Physical improvements
From Our Toolkit
If you are planning improvements to your building or site it would be best practice to include accessible facilities. You may wish to consider the following:
A Changing Places toilet
Ordinary accessible toilets do not meet the needs of everyone with a disability. Changing Places toilets have been designed to meet a greater range of needs.
Induction loop
Portable induction loops can be brought and systems installed retrospectively. To find out more about induction or hearing loops, Hearing Link explain how they work.
Seating
A range of seating with and without arms rests, and resting points, at regular intervals around your building.
QR codes
To access interactives requiring hand use for those with limited hand function. There are lots of online services which can generate QR codes for you. If you are unsure how to use these codes search for using QR codes on YouTube and there are a number of videos demonstrating how they can be used.
BSL
Use local signers as BSL has regional accents. Signers can be booked by the hour and a guide price is £35 an hour. To find a signer in your local area you can use the database on the National Registers of Communication Professionals website.
Braille & Moon
Tactile writing systems used by people who are visually impaired. They are traditionally written with embossed paper. The Royal National Institute for the Blind have useful information on their website about producing Braille and Moon text.
Widgit
Use to create easy to read visuals, Widgit Online is a resource that helps support their creation.
Makaton
Makaton is a unique language programme that uses symbols, signs and speech to enable people to communicate.
Descriptive text
A descriptive text usually focuses on describing a single location, object, event, person, or place. It is a text that wants you to picture what is being described. Literacy Ideas has How to write a Descriptive Text – A Complete Guide which provides step-by-step guidance on descriptive text writing.
You could consider adding in different sounds to your exhibits to enhance the experience and adding audio description to photos and images. VocalEyes is a good place to start to find out more about audio description.
Any new physical improvements should be planned in conjunction with accessible design guidelines. For further information see the Accessible design subject in this toolkit.
