Last month saw the publication by Arts Council England and Disability Arts Online of a digital guide to Access to Work.
Access To Work is a Department for Work and Pensions programme that offers grants to remove barriers when disabled people look for work; these may cover equipment, travel and support workers.
This guide looks at how the programme can be applied specifically to the arts and cultural sector where many people are freelance.
Abid Hussain, director of diversity at Arts Council England, said, “our latest diversity data shows that the number of disabled people working at arts and cultural organisations remains frustratingly low, and we want to accelerate the rate of change to increase that number… I hope [this guide] will support more disabled arts and cultural workers, and their employers, to navigate and make use of Access to Work and help make our sector more accessible for everyone.”
In addition to information for self-employed workers, for employees or prospective employees and for employers, there is also advice on how Access to Work relates to Arts Council Funding with case studies.
The guide comes in easy read format, audio-only and a video version with British Sign Language and optional captions. It can also be downloaded as a pdf or word file.