Tue 14 Jul 2020 08.08 EDT
Last modified on Tue 14 Jul 2020 09.38 EDT
My sister Elisabeth Standen, who has died aged 75, spent most of her working life as an equalities adviser, helping councils and other bodies to promote inclusion for disabled people.
Disabled herself, Elisabeth undertook much of her work in Bristol, in particular with the university and the local council, where she provided disability equality training for medical and social work students, personal assistants and many others.
She also chaired the Bristol Disability Forum and the Association of Blind and Partially Sighted Teachers and Students, and in each made a considerable contribution to developing policy to allow disabled people to maximise their potential and to make buildings more accessible for them.
She was a very capable negotiator and influencer, always exhibiting diplomacy and charm but with clarity of purpose and a determination to succeed. Her contribution to the development of disability equality and inclusion in Bristol was immeasurable.
Elisabeth was born in Cardiff to Hetty (nee Last), a housewife, and Philip Worton, a hospital head porter. At birth she was found to have a congenital bone disorder that limited her mobility and impaired her vision and hearing. After a short time at her local infants’ school, she was sent to board at Exhall Grange school near Coventry, during which time, and following an accident, she became blind at the age of nine. As time went on, both her hearing and mobility continued to deteriorate.
Many believed her impairments would prevent her from making any academic progress, or indeed any progress at all in life. However, she was possessed of iron determination, quiet courage and a gentle humour that contributed, along with some inspirational people she met on the way, to her strong and successful defiance of such pessimisms. She gained O- and A-levels at Hereward College in Coventry in her late 20s, and at the age of 34 completed a degree in philosophy at Warwick University.
Her first job came in Nottingham in 1979, collecting data on disabled students’ post-university lives. This led on to a more substantial post two years later as Cleveland county council’s disability equalities adviser, followed by a move to Bristol city council as equalities officer in 1990, then the University of Bristol as a disability and equality consultant in 1998.
In 1974 she married Charles Standen an electrician, who played a significant role in building her confidence and awakening her to her capabilities. However, Charles died of cancer only five years into their marriage.
She was appointed MBE in 1992 for services to disabled people.
Retirement gave Elisabeth more time to pursue her enthusiasms; she was an avid gardener, an accomplished pianist, a prolific reader, a committed Catholic and a lover of life with many close friends. She also found a new interest in poetry, and a gift for writing it (two of her poems were published). She ran poetry workshops and gardening and creative writing groups on The Accessible Friends Network, an online community of visually impaired people. Shortly before her death she was completing an autobiographical novel called Shadows.
She is survived by me and her brother Philip.
Source: https://www.theguardian.com/society/2020/jul/14/elisabeth-standen-obituary
