Bert Massie has spent most of his adult life promoting equality and human rights of disabled people. From 2000-2007 he was Chairman of the Disability Rights Commission during which time the rights of disabled people were strengthened through legislation and through groundbreaking legal cases. Prior to that he was the chief executive of The Royal Association for Disability and Rehabilitation and was instrumental in ensuring that parliament passed the Disability Discrimination Act 1995.

He has been a member of many statutory committees concerned with meeting the needs of disabled people or advising ministers on appropriate policies. He has close links with many disability organisations and is a leading thinker on social policy issues affecting disabled people.

He is a trustee of a number of charities including Motability, Habinteg Housing Association and is a Governor of Liverpool John Moores University. In April 2008 he was appointed as Commissioner for the Compact –which is an agreement guiding relationships between statutory and third sector organisations. He is also a Commissioner of the Equality and Human Rights Commission, a non-executive director of Appleshaw Group plc and has his own consultancy business, Bert Massie Ltd.