How the Office for Disability Issues is ensuring the needs of disabled people are addressed in the government's digital inclusion policy. Presentation by the Office for Disability Issues made to the eAccessibility Forum on 11 January 2011.
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Digitally included: Paving the way for the digital inclusion of disabled people
1. Digitally included: Paving the way for the digital inclusion of disabled people Simon Hogg Digital Communications A Bold Vision for 2014
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4. A Key Digital Statistic 74% of non-disabled people within the UK use the internet 48% of disabled people within the UK use the internet (OFCOM Digital Participation: 2010 Metrics Bulletin) A Bold Vision for 2014
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9. A Bold Vision for 2014 Our website was rewritten and restructured from scratch over the course of the summer. We wanted a website that gave quick and easy access to the tools and information we supply. Weâve also worked hard at optimising it for search, so you should find the information much more readily with Google. And of course we made sure that it was accessible to the widest range of visitors.
10. A Bold Vision for 2014 Weâve developed an accessible media player, which we want to make available to as many organisations as possible. It presents video and mp3s online to the highest accessibility standards, and is the first player to have been awarded RNIBâs Surf Right badge.
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13. Links and resources www.odi.gov.uk/communications www.odi.gov.uk/policy www.odi.gov.uk/facts www.odi.gov.uk/roadmap-to-disability-equality www.odi.gov.uk/player www.odigallery.co.uk A Bold Vision for 2014
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Hinweis der Redaktion
One of the things that ODI is keen to address is the removal of barriers within society. If you arenât familiar with the social model of disability, the easiest way to understand this is with the example of using a bus. Someone might be disabled because they are unable to board a bus with their wheelchair. Making the bus accessible by, for instance, offering level access, means that they can board it and, in this instance at least, they are no longer disabled. As Iâm sure you are aware, the digital agenda has increased in significance over the course of 2010. ODI is concerned that everyone, including disabled people, are able to take advantage of the growing digital economy, and donât face unnecessary barriers. Additionally, a study conducted by ODI in 2008 found that participants considered digital inclusion key to their feelings of social inclusion and participation. By ignoring (or not considering fully) the needs of disabled people service providers, whether within government or outside, risk actually increasing exclusion. Itâs relevant to businesses too: the Employers Forum on Disability produced a study that showed 83% of disabled people will avoid spending money with companies are inaccessible, far more than will actually complain to them.
This may be a familiar statistic to some of you, but it is worth considering. The interesting thing is that, when ODI explored this statistic in our Experiences and Expectations of Disabled People report, the reasons disabled people gave for not being online were broadly similar to those of non-disabled people, the biggest being that they didnât see anything in it for them. If we encourage people to get online without making it accessible, weâll simply be confirming their existing beliefs and make it harder to get them online in the future.
As you know, Race Online is working closely with organisations across government, private and voluntary sectors to set the pace for this area of digital inclusion. We fully support the aims of RO2012, and we got involved to ensure that the particular issues faced by disabled people are appropriately recognised as distinct from other excluded parts of society. Weâve had really positive discussions with them which have directly led to sharing information and expertise about disability. Weâve also provided lines for Martha Lane Fox about disability and are involved with the national digital inclusion conference later this year. We are working with them to get tools and info onto their website and out to their stakeholders.
At ODI we e ncourage all civil servants to buy into the principles of accessibility, meaning that more projects will be inclusive from the beginning. Itâs not a box-ticking exercise: it has real effects on real people. For example a poorly chosen colour scheme can prevent a site being used by someone who is colourblind, who then has to ring or visit an advisor, costing much more in time and money. We understand the financial pressures faced across the public sector at the moment. However, accessibility doesnât have to be expensive if you plan it in at the start: in fact, it will cost you much more if you try to do it after the event, when you may have no choice! Weâre in touch with BIS, with DWP, Directgov (board and franchise directors) and Cabinet Office to help them take measures to include disabled people in the design of online services We are also participating in governmental working groups like the eAccessibility forum, and the DWP digital inclusion network. Finally, we offering a connection between disabled peopleâs organisations and government departments. This helps people understand the real needs of what they must provide to meet the needs of disabled people at the earliest stages of online service development. EQ2025 is an NDPB that offers strategic, confidential advice to government on issues that affect disabled people . We are also piloting a Network of Networks, an innovative way of getting disabled people heard within government by drawing on the existing networks of disabled peopleâs organisations.
We have a range of capability building tools, most of which are available for download on our website at www.odi.gov.uk. Our digital products are something we have been developing over the last few months. Our website and accessible media player have both recently passed key milestones.
Our website was rewritten and restructured from scratch over the course of the summer. We wanted a website that gave quick and easy access to the tools and information we supply. Weâve also worked hard at optimising it for search, so you should find the information much more readily with Google. And of course we made sure that it was accessible to the widest range of visitors.
Weâve also developed an accessible media player, which we want to make available to as many organisations as possible. It presents video and mp3s online to the highest accessibility standards, and is the first player to have been awarded RNIBâs Surf Right badge.
We also have a number of leaflets and booklets available for download on our website. These include everything from an overview of producing accessible communications to guidance on commissioning accessible video. You can find an extensive range of statistics and definitions to help you understand how we measure disability equality. You can keep up to date with developments in ODIâs projects by subscribing to our monthly newsletter, ODInsight. Finally, we offer bespoke, practical accessibility advice to government departments, and run a very popular series of workshops for government communicators which introduce ideas about disability and what they mean practically.