Inequalities and challenges experienced by disabled people in Scotland: evidence review

Demographics

This chapter presents demographic statistics about disabled people in Scotland using data from Scotland’s Census 2022, including disaggregated and intersectional breakdowns where possible. Demographic population statistics are important for establishing a baseline understanding of the population. Scotland’s Census data refers to disabled people as those with ‘limiting health conditions or disabilities’ (based on the questions stated in the Definitions chapter). These are self-reported and any changes over time may also reflect different understandings of health and personal circumstances^[8].

For context, the National Records of Scotland (NRS) identified that there is a strong link between age and disability, where older people are more likely to have a health problem or disability that limits their day to day activities. To account for this, NRS produce age-standardised statistics. These are adjusted so that each population has the same age structure as the standard population which allows for comparisons over time and between different geographies. Where age-standardised statistics are available, these have been used in this report. However, age-standardised statistics were not available for many of the demographic breakdowns in this section. Therefore, readers should exercise caution when comparing between groups, as observed differences may be due to age.

The Scotland’s Census 2022 found that 24.1% of Scotland’s population had a limiting long-term health condition or disability, where 13.3% reported being ‘limited a little’ and 10.8% reported being ‘limited a lot’ by their condition/s^[9]. In comparison to Scotland’s Census in 2011, 20% were limited by a health condition or disability^[10].

The most common type of limiting health problem or disability reported was “a long-term illness, disease or condition” with 21.4% of respondents selecting this option. This was described as “a condition that you may have for life, that may be managed with treatment or medication and is not in one of the other categories as listed in the harmonised standards (see the Definitions chapter). This is a broad category which includes a range of conditions such as Arthritis, Cancer, Diabetes and Epilepsy”^[11].

The second most commonly reported limiting health problem or disability in Scotland’s Census 2022 was mental health at 11.3%, followed by physical disabilities at 9.7%, deaf or hearing impaired at 7.1%, learning difficulties at 3.3%, blindness or vision impairment at 2.5%, developmental disorder at 2.2%, and speaking difficulties at 0.3%^[12]. The percentage of people selecting each of these health problem and disability types in the Census 2022 had increased compared to Scotland’s Census 2011, except for speaking difficulties which was introduced for the first time in 2022 Census. However, as noted above, limiting health problems and disability in Scotland’s Census are based on self-reporting, and the increases between 2011 and 2022 may be partially explained by greater awareness and people feeling more comfortable disclosing their condition than they were previously^[13].

Intersectional Demographics

As shown above, just under a quarter of Scotland’s population appears to be impacted by a limiting health condition or disability, however additional demographic characteristics can intersect and change the way a disabled person experiences inequality. Intersectionality is a concept that is used to understand the different ways people are impacted by simultaneous membership to multiple social categories, with a particular focus on the inequalities that result from these categories^[14]. People can and do have multiple intersecting characteristics, such as gender, ethnicity and sexual orientation, which can compound the inequalities that they face. The following sections provide a picture of the available Census data on the demographic intersections of the disabled population in Scotland.

Disability and Geographic Location

Based on age standardised data from Scotland’s Census 2022, the proportion of people with a limiting health problem or disability varied across council areas. East Renfrewshire, Aberdeenshire, and East Dunbartonshire had the lowest percentage of people with a limiting health problem or disability at 18.9%, 19.3% and 19.6% respectively. In comparison, the areas with the highest percentages were Glasgow City, Inverclyde, and West Dunbartonshire at 29.0%, 27.5%, and 27.1% respectively. These percentages have been calculated by adding rounded percentages from Scotland’s Census 2022 health, disability and unpaid care report (table 2).

Disability and Age

From Scotland’s Census 2022 data we can see that a limiting health problem or disability that limits a person a little or a lot, increases with age. According to the data, 50.2% of people aged 65+ reported that they were limited a little or a lot by their health condition or disability, in comparison to 10.5% who were under 25 years old (See Appendix 1: Age and Disability Census Data).

The NRS topic report on Scotland’s Census 2022 disability data^[15] highlights that the percentage of people aged 75 or older who had a limiting health problem or disability decreased from 67.1% in 2011 to 62.5% in 2022. However, the increase in the total number of people aged 75 or older must be considered, as there was a greater number of people aged 75 or over with a limiting health problem or disability in 2022 compared to 2011, at 306,576 and 274,205 respectively. In 2022, more people aged 75 or older reported that their activities were limited a lot, at 53.0%, rather than a little, at 47.0%^[16].

Scotland’s Census 2022 data also showed that 14.4% of 16 to 34 year-olds had a limiting health problem or disability. This is an increase from 2011 in which 2.8% of 16 to 34 year olds had a limiting health condition or disability^[17]. More young people say they are limited a little at 67.1%, than a lot at 32.9%^[18]. Younger people also drove an increase in reports of mental health conditions. In 2022,15.4% of 16-to 24-year-olds reported a mental health condition, up from 2.5% in 2011^[19].

