Universal Design and Accessibility Policy

Background to Dublin City Council Culture Company

Dublin City Council Culture Company runs cultural initiatives and buildings across the city with, and for, the people of Dublin.

We collaborate with people, communities, cultural organisations, businesses, and Dublin City Council to embed cultural experiences and increase cultural participation throughout Dublin.

Dublin City Council Culture Company was incorporated in March 2018. Our vision is a Dublin where creativity and access to culture builds lasting connections between people and the place they live.

Our mission is to deliver sustainable impact through accessible and engaging cultural experiences that expand cultural habits, build connections and grow cultural confidence.

Universal Design and Accessibility Policy

Dublin City Council Culture Company is committed to developing policies and practices ensuring that accessibility, Universal Design and reasonable accommodation for people with disabilities are taken into account when providing services for Dublin’s citizens, communities, cultural organisations, businesses, and Dublin City Council itself.

In order to ensure the highest levels of accessibility and reasonable accommodation for people with disabilities are being met, Dublin City Council Culture Company will continue to monitor and report on these policies and practices.

This Universal Design and Accessibility Policy reflects the Dublin City Council Culture Company commitment to meeting its obligations under the following pieces of policy and legislation:

• UN Convention on Rights of People with Disabilities, which identifies the rights of persons with disabilities, and sets out the obligations on the State to promote, protect and ensure the human rights of persons with disabilities, and also establishes mechanisms to support implementation and monitoring.
  
  
• The Equal Status Acts 2000 to 2015, which prohibit discrimination (including harassment, sexual harassment and victimisation) in the provision of goods and services on nine equality grounds (gender, civil status, family status, religion, age, disability, sexual orientation, race and membership of the Traveller community). It also requires reasonable accommodation to be provided for people with disabilities. (Protection is provided on a tenth ground - the housing assistance ground - but only in housing-related contexts.)
  
  
• The Employment Equality Acts 1998 to 2015, which prohibit discrimination (including harassment, sexual harassment and victimisation) in employment on nine grounds (gender, civil status, family status, religion, age, disability, sexual orientation, race and membership of the Traveller community).
  
  
• Section 42 of the Irish Human Rights and Equality Commission Act 2014 places a positive duty on public sector bodies to have regard to the need to eliminate discrimination, promote equality, and protect human rights in the exercise of their functions, in their role as employers and service providers.
  
  Public sector bodies must assess and identify the human rights and equality issues that are relevant to their functions, draft and implement an action plan to address such issues, and report yearly in a manner accessible to the public on their developments and achievements in this regard.
  
  
• The European Convention on Human Rights Act 2003 which requires Dublin City Council Culture Company to perform its obligations in line with the ECHR Convention rights.

• The Disability Act 2005 including:
  
  
  • Part 3 which provides for Access to Public Buildings (s25), Access to Services including Access Officer (s26), Accessibility of Services Supplied to a Public Body (s27), Access to Information (s28) and Complaints (s38-40).
    
    
  • Part 5 of the Disability Act 2005 which relates to employment.
    
    
  • Part 6 of the Disability Act 2005 – Universal Design.
    
    
  • The Safety, Health and Welfare at Work Act 2005 including Regulation 25 of the Safety, Health and Welfare at Work Act Regulations 2007.
    
    
  • The Building Control Act 1990-2007, including meeting the requirements of the Second Schedule of the Building Regulations (e.g. the requirements of Part B and M).
    
    
  • The National Disability Inclusion Strategy 2017 – 2021 which takes a whole government approach to improving the lives of people with disabilities, outlining aims and actions over eight themes (equality and choice, joined up policies and public services, education, employment, health and wellbeing, person-centred disability services, living in the community; and transport and access to places).
    
    

• The Safety, Health and Welfare at Work Act 2005 including Regulation 25 of the Safety, Health and Welfare at Work Act Regulations 2007.
  
  
• The Building Control Act 1990-2007, including meeting the requirements of the Second Schedule of the Building Regulations (e.g. the requirements of Part B and M).
  
  
• The National Disability Inclusion Strategy 2017 – 2021 which takes a whole government approach to improving the lives of people with disabilities, outlining aims and actions over eight themes (equality and choice, joined up policies and public services, education, employment, health and wellbeing, person-centred disability services, living in the community; and transport and access to places).

