Is Scope Disability Friendly anymore?
Do you find Scope non-friendly, toxic and not disability friendly?
This site used to be great and full of people who looked out for each other, but over the years it has been in serious decline.
So many people have left this site over the years through bullying, toxicity and just generally not getting the help they so desperately need. The site is full of trolls/toxic people who want nothing more than to cause issues and get threads closed. Mods do nothing but support it most of the time, and will often just push things aside and close a thread.
This forum is nothing like it used to be.
Then comes the changes to the forum, making the text really small on a disability website whereby people have to strain to view anything. Most people can't even read things anymore on the website. If this was a mistake then fine, but why do you insist on doing changes on the site on Fridays, knowing full well that if it breaks your not in over the weekend to fix. This is not the first time this has happened and you had to be asked to put website back.
Sorry I needed to rant, but this site is dead to what it used to be and just a shell of its former self. I used to be a huge fan os Scope and would make regular monthly donations to help, but not anymore.
Scope is now the least disability friendly site which I know, which is shocking considering its a disabled charity.
Comments
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Thanks for sharing how you're feeling. It’s clear you care about the community, and we’re sorry to hear that your recent experience hasn’t felt positive. We also have a feedback form available if anyone wishes to raise their own concerns.
We take concerns about bullying and accessibility seriously. @rubin16 I know the team have already been in touch with you about this. But if you, or anyone experiences behaviour that breaks our community guidelines, please continue to report it so we can review it properly.
In terms of recent platform changes - many updates are made at a wider platform level, and we don’t always control the timing of those releases. When issues arise, we work to identify them quickly and make adjustments where we can.
The smaller text size was raised late yesterday evening and has already been corrected today. We appreciate members flagging issues like that so we can resolve them promptly.
If anyone else is looking to share feedback, please avoid naming or criticising other members in this thread. If you have concerns about specific interactions, report them directly so we can review them fairly.
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If you think this place is toxic, you ain't been on Facebook or Twitter recently.
I deleted my Twitter account last year because of how toxic it was and I'm strongly considering deleting Facebook, and this time it STAYS deleted.
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Tbh I don't have or use any social media, I deleted and stopped using them years ago even before joining Scope.
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You'll probably noticed that some people have made the wrong decision with the wrong words at times (me included) and you've had a go slow in posting to remind you. But to be honest it's not just your forum and there are other people who will disagree with you at times,this makes for a far more better forum. If the mods close threads or change the way the website looks, they do it to try to please everyone and not just a single person.
I like what they've done with the layout, but it's not for everyone. You can adjust some settings on your pc or tablet to make things bigger to suit your self.
But I can't say all that is a reason for jumping ship or allocating blame.
Kind regards SwiftFox
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I tend to avoid engaging in some threads, particularly where politics are being discussed because of the constant insults regarding political parties, their supporters and individual politicians some people clearly despise.
There is absolutely no need whatsoever to insult politicians based on perception of their appearance or to label them with derogatory terms.
We have lost many lovely members and their engagement with the community, their support and 'precense' is missed here by many of us so yes things have changed in that respect.
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I think rubin16 raises some important points that are worth reflecting on as a community.
I understand that moderating a space like this is genuinely difficult, and I appreciate the work that goes into keeping it running. That said, I do think there is value in engaging with these concerns openly rather than directing them solely into private channels. When issues relate to community culture, accessibility, safeguarding, and the overall feel of the space, they affect everyone, and visible engagement helps build confidence that they are being taken seriously.
The accessibility point particularly resonated with me. A disability charity's own platform should be leading the way on accessibility, not playing catch up after changes go live. I appreciate the text issue was resolved quickly, but having robust testing in place before deployment would go a long way toward preventing these situations.
I also think it is worth gently pushing back on the idea that being better than Twitter or Facebook is a meaningful benchmark. This community exists for a specific purpose and serves people who may have very few other safe spaces. It should be held to a higher standard, not because anyone is doing a bad job, but because the mission demands it.
Safeguarding is part of that higher standard. When conversations about safety, boundaries, or the tone of the community are moved out of sight, it can unintentionally signal that these concerns are secondary. Keeping safeguarding discussions visible, handled with care and sensitivity, reinforces that this is a space where people can trust both the environment and the processes that protect it.
I like Rubin remember when this community felt like a genuinely supportive place, and I would love to see that energy return. A conversation about how we collectively get there, with accessibility and safeguarding at the centre, would be a really positive step.
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BE THE CHANGE YOU WANT THE WORLD TO BE
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I truly believe most people post with the best of intentions, but perhaps don’t always realise how their words come across. It sometimes feels like certain members extend the benefit of the doubt to some posters and not to others, which can result in people responding defensively. I have had to take a pause and reflect a number of times.
I want to gently offer a different perspective on the idea of having these conversations publicly and framing them as “collective.” From my experience, public discussions are rarely truly productive beyond giving people a space to vent and leaving others feeling further excluded or potentially targetted.
Even when no one is named, people can start to wonder if comments are about them. That can leave individuals feeling hurt, defensive, or quietly targeted. It can also lead to assumptions and increased tension that might not otherwise exist.
For what it’s worth, I’m personally quite content here. I haven’t made close friends yet, and I have witnessed some conversations that have felt tense or even hostile at times. I’ve also seen patterns where certain exchanges become more charged depending on who is involved, which is sad to see, but I don’t think it’s always intentional. I think most of us live in our own bubbles and don’t always realise how we’re coming across.
