Arts Council launches towards inclusion an arts & disability equality and customer care training manual "It is not a wheelchair-user’s fault that they cannot get into a building which has steps at the entrance. It is the fault of the design of the building. It is not the disabled person’s fault that somebody stares at them because they look different. It is the fault of the person doing the staring that they don’t know anything about disability and how disabled people can lead normal lives." The Arts Council this morning, 27 march 2003, launched a new publication designed to enhance customer care by raising awareness about disability. The publication is part of Widening Access, a joint initiative between the Arts Council and the Department of Culture, Arts & Leisure. It complements training delivered in March across Northern Ireland for front-of-house staff to improve existing customer care practices for people with disability. The training was delivered through Arts & Business NI. Participants in the training programme were present at the launch. Towards Inclusion was written by Kevin McLaughlin in association with the Arts Council’s Widening Access team. Speakers at the launch, in The Exhibition Space, W5, The Odyssey in Belfast, were Prof Brian Walker (Chairman of the Arts Council), Dr Aideen McGinley (Permanent Secretary of DCAL), who contributed the Preface to the publication, and Prof Gerry Mulligan (Chairman of the European Year of People with Disabilities). Prof Walker said, "We hope that a large readership will find it beneficial, including arts professionals, venue managers, district councils and individual councillors. We hope that it be recognised as a handbook of common sense and that it will support the development of good customer relations within a substantial market." |