Disability and Sex and Gender

There is a small difference between males and females who have a limiting health condition or disability. In the Scotland’s Census 2022, the percentage of females with a limiting health condition or disability was 24.9% compared to 22.3% for males. When compared to 2011, 21.1% of females and 20.5% of males reported a limiting health condition or disability (See Appendix 2: Disability and Sex).

Mental health was the condition with the greatest difference observed between females and males, with 13.3% of females reporting a mental health condition compared to 9.2% of males^[20]. This was observed across age brackets, with the biggest sex difference being observed between 16-to-24-year-olds with 20.4% of females and 10.5% of males reporting a mental health condition in this age bracket^[21]. It must be noted that some evidence suggests that men are less likely to report mental health difficulties than women ^cxxiv. Therefore, this Census statistic should be read with caution as it does not necessarily mean that women experience higher rates of mental health conditions than men, only that they are more likely to report a condition.

A higher proportion of people with a trans status or history had a limiting health condition or disability compared to the Scottish population as a whole. Scotland’s Census 2022 found that 43.6% of those who reported having a trans status or history said that they had a limiting health problem or disability (See) and 46.4% of people with a non-binary trans status or history reported a limiting health problem or disability (for further trans and non-binary history data see Appendix 3: Disability and Trans Status). The higher proportion of trans and non-binary people with disabilities is found in other evidence including The Scottish Trans 2023 Study^[22] which found that 67% of their trans and non-binary respondents considered themselves to be disabled or to have a long-term health condition. Given that the age profile of the trans population is much younger than the general population, the high prevalence of disability in this group is particularly noteworthy^[23]. This should be considered when developing services for disabled people^[24].

Disability and Sexual Orientation

The sexual orientation group with the highest proportion of people reporting a limiting disability or condition was the “other sexual orientation” group at 37.3%. This includes several different groups of people including “pansexual”, “asexual” and “queer”^[25]. This was followed by 30.6% of bisexual people, 26.7% of heterosexual people and 24.6% of lesbian and gay people. It is important to note that 9.7% of people with a limiting health condition or disability and 8.2% of the Scottish population aged 16 or over did not answer the sexual orientation question.

Disability and Ethnicity

This section presents statistics on the percentage of people with a limiting health condition or disability by ethnic group based on Census 2022 data. These statistics are not age standardised and, as ethnic groups have different age profiles, caution must be applied when comparing across groups.

In the Census 2022, 8.8% of African people reported a limiting health condition or disability. There was some variation at a subgroup level, with 11.4% of African, African Scottish or African British people reporting a limiting health condition or disability and 8.6% of people who selected the ‘Other African’ ethnic group. The ‘Other African’ group had the lowest proportion of people with a limiting health condition or disability compared to all other groups.

12.9% of Asian people reported a limiting health condition or disability. When disaggregated, there were notable differences between Asian subgroups. 18.1% of Pakistani, Pakistani Scottish or Pakistani British people reported a limiting health condition or disability, compared to 14.7% of Bangladeshi people, 11.4% of people who selected ‘Other Asian’, 9.9% of Indian, Indian Scottish or Indian British people, and 8.9% of Chinese people.

18.3% of Caribbean or Black people reported a limited health condition or disability. There was some variation when comparing prevalence at a subgroup level, with 23.3% of Black, Black Scottish or Black British people reporting a limited health condition or disability, compared to 18.2% of Caribbean, Caribbean Scottish or Caribbean British people, and 17.6% of people who selected the ‘Other Caribbean or Black’ ethnic group.

14.7% of Arab, Arab Scottish or Arab British people reported a limited health condition or disability. 15.4% of people who identified with Mixed or multiple ethnic groups and 16.3% of people identifying with another ethnic group reported a limiting health condition or disability.

White people were more likely to report a limiting health condition or disability compared to all non-White ethnicity groups, at 24.9%. There was also greater variation between White subgroups compared to other ethnicity groups. The White Scottish, Other White British, and White Irish subgroups had similar proportions of people with a limiting health condition or disability at 25.8%, 24.4%, and 22.8% respectively. In comparison, the White Polish and ‘other White’ (which included Other White, Roma, and Showperson) groups had lower proportions at 11.9% and 13.1% respectively.

The Gypsy/Traveller population had the highest proportion of people reporting a limiting health condition or disability compared to all other ethnic subgroups at 39.5%. Nearly a quarter, 23.4%, of Gypsy/Travellers reported being limited a lot, while 16.2% reported being limited a little. This is higher than the rest of Scotland where about 10.8% reported being limited a lot and about 13.3% reported being limited a little^[26].

This chapter has provided an overview of demographics of people who reported having a limiting health problem or disability in Scotland’s Census 2022 data, including intersectional characteristics. The evidence referenced in this report highlights that these intersectional characteristics may add to the societal barriers that disabled people face and, therefore, should be considered during policymaking. The following chapters will discuss evidence which examines disabled people’s experiences of employment, welfare provision and poverty.