Spotlight Series: Avril Greham
Meet Avril, disabled advocate, speaker, Chair of the Mayo Disabled Persons Organisation and founder of Expanding Horizons.
[Image: A graphic with a black background featuring the words “Spotlight Series” in colourful, cut-out magazine-style letters. Below, white text reads: “This week we are chatting with…Avril Greham.” An image of Avril sits beside this text surrounded by a gold frame. Avril sitting in a wheelchair, taking a close-up selfie. She is wearing a teal Mayo GAA jersey with white stripes on the shoulders. Her short hair is styled upwards, and they have a facial piercing below their lower lip. Behind Avril is a bed with a bright, multicoloured patterned duvet, adding a warm and vibrant feel to the room. Images beneath this text include a megaphone, an open book, flowers, a Mayo flag and a Disability Pride flag. The Disability Participation News Hub logo appears in the top right corner.]
💡 Spotlight Series: Avril Greham
We are on a mission to get to know and highlight Ireland’s activists, advocates and allies!
Each month, we will aim the spotlight on incredible changemakers working to advance the human rights of disabled people across Ireland.
We are delighted to share our latest Spotlight Series Edition, where we are chatting with disabled advocate, speaker, Chair of the Mayo Disabled Persons Organisation, and founder of Expanding Horizons, Avril Greham!
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Enjoy this edition and we will be in touch soon! ✨
About Avril
Avril Greham (she/her) is a disabled advocate, speaker, and Chair of the Mayo Disabled Persons Organisation, based in Ballina. She’s spent nearly 20 years working in the public sector and brings both lived experience and straight-talking honesty to everything she does.
She’s the founder of Expanding Horizons, a disabled-led event that puts disabled voices front and centre through real conversations, not tokenism.
She’s also a proud Mayo woman, a loyal Mayo and Liverpool supporter, and someone who values community, good conversation, and saying things as they are.
Q. Hello Avril! Tell us a little about yourself and your work.
Avril: I’m Avril Greham. I’m a disabled person, a speaker, and an advocate based in Mayo.
A lot of what I do comes from lived experience. I’ve spent years navigating systems that weren’t built with disabled people in mind. That shapes how I show up in my work.
I’m the Chair of Mayo Disabled Persons Organisation, and I also run Expanding Horizons. That’s a live event platform where disabled people take centre stage, not as a tick box, but as experts. We’re talking real conversations, real stories, and sometimes uncomfortable truths about what inclusion actually looks like.
For me, it’s about shifting the narrative. Moving away from charity and into rights. Disabled people aren’t passive recipients. We’re decision-makers, contributors, and leaders in our own right.
Q. Do you have any advocacy priorities for the year ahead, what change are you hoping to see?
Avril: There’s a few things that feel urgent right now. First, disabled people need to be in the room where decisions are made. Not consulted as an afterthought, but involved from the start. That applies across policy, services, and public life.
The cost of disability is another big one. People are struggling. The conversation has been happening for years, but we need action now. That means a proper, non means-tested payment that reflects the real, everyday costs of living as a disabled person.
I’m also focused on pushing back against outdated thinking. The medical and charity models still show up in how services are designed and delivered. We need a stronger shift towards the social model, where the focus is on removing barriers, not fixing people.
And on a local level, it’s about building strong, disabled-led communities. Spaces where people feel heard, supported, and taken seriously
Q. What keeps you motivated in your advocacy?
Avril: It’s the people.
The messages, the conversations, the stories people trust you with. When someone says, “that’s exactly how I feel but I never had the words,” that sticks with you.
I also think back to my younger self. The moments of being left out, or made feel like a burden, without understanding why. If I can help shift that experience for even one person coming up behind me, then it’s worth it.
And honestly, I don’t think I could not do it at this stage.
Once you see the barriers clearly, you can’t unsee them. And once you realise that change is possible, even in small ways, you keep going.
Q. Anything you are looking forward to this year?
Avril: Expanding Horizons, without a doubt.
Happening on July 24th in Ballina, Mayo. Every year it grows a bit more, but what I’m really looking forward to is the room itself. We have some great speakers lined up this year. The energy, the conversations, the moments you can’t plan for. When people hear something that lands and you can feel the shift.
I’m also looking forward to building more through Mayo DPO. There’s something powerful about disabled people coming together, not just to talk, but to influence and shape what happens next.
Q. What’s your favourite way to unwind and look after your own wellbeing?
Avril: Music is a big one for me. Always has been.
If I need to regulate or switch off, I’ll stick on music and just sit with it. Lyrics especially. There’s something about finding your own thoughts in someone else’s words.
I also love going out for a good meal with good friends. Simple, but it does the job. Good food, a bit of laughter, and you come away feeling a bit lighter.
I also value quiet time more than I used to. Not every moment needs to be productive. Sometimes it’s just about stepping back and giving your head a bit of space.
Q. Anything people might be surprised to learn about you?
Avril: People might be surprised to know I’ve a real love for drama and storytelling.
I’ve been involved behind the scenes with the Ballina One Act Drama Festival for years, and I’ve also written my own pieces. A lot of it leans into humour, because sometimes that’s the best way to tell the truth.
There’s a freedom in storytelling that you don’t always get in everyday life.
Q. Any book recommendations for our online Book Club this year?
Avril: Born A Crime – Trevor Noah, Brutally Honest – Mel B, Weathering the Storm – Geraldine Lavelle.
Q. Do you have a favourite quote or saying that inspires you?
Avril: “Nothing about us without us.”
It’s simple, but it says everything. Disabled people should be part of the decisions that affect our lives. Not consulted after the fact. Not spoken for. Included from the start.
Q. Where can people find you if they’d like to follow your work?
Avril: Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/avrilgreham
Instagram: @avrilgreham & @expandinghorizonsie
Facebook: Expanding Horizons https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=61580477300308 & Avril Greham: https://www.facebook.com/byosh20
Website: www.avrilgreham.ie & www.expandinghorizons.ie
Catch us back here next month with another Spotlight edition!
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