The access policy – key priorities:

To enhance the overall user experience, the delivery of improved services and enhanced local democracy, the Universal Access policy focuses on the following priority areas:

Key Universal Design and Accessibility Priorities for Dublin City Council Culture Company:

1. Commitment to Universal Design and Accessibility as part of all cultural initiatives.
   
   
2. Disability Access Audits.
   
   
3. Staff Training and Diverse Workforce.
   
   
4. Human Resources & Reasonable Accommodation.
   
   
5. Consultation, Feedback and Cultural Activities.
   
   
6. Information and Publicity.
   
   
7. Procurement of Goods and Services.
   
   
8. Facilities and Buildings.
   
   
9. Health and Safety.
   
   
10. Tours, Meetings, Seminars and Events within the Community.
    

Based on the priorities above, Dublin City Council Culture Company is highly committed, on an ongoing basis, to:

1. Delivering universally designed cultural initiatives for all citizens, communities, cultural organisations, businesses, and Dublin City Council to ensure equal access and participation for all in cultural activities. The Culture Company is also highly committed to demonstrating compliance with the Disability Act 2005 and the National Disability Inclusion Strategy 2017-2021.
   
   
2. Benchmarking existing levels of accessibility of their services, public spaces and public buildings and demonstrating compliance with Section 25/26/29 of the Disability Act 2005 and Action 25 of the National Disability Inclusion Strategy 2017 – 2021.
   
   
3. Providing Disability Awareness Training to ensure a diverse, highly skilled, knowledgeable staff, contractors and volunteers to deliver high-quality accessible services in a welcoming and friendly manner. The Culture Company is also committed to promoting Awareness Training amongst all key stakeholders (e.g. citizens, communities, cultural organisations, businesses, and Dublin City Council).
   
   
4. Maintaining diverse, highly skilled, knowledgeable, flexible and motivated staff, to deliver high-quality accessible services. The Culture Company is also committed to developing good practice in making reasonable accommodation for people with disabilities.
   
   
5. Involving people with disabilities to identify their universal design and accessibility needs in the creation, planning, delivery and evaluation of cultural initiatives in Dublin City, and to initiate, implement and manage cultural programmes and buildings for the benefit of the citizens of Dublin, locally and citywide.
   
   The Culture Company is also highly committed to assessing the results of these consultations and making access improvements to support individuals participating in cultural activities within their communities.
   
   
6. Ensuring information provided by the organisation (e.g. websites, annual reports, cultural strategy documentation, cultural toolkits, visitor guides, cultural maps) is universally designed and accessible to all people regardless of the age, size or ability. The Culture Company is also committed to ensuring the activities and events undertaken by the Culture Company are fully inclusive and strive to be accessible for all.
   
   
7. Ensuring the procurement of goods and services provided by the Culture Company address universal accessibility and are in compliance with section 27 of the Disability Act 2005, relevant EU Law and the EU Web Directive 2016.
   
   
8. Ensuring that their services and public buildings are fully accessible for all and in compliance with the requirements of Part M of the Second Schedule of the Building Regulations, Section 25 of the Disability Act 2005 and Action 25 of the National Disability Inclusion Strategy 2017 – 2021.
   
   
9. Ensuring that the needs of all visitors, volunteers, contractors and staff including people with disabilities are catered for in emergency situations. The Culture Company is also committed to ensuring all new health and safety policies, procedures and practices address the needs of people with disabilities.
   
   
10. Ensuring that all tours, meetings, seminars and events within the community are fully inclusive for all. The Culture Company is also highly committed to meeting the requirements of section 28 of the Disability Act 2005.

Further information

For further information on accessibility and reasonable accommodation for people with disabilities please contact:

Dublin City Council Culture Company,

14 Henrietta Street,

Dublin D01 HH34

Tel: 01 524 0346

E-mail: info@dublincitycouncilculturecompany.ie

Alternative formats available

Please note that this document can be made available on request in alternative formats including:

• Braille

• Large Print printed version

• Large Print PDF

• Electronic audio format

• Irish Sign Language (ISL)