Ben Andrews is a disabled entrepreneur, activist, and author. For the last 13 years, since the age of 17, Ben has committed himself to working towards a more inclusive world for disabled people, driven by his own personal, lived experience of disability.

This has seen Ben set up his own community interest company, Beyond Empower, to help places #DoItDifferently to support healthy, active lives for disabled people. Beyond Empower has worked with a range of organisations including the NHS, local authorities, leisure, sport, design and infrastructure to create accessible, inclusive communities in which disabled people have the opportunity, and knowledgeable support in place, to lead healthy, active lifestyles.

Ben has a keen interest in this space and regularly posts videos, blogs, and other content to campaign to raise awareness on topics and issues relating to disabled people through his @BenAndrewsINC channels.

Having worked with adults on access and inclusion for some time, Ben now wants to better engage children to think in more accessible and inclusive ways. He hopes to achieve this through his upcoming series of picture books, Better Places, set for release in late 2022, to help children think about how places can be made better for disabled people. Published by Tiny Tree Children’s Books, Better Places will offer a fun, light-hearted and interactive insight into the barriers disabled people face with the opportunity for the reader to put them right. Ben hopes Better Places will inspire the young minds of today to create a more aware, accessible and inclusive tomorrow.