Peter QuinnSenior Disability Adviser & Deputy Head of Equality and DiversityDisability Advisory ServiceEquality & Diversity UnitUniversity of Oxford

Another perspective on what we can learn from our 2006 Disability Equality Schemes and Their Action Plans

NADP one day conference

Wednesday 16th September 2009Birmingham

Oxford’s Equality and Diversity Unit: Has responsibility for producing and for delivering the key objectives of

the equality schemes for race, disability and gender and for working to promote equality across all the equality strands, which also include sexual orientation, religion and belief and age.

Provides practical support and advice to, and about, disabled students and staff. As well as a childcare service to staff and students, it runs the harassment advisors' network, and a recruitment monitoring operation.

Also works to promote awareness of equality and diversity issues among all members of the collegiate University. This includes developing the understanding of legislation, the positive duties to promote equality, and the research, teaching and outreach benefits of a diverse and inclusive academic community.

Oxford’s Disability Equality Scheme (DES)

The scheme is informed by the social model of disability, which requires that the ‘barriers’ or elements of social organisation that exclude people who have impairments should be identified and removed.

Examples of such barriers include:

inflexible organisational procedures and practices inaccessible information inaccessible buildings and inaccessible transport discriminatory health and social support services

DES Working Party

Oxford’s first DES was produced with the involvement of a working party with members including:

Senior Management (2 pro-vice chancellors / 1 head of College) Undergraduate and Graduate disabled students Academic and Non-Academic disabled staff Representatives from colleges and university departments

Collaborated with other public bodies to engage disabled people from the local area as well as regional and national organisations in an involvement exercise which was cited as an example of best practice by ECU

Collaboration with other bodies

Five organisations collaborated to involve:

Oxford Brookes University Oxford City Council Oxfordshire County Council Oxford University South Oxfordshire District Council

Michelle Montgomery (nee Holliday) from Oxford Brookes championed the proposal to collaborate but after initial meeting all committed time and finance to the work. NHS bodies approached but did not respond.

Why collaborate?

Prevented 5 organisations going to same groups / organisations.

Enabled 5 to share limited resources and time.

Draw on existing links and ‘consultation’ experience taking forward into ‘involvement’

Good to work with other organisations

Advantages outweigh disadvantages

‘Meaningful’ involvement

Face to face personal contact important

Combat consultation fatigue (pre-DES fatigue)

Persuade those involved that we have a genuine desire to involve

Explain process and possible outcomes

Manage expectations

Listen to historical issues and move forward

Promoting Disability Equality (8 June 2006)

150+ Groups invited to half day event (morning)

Travel expenses paid, landmark venue, nice food

Persuade those involved that we have a genuine desire to involve

Venue organised cabinet style with tables for contributors to sit and discuss in small groups.

Each table was supported by a facilitator and note taker and included a good mix of organisations to aid balanced discussion.

Promoting Disability Equality (8 June 2006) cont

Groups concentrated on exploring issues and discussing problems faced by disabled people and considering possible solutions to these as well as identifying examples of existing good practice that could be shared.

Michelle Holliday of Oxford Brookes opened the event.

Background information provided by Peter Quinn of Oxford University. The introduction included:

an update on DDA legislation what a Disability Equality Scheme is why we are introducing one what it will be used for and who it is intended to help

Promoting Disability Equality (8 June 2006) Conclusions

Overall day was a success and led to lots of information for DES process including suggestions of overcoming barriers identified.

‘One year on event’ planned so we could formally respond to all involved with evidence of action plan progress although contact made throughout the year with many of the groups.

brookes.ac.uk/services/hr/eod/disability/joint_consultation/index.html

A good start. But……

Promoting Disability Equality (8 June 2006) Lessons

Learned:

140+ groups invited via official letter including ring rounds, meetings, emails, letters, newsletter inclusion etc but only 20 attended.

Different approaches by collaborators on carrying forward their DES’ led to less and less buy in by some

Consulting Fatigue and Idealism

This was the beginning of a process!

One year on event: (26 September 2007)

Held at one of Oxford’s Colleges with lunch provided as well as parking restrictions relaxed and expenses paid

All collaborators (except SODC) gave quick feedback on progress to date on action plans

Round table discussions to discuss barriers identified before or during day

Lunch and informal discussions

One year on event: (26 September 2007) Conclusions

Valuable to have one year on event but many of groups from original did not return

Participants liked coming to University but some may have been put off by venue (not inaccessible but may be viewed as such)

Realisation that approach needed to be tweaked for ongoing sessions

Continued involvement at Oxford University

Drawing on the links made via the involvement events the Disability Advisory Service facilitates involvement for a huge variety of University activity including:

Implementation of a new VLE Museum signage projects

‘House style’ University Grad & UG prospectus

Tendering for Groupware Teaching and Learning Space Review

Development of training BESC Access feedback

HR information System Project University websites

DES: into SES?

Already undertaking ‘Cross Strand’ collaboration with Race Equality colleagues on Hate Crime

Widening our termly DES info share events to other Equality Strand attendees but the focus is still Disability

Collaborating to update committees and other internal and external bodies on progress

However, fundamentally the ‘meaningful involvement’ has been so powerful that we will maintain this and other ‘core’ DES activity in spite of the end format

More info / Contact

Oxford’s DES including links to involvement events and annual reports www.admin.ox.ac.uk/eop/disab/des.shtml

Pete Quinn: peter.quinn@admin.ox.ac.uk