ARTS & DISABILITY
Background The first Arts and Disability Conference was held in Craigavon in May 1994 and was organised by the, then emerging, Arts and Disability Forum in association with the Arts Council of Northern Ireland. The conference was a ground breaking event which highlighted the intention of the Arts Council to act strategically in this area. The following year the Arts Council of Northern Ireland published To The Millennium, A Strategy For The Arts In Northern Ireland The document identified a series of strategic initiatives intended to provide support to the development of the arts and disability sector. Issues such as representation, access, training and employment and participation in the arts. Key to these developments have been the improvement of closer working relations with arts and disability organisations in Northern Ireland and in particular, the support and development of the Arts and Disability Forum as the umbrella organisation for arts and disability organisations throughout Northern Ireland. This involved the publication and subsequent launch of New Works: A development plan for the Arts and Disability Forum in 1997. The publication was the first significant strategic document of its kind and is used as a practical development template.
Funding The Arts Council recognise the marginalisation experienced by disabled people and the need to work proactively to address this traditional imbalance. The council funds arts and disability projects and initiatives in a number of specific ways.
providing support to their annual programmes
Arts organisations receiving funding are also encouraged to involve disabled people
Training for Disability Equality Trainers The Arts Council of Northern Ireland has also been working closely with The Arts Council/An Chomhairle Ealaíon on a number of initiatives among which is the training for trainers scheme which is designed to develop the skills of disability equality trainers. In Northern Ireland the outworking of this scheme has provided The Belfast Waterfront Hall staff with quality disability equality training. The plan is to produce a document which will be regarded as a model of good practice for disability equality training in an arts venue. Arts & Disability Handbook This all Ireland publication was launched in April 1999 at the Hugh Lane Gallery Dublin. The Handbook is a joint initiative between the Arts Council’s of Ireland and provides information on a wide range of issues including:
The handbook was compiled by a team of researchers working in the Republic of Ireland and in Northern Ireland . The publication includes information about arts and disability throughout Ireland. The publication is available from Arts Council of Northern Ireland Arts Council. Arts & Disability Awards Ireland This new development is the result of building on the previous success of the Arts & Disability Awards in Northern Ireland and is a joint initiative between both Arts Councils in association with the arts and Disability Forum. Applications will be invited from individuals and collectives, working in any artform, by application each April. Awards will support creative people with disability in a number of ways. Engage 2000 The Arts Council and the Arts and Disability Forum jointly funded the touring exhibition Engage 2000. For further details concerning this exhibition go to the Engage 2000 page. Special Olympics World Games 2003 Towards Inclusion Document for World Games ( PDF Format ) Towards Inclusion Booklet Published Development Officer |
