Join Us for Disability History Month 2025
October 20, 2025
Join Us for Disability History Month, 2025
Events, Learning and Action in the North East. November 15th to December 20th 2025
Join Us for Disability History Month, 2025
Events, Learning and Action in the North East. November 15th to December 20th 2025
We are thrilled to announce that Difference North East has been shortlisted for Social Impact Business of the Year in the Tees Valley Equality, Diversity, and Inclusion Awards 2025.
Add your name to an open letter to the Chancellor. The Autumn Budget should not make disabled people poorer. Many people in the North East are disabled and face extra costs every month. These costs cause debt and hardship. We ask the Chancellor to protect disabled people’s incomes, stop unfair welfare changes, and fund the support people need. Read the full letter below and sign the form to add your name. You can also join as an Ally. Sharing this page helps too. Together we can show decision makers that disabled people must not pay the price. Sign today please.
Minister Responds All-Day Bus Access: The Fight for All-Day Bus
On 15th September, Difference North East joined Cleveland Police and Crime Commissioner Matt Storey at a Hate Crime workshop. Claire spoke about Disability Hate Crime. She said many crimes are not reported, and we need better awareness, education, and training. Deaf and Disabled people must be involved from the start in planning safer communities.
The NHS might stop giving gluten-free food on prescription. This is bad news for people with coeliac disease. Gluten-free food costs a lot more than regular food. Without help, many people will struggle to pay for safe food. This is not fair. It creates a big problem for disabled people. We believe everyone should get the food they need to stay healthy. Join us to fight this change. Your voice matters. Together, we can make sure everyone is treated fairly.
Celebrate Wins & Keep Fighting: Ramping Up Rights Ignites Hope!
Rachel Charlton-Dailey’s “Ramping Up Rights” book launch in Stockton was powerful! We celebrated a huge win: community action forced the government to change harmful welfare plans. This proves together we win! This is important even if we’ve not got everything we want!
The book shows how understanding our history helps fight today’s battles. We heard moving stories, like Joy Dove’s fight for justice after losing her daughter Jodey to cruel benefit cuts. Sadly, while Joy spoke, her MP voted for more cuts.
The fight isn’t over. We need everyone! Join Difference North East to build community power, sustain the fight, and win more rights for disabled people. Get the book!
The Department for Work and Pensions (DWP) has just announced
Rose Powell from ‘Stop Oxevision’ tells how her group was stopped from speaking at the Lampard Inquiry on 14 May 2025. They had worked for two years to collect stories from mental health patients. They were meant to share this, but the hospital trust sent in another statement and their talk was pushed back. Rose explains why cameras in hospital bedrooms can be harmful and why public money should not be spent on unsafe tech instead of real care.
Hear one of our founders reflections on 30 years of the struggle against a disabling world.