Disabled students

At UC we have been guided by the United Nations Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities, the New Zealand Disability Strategy and the wishes of the wider disabled community.

We view disability as the interaction between an individual and their environment. People become disabled by the attitudes and environmental barriers they face and are not themselves disabled.

We acknowledge that each person will have a unique experience of disability, with each individual facing different opportunities and barriers. The disabled community are as diverse as any other community, representing a range of backgrounds and intersectionality which also impact the individual experience of disability.

We use the terms ‘disabled people’, ‘disabled students’, ‘disabled staff’ and ‘tangata whaikaha Māori’ with pride and value the expertise and richness that lived experience of disability brings to our diverse UC community.

In line with the United Nations Convention and the Ministry of Education, our disabled community includes those with long term medical, physical, mental, intellectual and sensory conditions.

We recognise that not all members of our UC community will identify with disability focused or identity first language. Some people will prefer person first language and others will choose something different altogether or nothing at all. For Example, some may identify with the mental health community instead of the disabled community, Māori may identify as Māori first, and Deaf people may instead identify with the unique culture and language of the Deaf community. .

We respect that each person will have their own way of defining their identity and uphold the right that each individual has to make this choice.