HEADER IMAGES Photography by James Cochrane, courtesy of Copenhagen Fashion Week
As a new season of London Fashion Week approaches, I’m drawn to reflect on the AW25 runways and their impact. Aside from the countless trend reports (in: cherry red & high-fashion frump, out: pillar-box red & underwear as outwear) and ample analysis trying to figure out what these clothes say about contemporary culture, we’ve also seen a fair share of criticism.
London Fashion Week, long hailed as a burgeoning ecosystem of emerging talent, has been criticised for “losing its cool”, largely due to structural shifts across the city – including the near-death of wholesale – that are putting relentless pressure on developing brands. This inevitably leads to fewer start-up success stories and an increasingly predictable pile of names on each season’s schedule. There has been some resurrected hope here thanks to the appointment of Laura Weir as the British Fashion Council’s new CEO – who has scrapped designer fees and widened LFW’s events to include cities outside of England’s capital – however it appears too early for many to feel reassured just yet.
Another critique was directed at the decline in size inclusivity on the runway. Vogue Business’ AW25 size inclusivity report noted that while curvaceous silhouettes were everywhere on the runway, as little as 0.3% of models were plus-size. Writer Rebecca Jane Hill summed up this disappointment in her op-ed ‘I’m Bored Of Fashion Hating Big Breasts’: “Fashion likes to think it is an inclusive home for those who are outcast elsewhere. But it is still an industry that, like all others, exists within a patriarchal society.”
These narrow ideals of beauty have plagued the fashion industry for centuries, and despite some signals of progress in recent years, AW25 proved once again that inclusive intentions, however pure, aren’t enacting tangible change in the diversity of models we’re seeing in the spotlight. And despite some small improvements in the number of models of colour, mid-size (UK size 10 – 16) and gender non-conforming models, disabled people are still waiting to see themselves included.
Considered the “last taboo”, disability is perhaps the marginalised identity that sits furthest from the hegemonic beauty standards set out by the fashion industry – despite being the largest minority group, making up 15% of the world’s population. In 2023, Refinery29 reported that as few as 0.02% of models in fashion campaigns were disabled. Perhaps even more troubling, this minuscule percentage is largely thanks to a handful of designers who have woven inclusivity into the ethos of their brands, carrying the industry’s inclusivity statistics on their backs while the rest remain silent.
Disabled inclusion in fashion is about much more than simply seeing models walk down the runway. For disabled people, access to the fashion industry is as equally limited as their representation is. From inaccessible show spaces and unnecessary strobe lighting (I personally never need to attend another basement-bunker-faux-warehouse-rave ever again) to the refusal of plus ones for support workers, runway shows rarely consider the needs of disabled attendees. As a disabled journalist in the fashion industry, I am regularly appalled at the lack of consideration across these event spaces.
For disabled people, access to the fashion industry is as equally limited as their representation is. From inaccessible show spaces and unnecessary strobe lighting (I personally never need to attend another basement-bunker-faux-warehouse-rave ever again) to the refusal of plus ones for support workers, runway shows rarely consider the needs of disabled attendees.
Madeline Reid
This is even more pronounced for visually-impaired people, who are frequently not considered or included at all. It’s an ignorant assumption to presume that because someone has low or no vision, they won’t be interested in fashion, or should stick to function-focused designs that forego personal style – as if visually-impaired people don’t have the same opportunity to choose what clothes they want to wear and what these choices say about themselves. If anything, my experiences engaging with disabled creatives across the industry proves the opposite. The agency that dressing up gives disabled people is like a superpower; not as a way to hide beneath our clothes, but through utilising these choices to express what we want people to see about us first.
Thankfully, at London and Copenhagen Fashion Weeks, this is starting to change due to the work of revolutionary charity Hair & Care. Founded by award-winning hair stylist Anna Cofone in 2019, the charity has supported over 500 blind and low-vision women with styling their hair, along with activating at fashion weeks across the globe. Starting with the development of audio descriptions for visually-impaired attendees, Hair & Care has since supported blind model and content creator Lucy Edwards walk for Sinead O’Dwyer’s Zalando Visionary award win at CPHFW SS25, and brought guests from some of the UK’s leading sight loss charities to the front row.
