Welcome to the Course
Welcome to the Capacity Building of Persons with Disabilities for Self-Advocacy Skills course.
This course has been developed to support persons with disabilities, particularly persons with physical disabilities, to strengthen their self-advocacy skills, understand their rights, and engage more confidently with institutions and service providers.
Although strong inclusion policies and legal frameworks exist in higher education and service delivery in many countries, persons with disabilities may continue to experience marginalisation, structural barriers, and limited access to the advocacy skills needed to claim their rights. This course responds to that gap by drawing on the lived experiences of persons with physical disabilities, alongside consultation with educational leaders, governmental bodies, and non-governmental organisations.
The course is grounded in a rights-based approach to disability. Rather than viewing disability through a charity-based lens, the course supports learners to understand disability inclusion through the principles of independence, dignity, equity, participation, and access. Through this digital learning journey, participants will learn how to use policy, law, evidence, communication, and peer support as practical tools for self-advocacy.
Project Overview
This course forms part of a British Council-supported project focused on building the capacity of persons with disabilities for self-advocacy skills. The project brings together partners from Pakistan, the University of Lahore, and the United Kingdom to develop accessible, practical, and sustainable learning resources that can support disability inclusion in higher education and wider service delivery settings.
The project aims to strengthen confidence, knowledge, and practical advocacy skills among persons with disabilities, while also supporting institutions and stakeholders to better understand and respond to accessibility, inclusion, and rights-based needs.
General Course Objectives
Interpret Policy Frameworks
Develop an understanding of international, national, and provincial disability laws and policy frameworks, including the United Nations Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities, and consider how these frameworks apply in everyday situations.
Identify and Address Barriers
Recognise physical, digital, communication, and administrative accessibility barriers, and understand how legal and institutional standards can be used to request appropriate corrections or accommodations.
Formulate Rights-Based Requests
Connect personal lived experiences with statutory and institutional obligations in order to engage with relevant organisations, prepare written requests, and understand possible escalation pathways.
Strengthen Self-Regulation and Resilience
Develop strategies to respond to disability-related challenges, set personal development goals, and build confidence through peer support, community engagement, and collective advocacy.
Who Is This Course For?
This course is designed for:
- Persons with disabilities who wish to strengthen their self-advocacy skills
- Students in higher education
- Disability inclusion focal persons
- Academic and administrative staff
- Healthcare, rehabilitation, and social care professionals
- Community organisations and advocates working in disability inclusion
- Policymakers, institutional leaders, and service providers interested in inclusive practice
What the Course Includes
Participants will have access to:
- Digital learning modules
- Participant guides
- Practical self-advocacy resources
- Training materials
- Tools to support rights-based communication
- Guidance on identifying and responding to accessibility barriers
- Materials that can support disability inclusion within higher education and service delivery contexts
How to Register and Access the Course
To access the online course, please visit the LMS platform using the link below:
Course link: https://lms.elumni.org/
Once you open the LMS platform, please follow these steps:
- Create a new account by choosing a username and password.
- Enter your email address during registration.
- After registering, check your email inbox for a verification message.
- If the verification email does not appear in your inbox, please check your spam or junk folder.
- Click the verification link in the email to confirm your account.
- Once your account is confirmed, log in to the LMS platform.
- Enrol directly in the course.
- Start the course and access the guides, modules, and learning materials.
- Complete the course activities and learning requirements.
- At the end of the course, you will be able to access a certificate of completion.
Important Registration Note
You must verify your email address before you can enrol in the course. The verification email may occasionally be directed to the spam or junk folder, so please check these folders if you do not receive the email in your main inbox.
Certificate of Completion
Participants who complete the course will be eligible to receive a certificate of completion. The certificate recognises participation in the British Council-supported training course on disability inclusion and self-advocacy skills.
Start the Course
To begin, please register through the LMS platform:
Access the course here: https://lms.elumni.org/
After registering, please verify your email address, log in, enrol on the course, and begin your learning journey.
More About the Project
The Capacity Building of Persons with Disabilities for Self-Advocacy Skills project is a collaborative initiative between Imperial College London and the University of Lahore, supported by the British Council Going Global Partnerships – Disability Inclusion Partnerships programme.
The project was developed to address an important gap in disability inclusion: while laws and policies exist to protect the rights of persons with disabilities, many individuals, families, carers, educators and institutions may not have the practical tools needed to understand, claim and support those rights in everyday life.
