Disability in Northern Ireland

Northern Ireland has differing legislation and policy in relation to disability than in other areas of the UK due to the various governmental powers and competencies that are devolved to the Northern Ireland Assembly.

There are a number of key policy areas in relation to disability in Northern Ireland. The primary strategic document, A Strategy to improve the lives of people with disabilities 2012-2015 was published in 2012 by the Office of the First Minister and Deputy First Minister

Other key policies and legislation include:

The Northern Ireland 2011 Census, undertaken by Northern Ireland Statistics and Research Agency (NISRA), reported that of a Northern Ireland population of 1,810,863; 20.6% (374,646) reported that their day-to-day activities were limited because of a long-standing health problem or disability. This is comparable to the national figures from the census in Great Britain which reported 17.6% of the population in England, 22.7% in Wales and 20% in Scotland. Similar to all nations of the UK, this Northern Ireland baseline figure varies within regions depending on a number of demographic, health, environmental and economic factors. In Northern Ireland, Strabane and Belfast (both at 24 per cent) had the highest proportions of residents with a long-term health problem or disability.

On Census Day 2011, two-fifths (40 per cent) of households contained at least one person with a long-term health problem or disability; made up of those households with dependent children (9.2 per cent) and those with no dependent children (31 per cent). Strabane (49 per cent) had the highest prevalence rate for households containing someone with a long-term health problem or disability while the lowest prevalence rates were in North Down (34 per cent) and Antrim (36 per cent).

24.8% of adults and 5.4% of children in households reported that their day-to-day activities were limited because of a long-standing health problem or disability. The rate in communal establishments was 34% of adults and for 89% of children.

Presently people with disabilities in Northern Ireland experience less protection against disability discrimination than their counterparts in the rest of the UK as the Equality Act (2010) was not brought forward in Northern Ireland. In March 2012 the Equality Commission for Northern Ireland (ECNI) published Proposals for Reform which considered changes to legislation to strengthen the protection for disabled people.

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