The Druid Network is committed to providing access
to events and information for all of its members as well as for the general
public.
In this spirit we are happy to make reasonable adjustments
to overcome the barriers that some disabled people may face when attending
our events, accessing our resources and working as a member of our staff.
We are aware of the Disability Discrimination Act and try
to work closely within it’s guidelines. For matters concerning the
DDA, we are not a private members organisation and we are happy to embrace
our responsibilities and work towards an equal future.
We classify a ‘disability’ as a permanent physical
impairment that would prevent a person from accessing an event or resource
without assistance.
This may include:
- People in a wheelchair.
- Blind people.
- People with a visual impairment.
- People with cerebral palsy or impaired movement.
- People with hearing impairments.
We recognise that culturally Deaf people do not consider
themselves to be disabled but that they may require communications support
such as a BSL/English interpreter.
Access
As we are a small voluntary organisation, we cannot afford
to pay expenses for interpreters, lip speakers, wheelchair lifts or publications
in brail. However, we are happy to work in partnership with people who can
provide these services for free and we welcome disabled or deaf people who
wish to bring their own service provider or specialised equipment to an
event.
Services and Equipment may include:
- A portable loop system.
- BSL communicator or interpreter.
- Ramps or lifts.
- Working dogs.
- Walking frames.
We cannot always guarantee that our venues will be disability
accessible. Sometimes we perform ceremonies or work shops in muddy fields,
in the rain or in the dark – this will be difficult for people to
access in wheelchairs, hazardous for electrical equipment such as a portable
loop and very hard to see a BSL interpreter. Unfortunately it is sometimes
necessary for us to use these venues but if you contact us in advance we
will try to do everything in our power to sort something out.
If a disabled or Deaf person wishes to bring their own
assistant or communicator to an event for which tickets must be purchased
through the Druid Network, the disabled or Deaf person must buy a ticket
but their assistant will be allowed entry for free as we recognise them
to be a service and not a consumer.
Please notify us in advance if you are
planning to do this and if we need to make any special arrangements to accommodate
the assistant.
Staff
The Druid Network operates a strict equal opportunity policy
and we do not discriminate when selecting our staff. If at any stage a person
feels that they have been discriminated against, please contact us to discuss
the matter.
Should a Deaf or disabled person become a member of staff
we will make any reasonable adjustments to accommodate their needs.
This may include:
- E-mailing, texting or using Typetalk for people
who cannot use the telephone.
- Corresponding in 14p font or above for people with visual
impairment.
- Voice messaging for the blind.
Printed Matter
If you require information in 14p font or larger, please
let us know when ordering any information from The Druid Network. We can
also provide information in BSL and we hope to find someone who can volunteer
a brail machine in the future.
If you would like further information on
our Disability Access policy, please contact the Office.
This document has been developed in association with SignPagan:
http://www.signpagan.org
