DRILL was a Big Lottery funded five-year long, programme across the four nations of the UK, run by Disability Wales, Disability Action Northern Ireland, Disability Rights UK, and Inclusion Scotland. The funding is unique and exists to start the process of tackling a significant gap in the literature regarding the lived experiences of disabled people.

The funding has now closed.

The DRILL programme was led by disabled people in all parts of its structure.  The projects funded must be designed and delivered in full co-production with disabled people. This means that disabled people are equal partners in the research alongside academics or researchers. All projects must be aligned with the Social Model of Disability.

The programme exists to empower disabled people to set their own research questions based on their priorities and lived experiences. This creates a change in mindset where disabled people direct and own the research instead of being passive subjects of research.

Projects funded are expected to be solution-focussed. We don’t just want to know what kind of barriers disabled people face, we also need to develop workable solutions. We aim to understand what can work to create a more inclusive and accessible working environment for disabled people in the legal profession.

DRILL Programme objectives are:

• To increase our knowledge of key issues and develop new evidence of what works to enable disabled people to achieve independent living and fulfil their full potential
• Empower disabled people to have a direct influence on decisions about the policies, legislation and services which affect them
• Disabled people are empowered and have direct influence on decisions about the policies, legislation and services which affect them
• Disabled people experience improved wellbeing, independent living, choice and control through participating in or engaging with DRILL
• Exert a positive influence on policy making and service provision to support disabled people to achieve independent living, through the coproduction of a robust set of research findings

The dissemination of research findings will be extremely important in influencing change and providing positive examples of the achievements of disabled legal professionals.