Sophie's new model army

Although she only came runner-up, the real star of the reality TV show Britain’s Missing Top Model was surely Sophie Morgan. Having become disabled five years ago in a car crash, she says she is now determined to fight for inclusion

My accident changed things for me enormously. I never really thought about disability before I was disabled; it just wasn’t a part of my life, wasn’t in my world. But now obviously it’s a huge part.

Having lived in both worlds, it is really interesting to see how it’s so much harder than it should be for disabled people. For me it’s a new thing that I want to change and make it as easy as it was before. I’ve been introduced to it in an aggressive and violent way, I’m shell-shocked and I want to try and bring things back and change things I don’t see as fair. People born this way have a very different attitude but I think for me, I will always, always have a huge passion for changing the way we are approached, acknowledged and included.

The show demonstrated how visually shocking it was for someone like myself, who uses a wheelchair, to be on the catwalk. Maybe that’s what it would take to change things, something shocking, to mix people up. You don’t see disability in the public eye that often. If you were to see a Blue Peter presenter with a disfigurement or speech impediment, kids would grow up with that and it wouldn’t be such a big shock when they see someone like that on the street.

It would make it easier not only for people without disabilities to understand what it’s like but also for people with disabilities to feel a lot less ostracised and a lot more involved, not so separate from everyone else. It would bring an integration which I think is really important.

It’s not about bringing in disabled people for the sake of it, it’s that if there is someone who is right for the job, they shouldn’t be discriminated against because of their disability.

In many ways, we’re at an advantage because we have something unique about us that makes us stand out from the crowd. But that’s also a huge disadvantage. People often aren’t ready to allow us in, so it’s up to us to try our hardest to make things happen. We’re pushing doors that are closed. It’s important for us that if you want to make a change, to just go out there and do it. It will be difficult, but our lives are difficult anyway. It’s about us trying our hardest and trying to persuade people we can do it. It’s up to us to try and change things.

• Sophie Morgan was talking to Cathy Reay