What do You Need to Know about the Disability Laws?
The final part of the Disability Discrimination Act (DDA) came on to the statute books and became law in 2004. We find that that some Arts Venues are still not complying with the new laws – and some of those laws have been in place since 1996!
So why should you have to make all of these efforts for people with special needs?
- The PULL Factor:
There are around 8.6 million disabled people in this country – that’s about 15% of the population. They represent a large part of your market – they have a lot of money to spend and could be spending it in your venue.
- The PUSH Factor
The legal noose is tightening. Arts venues in the UK can be taken to court for failing to comply with disability legislation.
The Issue of Money
It would be lovely to throw a lot of money at disability issues to make them go away. If you had unlimited financial resources, that might be a possibility. In the real world, however, you can’t. For you, working in the arts, money will always be a key limiting factor.
The Way Forward
These are the two key steps you need to take to ensure that your venue complies with the law and offers the best possible service to people with disabilities:
- Identify the issues and put a long-term Action Plan in place. This will prove that you are aware of current limitations, and fully intend to address them when finances allow.
- Get your staff involved and motivated as a team to take ownership of the issues. We find that they can often be the best source of cost-effective and practical solutions. Moreover, if the ideas come from them, they are more likely to implement them enthusiastically.
How We can Make it Easier for You
Many arts organisations have already come to us for our Disability Toolkit. It’s a very practical, fun, interactive one-day course for you and your team that is run at your venue and tailored exactly to meet your needs.
Who is it for?
The Disability Toolkit is designed for all levels of management and staff – whether working in the box office, marketing, front of house, bars and restaurants, or stage door. It is especially useful for people from all parts of the venue to attend as it will help them support each other as part of one team.
Outcome
The outcome of this course will be:
- Your organisation will be able to meet the requirements of the Disability Discrimination Act (DDA)
- Your staff will be able to proactively find ways of providing an even better service to people with disabilities
Areas Addressed
- Looking at the Disability Discrimination Act (DDA) – how does it affect you?
- Disability is not just about blind, deaf and people in wheelchairs. What about mobility, mental health, facial disfigurements, body abnormalities and learning difficulties?
- How do you react to someone with a disability?
- Using words that don’t label people
- Putting your venue under the microscope – how user-friendly is it? (We will get you to look at your bars, restaurants, entrances, facilities, offices, auditoriums, stairs, etc. We’ll examine wheelchair access, evacuation plans, toilets, heights of counters, etc. And then we’ll look outside the venue – at pavements and parking restrictions)
- Do your signs and written materials make sense to people with disabilities?
- How do you talk to a customer with a disability? – what to say, and what not to say! How not to be patronising
- What is it really like to have a disability? An opportunity to put yourself in their shoes by trying some of our gadgets – partial reality spectacles, wheelchairs, earplugs, etc.
- How to lead a blind or partially-sighted person – an opportunity to practice with our special “dog”!
- Making money from people with disabilities makes good business sense
- Group and individual actions – how are you going to improve your venue and the service you offer to customers with disabilities?
How does it work?
It’s fun, practical and interactive. We use a range of well-proven, interactive training techniques, activities and visual aids.
During the day, we facilitate a session where participants actually look at each part of your venue through the eyes of a person with a disability. They are able to identify actions that can be taken to improve service to customers with disabilities.
Each participant recieves a comprehensive pack of handouts. And it’s tailored to your needs. We do this by phoning a sample of the management and participants beforehand to find out how we can make the biggest difference for you.
What extras are offered?
We maximise the effect of the training through giving your people some preparation work to do beforehand. During the course we get your people to commit to actions for improving the way they work. We will give you suggestions on how to keep the benefits of training alive after the course. And we provide free, unlimited follow-up and support by phone and email.
Where and when?
You decide. Most of our customers like us to organise the training at their venue at a quiet time. We don’t need a special room – quite often we train in the bar, restaurant or any other open space available. And you can let us know if an evening or weekend is more convenient.
Who leads it?
The Disability Toolkit is led by Jonathan Nash – an arts professional with many years of expertise in the area of disability.
What do people say about it?
An effective ‘un-patronising’ style that engaged the whole group
Excellent day – could not have wished for the course to have been improved in any way
Enjoyed the informal and comfortable training atmosphere
Relaxed but informative
Clear, accurate and knowledgeable
Handouts being presented in a folder ensures that they will have a permanent space in the office
Well presented – thought provoking. Will make me think more when dealing with any situation
It made me aware of just how unaware I was about my everyday surroundings
Excellent course, most enjoyable day. I have learnt a lot to take into work and everyday life
Jonathan was a very good tutor – kept the day alive, interesting and informative. Most of all created a friendly atmosphere where we could all contribute and learn
How much is it?
It’s £800 for the day (plus VAT). Trainer’s travel and accommodation (if required) will be charged at cost. Most customers prefer to copy their own handouts, to keep costs down (we email you the masters).
Is there a way to get it cheaper?
Some of our customers are able to get a reduced rate through Train to Gain www.traintogain.gov.uk Contact your local Business Link to enquire.
How to book it?
Call us on 01865 403203 or click here to email us.