their bodies are changed in ways that cannot be repaired. Being ‘disabled’ generally means that some parts of your body work differently. When you see a person in a wheelchair, for example, it’s likely that he or she has a problem with his or her legs or back, which means that walking isdifficult. But not all disabilities are obvious from looking. How would you know, for example, if somebody was hard of hearing? Or diabetic (a condition where there is too much sugar in the blood)? Or dyslexic (has difficulty reading and writing)? Yet each of these people has a disability which, in a small or large way, affects the way they live.

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We’re all better at some subjects than others.Being disabled doesn’t mean that you can’t still be clever or successful. In fact, there have been many successful disabled people throughout history. (Read our interview with actress, Julie Fernandez, for more information about making it to the top with a disability.) The media (newspapers, magazines and television) frequently portrays an image of disabled people that is not always flattering oraccurate. They are often seen as victims or people to feel sorry for. When the same images are used over and over again they can be very unhelpful. Most disabled people don’t want pity. They just want to be treated equally, like everybody else. And they should be, even when they do things that are wrong. Disability is no excuse for being nasty or committing a crime.

D NG DISABLE EEL LIKE? BEI ITF
WHAT DOES
There’s more to a disabled person than being disabled – it’s only one part of who he or she is. Being disabled makes a person different, but it doesn’t make them that different. We all want the same things, whether or not we’re disabled – to have good friends, enjoy ourselves, be successful, and fall in love – in short, to be happy. Disabled people often say that the environment andattitudes of other people disable them more than their own disability. By this they mean that obstacles in society – the way people think and act, and the environment we live in – can prevent them from being accepted or participating as fully as non-disabled people. And the way they are sometimes treated by non-disabled people can also act as a barrier. DID YOU KNOW THEY WERE DISABLED? RichardBranson – dyslexic; Steve Redgrave – diabetic; Franklin D Roosevelt – disabled from polio; Jane Austen – Asperger's Syndrome; Beethoven – deaf; Robbie Williams – dyslexic

Think about it. Have you ever been stared at because you looked a bit different? (Perhaps you were wearing some dodgy clothes or having a bad hair day!) Can you remember how it made you feel? You probably felt uncomfortable,...