Julie Newman, chair of disability arts organisation Together! 2012 CIC and Disability Liaison Officer at Regard UK, argues that UK emergency planning must protect disabled people’s independence and dignity as well as their immediate safety.
The Government’s advice to keep enough food and water for four to five days prompted Newman to ask how emergency guidance applies to people who may face poverty, homelessness or barriers to storing and accessing supplies. She says planning must start from the reality that not everyone can follow generic advice equally easily.
Safety means more than evacuation
Newman points to Articles 11 and 19 of the UN Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities. Together, they connect protection during emergencies with disabled people’s rights to live independently and take part in their communities. That raises a wider test for any emergency plan: does it keep people safe while preserving their dignity, autonomy and inclusion?
That test includes accessible warnings, transport and reception centres, and the ability to take wheelchairs, communication equipment, medication and other essentials. Plans also need to consider whether personal assistants, carers or assistance animals can accompany someone, and how support will continue when an emergency lasts for days.
Plans must account for different needs
Disabled people are not a single group. Age, sexuality, gender identity, culture, language and communication needs can shape how someone experiences an emergency. Newman warns that assumptions about family support, care, food, religious practice or relationships can create extra barriers, especially when people’s usual support networks are disrupted.
For example, emergency accommodation may raise privacy and safety concerns for disabled LGBTQI+ people. This does not mean everyone will face the same experience; Newman’s point is that plans should anticipate possible barriers and give people a safe way to explain what support they need. Similar preparation matters for Deaf and neurodivergent people, people with cognitive or communication support needs, and people with mobility or visual impairments.
From policy to practice
Newman says research across the four UK nations has identified examples of good practice and increasingly detailed guidance. The unresolved question is whether plans are backed by the staff training, accessible infrastructure, equipment and practical support needed when an emergency actually happens. Community organisations can help, but their capacity should not be assumed.
Emergency preparedness should be judged by whether disabled people can remain safe, informed and supported throughout an emergency and return to independent living afterwards—not simply by whether they are named in a plan.
Source: Julie Newman’s article for Disability Rights UK, published 21 September 2026.