Making heritage accessible - for everyone
Thanks to the Heritage Lottery Fund, Heritage Ability helped over 20 South West heritage destinations between 2017 and 2020 to become more accessible. These places then became role models to show what can be done to make our wonderful heritage more accessible and inclusive.
Heritage Ability was delivered by a team at Living Options Devon, a small disability charity in the South West.
Our solutions for people:
...with limited mobility
Many of the heritage places we worked with benefited from an all-terrain mobility scooter (or 'Tramper'). This enabled those with limited mobility to access the outdoors like never before. The Trampers were part of an existing Living Options Devon scheme called Countryside Mobility.
...who use British Sign Language
For Deaf people who use British Sign Language (BSL), we worked with the community to create BSL videos. Take a look at our locations pages to see where these are available. They are also available to view on our YouTube channel.
...with learning disabilities
Many of the destinations have complex histories and stories that can be overwhelming. We made Easy Read products to break down these barriers so that anyone can access this heritage information.
...with visual impairments
Particularly in museum settings, the written information can be inaccessible for people with visual impairments. We made large print guides with accompanying maps, to help unlock the information and assist people to navigate around the attraction.
...with autistic spectrum disorder
One of the biggest challenges for someone with autistic spectrum disorder is the fear of the unknown. We created Visual Stories, and guides that detail what can be unwelcome surprises at the destinations helping autistic visitors feel more at ease and prepared before a visit.
Training
In addition to a raft of accessible products and solutions, we also trained staff and volunteers in Disability Awareness and Deaf Awareness.