Despite that, I enjoy logging in and find myself using the forum more and more in my free time.
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Appreciate the sentiment in your comment. The issues being discussed here relate to accessibility, safeguarding, and the overall culture of the community, and these are matters that depend on shared responsibility rather than individual action. Real progress comes from the whole community working together to create a safe, inclusive, and supportive environment for everyone.
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There's always a lot of people venting their views, the point is, some people don't get their views don't materialised.
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There's always a lot of people venting their views, the point is, some people don't get to have their views printed. I did the post above, then realised the mistake I'd made, but there isn't an edit button anymore?.
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The written word holds significant power in our lives.
Furthermore , the impact of words on our emotions and mental health is profound as negative and positive words can significantly affect our pyschological state. (Phychology today)
It is the interpretation of the written word by others that can change what has been written to how they understand it.
In a discussion on a Community forum it should be serving as a lively arena for in-depth discussion.
There will be different opinions that is what discussions are for, there will be members who agree with each other and some who do not.
It is only by listening to individuals that we will get to know what the majority of members want and need from the forum.
I think a feed back form is a good idea, but would like this to go further whereby the mods every three or six months do a thread of some of the concerns raised without any names so they could be discussed by the whole forum.
I personally do not think the forum is any worse or better than it has ever been opinions vary, members come and go as they move on to other things. I just think it sometimes gets more personal than it should.
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I agree with parts of what rubin has said & some of the responses he's received, which, to my mind, reinforces that having discussions openly can be helpful in understanding how everyone feels.
I certainly have found the forum quieter in recent months, &, tho I look on the forum, often don't feel like posting. The forum has changed, which it will keep on doing as our membership changes, tho we certainly have lost some valuable members.
There's a time for raising matters with the Scope team (about individual concerns), whom I agree do a difficult job, & perhaps there's also a time to discuss what matters to us all publicly. We do need to get back that positivity/energy. Fortunately some members miss some posts where sadly some exchanges are not always pleasant.
I agree that the vast majority of our members post with the best of intentions, but with vulnerable members/those in a vulnerable position, safeguarding should be paramount. Transparency also matters in other areas. Threads do get closed I've also noticed, &, sorry to say, it has sometimes seemed like that a 'House rule' hasn't been broken by several members contributing, just easier to close/disappear.
I will continue to support Scope, but hope something is done to make this online community for all disabled people that important bit better.
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On many occassion i have felt almost ganged up on all my post was closed by same people disagreeing with my views instead of moving on i really did treasure this forum but have stepped back as its not good for mental health i umderstand one post but it was full on digging me out its not acceptable and its really upsetting
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Couldnt agree more
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If, as Rubin says, this has been going on for years then it's hardly the fault of new members, is it?
Yet new forum members - some new to social media even - can face intolerance and hostility from experienced members. Therein lies the problem.
We'll never replace Albus and he was the most unifying mod I had the pleasure of engaging with. Jimm was another.
BTW only mods can close a discussion! Some discussions are doomed from the start and many have nothing to do with disability.
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With respect, @WhatThe, this reads like the kind of misdirection people have been trying to point out.
Nobody has blamed new members for anything. Rubin’s point about these issues being longstanding was about the wider culture and systems here, not about newcomers. Turning it into an argument about people attacking new members creates a problem that nobody actually raised, and it pulls attention away from the real concerns around accessibility, safeguarding, and how discussions are handled.
The idea that some threads have “nothing to do with disability” also deserves a moment of reflection. This is a community for disabled people, which means the whole of our lives, including social threads, lighter conversations, and off topic chats, all have a place. Connection and belonging are part of disability life. Suggesting those conversations do not belong here feels like a very narrow view of what this space is meant to be.
And while it is true that only moderators can technically close a thread, people are talking about the dynamic where a discussion becomes so derailed or combative that closure becomes inevitable. That is something worth looking at honestly rather than dismissing on a technicality.
Mentioning former moderators is a kind gesture, but it does not address the concerns being raised now. The question is not whether past moderators were good. It is what the community needs today, and how we create a space that feels safe, accessible, and respectful for everyone. That means engaging with the points people are raising, not sidestepping them.
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SMILE AND THE WHOLE WORLD SMILES WITH YOU 😊
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Yes I noticed that Catherine.
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I wouldn't go as far as saying this place is toxic, but it does feel very different to when I first joined back in 2019. Though my health and abilities have declined considerably as well, so perhaps I'm projecting some of that on to external things.
I try to keep out of 'forum politics' because it's just not worth the stress. Keeping stress levels down is my number one priority nowadays. I much prefer to answer questions based on facts which I hope is of practical use to other members. I don't see many of the political threads being useful, as I doubt anyone on here has changed their political stance from reading a forum post, so the same arguments just go round and round endlessly.
I also see a lot of double standards and hypocrisy on here. But I also see that on other websites and have had it from 'real life' relatives for decades. I do wonder how people don't realise they're doing it. And of course it makes me wonder whether I do it without realising as well.
Just on a final note, I often see that two people feel attacked on here because they've both misunderstood each other. I honestly don't know how the mods are meant to decide who is 'right' in those situations, and am glad that I don't have to make those decisions myself.
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