Bethany Handley

I would tell Disabled people starting out in their careers to surround themselves with the voices of other Disabled people, be it through friends, colleagues, the media or social media. Knowing your rights and how to advocate for yourself is so important and the Disabled community will ensure you don’t have to advocate alone. Being a part of the Disabled community has helped me to challenge the limits placed on my freedom and has brought me so much joy.

I’ve raised awareness of the violations of Disabled people’s human and legal rights in the UK, including around travel and public transport, working with BBC Wales to expose the barriers to accessing public transport. I have also raised awareness of the problems with the benefits systems and the inadequacies of wheelchair services and how the impossibility of getting the right wheelchair funded by the NHS limits people’s freedom and health on BBC Wales, BBC Radio Wales and BBC Radio 1. As Ambassador for country Living’s Access for All campaign, I have raised awareness of the physical and social barriers preventing many Disabled people from accessing the countryside, in their print magazine, on their socials and online for their 1.7 million monthly users. Without sharing accessible routes, Disabled people do not know the paths exist and the paths are not protected. Bethany is celebrating best practice for accessible paths to ensure Disabled people know they belong in nature and that non-disabled people are not surprised to see Disabled people accessing paths. As a result, they have created an interactive map of accessible routes across the UK. I have also written about inaccessibility at polling stations for Country Living. In my work campaigning for better access to nature for Disabled people, I have highlighted the barriers on social media, on national radio and in the press. Over the last year, I have been featured by BBC Radio 1, BBC Radio 4’s Saturday Live, BBC Radio 5 Live, BBC Wales, BBC News, Country Living, Poetry Wales, the Institute of Welsh Affairs, PlantLife and the Ramblers, amongst others. I have also spoken at the Hay Festival, The Southbank Centre, the National Library of Wales alongside Poet Laureate Simon Armitage, and at multiple conferences including The Ramblers’, through a mixture of public speaking and sharing creative writing on the changes that would ensure nature would be accessible for all. In Wales, I have mentored Deaf and Disabled writers who have achieved publication as a result and I am co-editing an anthology of Welsh Deaf and Disabled writers which will be published in January 2025. My own poetry pamphlet on ableism will be published by Seren in February 2025.

I want to help build a world where nature is accessible to everyone, including Disabled people. Through my work, I hope people will expect to see Disabled people in the outdoors so will cease to question our presence through ableist comments. I would like to see stiles, kissing gates and narrow openings removed, paths opened up and maintained and that there will be maps that share accessible routes, not just routes for those who walk with ease. I am working on a non-fiction book about the importance of access to nature for all and will continue to work with the media to show that even the smallest changes can make nature more accessible to all. I also hope to continue building community, providing opportunities for Deaf and Disabled writers and helping to platform their voices through events, workshops and publication.

I attach my powered handbike to my wheelchair and head out on countryside paths

Being outdoors in nature brings me joy, whether that’s in an inner city park or on a beach

cats

I would ensure that public footpaths were accessible to all with any barriers removed

There are barriers in every aspect of our lives, from lack of accessible housing, to discrimination at work, to inaccessible public transport, to a cruel benefits system that dehumanises, to a lack of representation in the media that leaves Disabled people feeling we do not belong and non-disabled people sharing ableist comments due to lack of awareness. There are even barriers to accessing healthcare, with a Dr recently telling me that hospitals are the most dangerous place to be as a Disabled person.