For AW25, the charity partnered with renowned rising stars SS Daley and Chet Lo to make their fashion shows more accessible for blind and low-vision guests. Entitled Making Fashion Accessible, the charity’s fashion-forward initiative arranged touch tours of the collections at designers’ studios, as well as a post-show walkthrough with Daley.
“As sighted people, we take so much for granted. Fashion, as well as the shopping experience as a whole, is included in that, with the consumer experience being vastly different and largely challenging as a blind or low vision person,” explains Cofone, who grew up with a blind parent. “What we’ve seen with having blind and low vision individuals attend the shows, is guests walking away feeling included and inspired. Specifically from the touch tours, they’ve been able to learn so much more about the clothes and the brands that they’re otherwise unable to access – ultimately feeling more included and willing as a consumer.”
That three-dimensional reaction in the moment of the touch tour explodes through a fourth wall where you feel the fabrics again as the audience gasps, claps, praises the design and translates the vision you’ve imagined into a wider understanding of the impact of the designers’ work.
Jane Manley, Deaf Blind Social Media Analyst at Royal National Institute of Blind People
Jane Manley, Deaf Blind Social Media Analyst at Royal National Institute of Blind People who attended the Making Fashion Accessible programme for AW25, says that the touch tours shared more than just an insight into the collection, but the intimacy that blind and low-vision people lose with textures and silhouettes. “That three-dimensional reaction in the moment of the touch tour explodes through a fourth wall where you feel the fabrics again as the audience gasps, claps, praises the design and translates the vision you’ve imagined into a wider understanding of the impact of the designers’ work,” she explains.
During AW25, Hair & Care also collaborated for the first time with a luxury label. “Having Roksanda come on board has felt like a significant step in our journey and Hair & Care’s mission – having the recognition of a luxury brand and seeing their willingness to open up their craft in this accessible way is testament to its value,” Cofone explains. “We’re seeing a growing understanding among designers of the importance of inclusivity and accessibility, and hopefully it will inspire more brands to do the same.”
With disabled spending power valued at £274 billion pounds in the UK alone, and Vogue Business reports as much as $400 billion in the US by 2026, luxury fashion is finally taking note of this all-too-often dismissed demographic. But engaging a community is about more than just marketing: true inclusivity considers disabled consumers at every stage of the brand’s creative process. “There is so much value for brands and designers in opening up their shows and their craft to the sight loss community. Ultimately, there is this entire community of people who are largely excluded from the fashion industry, but are passionate and eager to take part,” Cofone shares.
“Having experienced the collection in an accessible way, guests have previously gone away and made purchases from some of the designers – which is testament to the importance not only to the sight loss community, but also to brands. For the designer, having the chance to learn more about the accessibility process, being able to speak to guests about their collections and describe the designs in ways they may have not previously considered, is hugely valuable.”
Beyond Vision is a powerful reminder that beauty, identity, and creativity should be accessible to all. This film is part of our broader mission to challenge outdated norms and build a more inclusive beauty and fashion industry. It’s about visibility, equity, and ensuring that blind and low-vision women are fully represented where culture and self-expression take shape.
Anna Cofone, founder of Hair & Care
This SS26 season, as well as working with two yet-to-be-announced luxury designers at Fashion Week, the charity will also debuted another first: a short film titled Beyond Vision made in collaboration with film director Hector Hilleary, showcasing the many inspiring women at the heart of Hair & Care’s workshops and the impact their work has had so far.
“We’re so excited to be taking Making Fashion Accessible on another season this London Fashion Week, and working to make more shows accessible for people with sight loss,” says Cofone. “Beyond Vision is a powerful reminder that beauty, identity, and creativity should be accessible to all. This film is part of our broader mission to challenge outdated norms and build a more inclusive beauty and fashion industry. It’s about visibility, equity, and ensuring that blind and low-vision women are fully represented where culture and self-expression take shape.”
Ultimately, Cofone’s aim is to continue advising brands in the beauty, fashion and haircare spaces – and for this to have an influential impact across the schedule. “When it comes to fashion week, the goal is for the accessibility we bring to these shows to be the norm, rather than a rarity,” she explains.
“There is still a long way to go when it comes to wider accessibility within the fashion industry, but through our work at fashion week, we want to inspire a better understanding of the need, and to see a future that is inclusive for blind and low vision people, for them to be able to enjoy fashion just the same as sighted people.”
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