This course has been designed to support persons with disabilities to strengthen their confidence, rights awareness and self-advocacy skills. It uses a rights-based approach, moving away from charity-based views of disability and towards dignity, independence, participation and equality.
How the Course Was Developed
The course was developed through a participatory and evidence-informed process. The project team reviewed national and international disability policies, including disability legislation in Pakistan, the UN Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities, and relevant accessibility frameworks.
The curriculum was shaped through stakeholder consultations with persons with disabilities, parents, caregivers, academics, healthcare professionals, legal experts, NGOs and disability advocates. Lived experience was central to the design of the course, ensuring that the content reflects real barriers, practical challenges and local priorities.
The course was piloted through a Training of Trainers workshop, and feedback was used to strengthen the final learning materials.
What Participants Will Gain
By completing this course, participants will be able to:
- Understand key disability rights and policy frameworks
- Recognise barriers to inclusion in education, employment, public services and digital spaces
- Develop practical self-advocacy and communication skills
- Build confidence in requesting support and reasonable adjustments
- Create personal action plans for education, employment, wellbeing and digital engagement
- Connect with wider networks, organisations and support systems
Project Achievements
Through this project, the partnership developed a complete self-advocacy curriculum, trainee manual, trainer manual, teaching slides and online learning materials. The project also trained master trainers who can support wider delivery of the course.
The course was formally launched in May 2026 and reached participants from universities, colleges, healthcare institutions, NGOs, policy-facing organisations, persons with disabilities and caregivers across Pakistan.
Our Approach
This course is grounded in the belief that persons with disabilities are rights-holders, not passive recipients of support. Self-advocacy is about knowing one’s rights, understanding available support systems, communicating needs clearly, and taking informed action to improve participation in education, employment and society.
The course supports learners to move from awareness to action, building confidence, resilience and practical skills for meaningful inclusion.
The course includes six core modules:
Module 1: Rights and Policy Literacy
Understanding disability rights, relevant laws and how to apply a rights-based approach in everyday situations.
Module 2: Accessibility and Supports
Identifying physical, digital and administrative barriers, and learning how to request reasonable adjustments and support.
Module 3: Life Skills for Empowerment and Advocacy
Building confidence, communication skills, decision-making capacity and personal advocacy plans.
Module 4: Psychosocial Well-being and Resilience
Understanding stress, stigma and emotional wellbeing, and developing practical resilience strategies.
Module 5: Education and Employment Pathways
Exploring rights and opportunities in education, employment, entrepreneurship and professional development.
Module 6: Digital Knowledge and Networking
Using digital platforms safely and effectively for learning, advocacy, networking and accessing opportunities.
This project was delivered by:
University of Lahore
University College of Medicine and Dentistry
Centre for Health Professionals Development and Lifelong Learning
Associate Partner
Iwish Ventures, Pakistan
Imperial College London
School of Public Health, Faculty of Medicine
WHO Collaborating Centre for Public Health Education and Training
Supported by
British Council Going Global Partnerships – Disability Inclusion Partnerships
Tanzila Raza Khan
Disability Inclusion Consultant and Co-Facilitator
Founder, Iwish Ventures, Pakistan
Tanzila Raza Khan contributed her lived experience and disability inclusion expertise throughout the project, supporting stakeholder engagement, curriculum development, training and evaluation.
Professor Lubna Ansari Baig
Project Co-Lead, Pakistan
Director, PhD Programme in Health Professions Education, University of Lahore
Professor Saima Chaudhry
Project Co-Lead, Pakistan
Director, Centre for Health Professionals Development and Lifelong Learning, University of Lahore
Dr Khulood Tariq
Project Coordinator
Assistant Professor of Dental Public Health, University of Lahore
Professor Mahwish Arooj
Pakistan Lead
Principal, University College of Medicine and Dentistry, University of Lahore
Celine Tabche
UK Co-Lead / Deputy Principal Investigator
Co-Director, Teaching Fellow, Imperial College London
Professor Salman Rawaf
UK Principal Investigator
Director, WHO Collaborating Centre for Public Health Education and Training, Imperial College London
Wider Contributors
The project was also shaped by persons with disabilities, parents, caregivers, academics, healthcare professionals, legal experts, NGOs, disability advocates and policy-facing stakeholders who contributed through consultations, curriculum development, training and dissemination activities.