To have the rights and protection that come from the Disability Discrimination Act, you need to meet the definition of disability laid out in the Act:

A physical or mental impairment which has a substantial, long-term adverse effect on a person’s ability to carry out his/her normal day to day activities.

- physical impairment means things like mobility impairment, blindness, hearing impairments etc
- mental impairment can mean a developmental disability or learning disability or it can include someone with a recognised mental illness like depression or schizophrenia.

The disability needs to have existed for at least 12 months ot be expected to last at least that long. Or to last for a persons lifetime if that lifetime is expected to be less than 12 months.

The law says you can be protected by the Act if you used to have a disability (for over 12 months) and are discriminated against because of it now (eg past mental illness).

The law protects people with a severe disfigurement. Like facial scars or withered limb.

The law protects people with progressive illnesses like cancer, MS and HIV as soon as they get the condition.

The law excludes people whose impairment relates solely to substance abuse, exhibitionism, fire starting etc

 

substantial means it cannot be a monor affect on your ability to carry out day to day activities.

Normal day-to-day activities means things that are part of everyday life like eating, drinking, moving around, using your hands, talking, hearing, seeing, understanding, remembering etc.