Access All Areas 2019

Yesterday WECIL presented our second annual #AccessAllAreas event. It was hosted at We The Curious to formally launch our new partnership  with them - Inclusive Curious City.

A sold out event, over 300 people attended a blend of interactive and fun activities suitable for all the family with serious political campaigning which engaged some of Bristol's holders of the levers of power to discuss access and inclusion around transport, the environment and, of course - access to public toilets!

The activities included Accessible Circus and music workshops provided by Extrordinary Bodies - the UK’s leading, professional, integrated circus company and creators of bold, radical and joyous large scale performance. Extroduiary Bodies' David Ellington, a profoundly Deaf actor and a British Sign language (BSL) user, also signed a presentation on his career as an actor and performer which has included winning Best Actor for DEF in the Deaf Oscars and participating in the London 2012 Paralympic Opening Ceremony. David recognises the need to act as a role model in order to encourage young Deaf people to get involved in the creative industries and believes that being part of Extraordinary Bodies will help spread his message far and wide.

Despite my deafness I have no boundaries, there is nowhere I can’t go, and Extraordinary Bodies recognises and encourages that. I am able to explore and work with other people in ways I never have before. We are paving the way, discovering new forms, and overcoming new challenges every day. I hope that young Deaf and disabled people can look up to us, and follow our example in order to achieve their own goals.

Paralympian James Blackwell provided what was, for me, a deeply moving account of overcoming his personal struggle to hide his disability from the world - including his fiance, to whom he only 'came out' about his condition, cerebral palsy (a lesion on the brain that affects the left hand side of his body), two months before their wedding.

The whole audience was engaged with James' recounting of the childhood bullying that led him to hide the challenges he faces, seemingly ashamed of his difference. At times he appeared to be holding back tears, Many in the audience were incapable of holding back.

However, James' story is of course one that inspires. Coming from a position in which he felt he had to hold so much to himself, he went on to the 2014 CPISRA European Championships in Portugal, and the 2015 Cerebral Palsy World Championships where he earned England the highest ranking at fifth place securing his Paralympic place.

James now plays for England as a Class 7 and it is that middle-severity disability group which makes up at least five of the seven players on the field at any time for an international cerebral palsy team. 'Wearing the England shirt is what I love - every boy dreams of playing for England'

Paralympics Team GB Shooting Squad member Karen Butler, London 2012 finalist, gave a highly motivational talk, encouraging everyone to focus on what they do well and excel at that. I was relived when she spoke about this 'for example, you might be great at art, I am terrible at art, sport is my thing' (kind words, I have an Art degree, but can't kick a ball straight).

WECIL staff were intregued to learn that Karen began her shooting career as a Duke of Edinburgh Awards activity, as we have recently brought DoE in house as part of our youth provision.

The partnership being launched at this event, Inclusive Curious City, is a new development in WECIL's ongoing work with We the Curious. It will be the beacon for access and inclusion to social, cultural and learning opportunities in Bristol. Together with audiences from all backgrounds we will harness curiosity as the platform for user-led co-production and influence others to join us in working towards the world’s most inclusive city. 

It is hardly an unambitious aim, but this is why WECIL have partnered with such a high-profile venue. We the Curious have really taken access and inclusion very seriously and worked closely with WECIL to improve. I am very impressed with the levels of info on their website and they worked very closely with WECIL's Access Audit team on the major renovations that are happening to the space this year. In her speech yesterday, Donna Speed, COO of We the Curious even announced that this renovation will include a new Changing Space - something they have had as an ambition but have struggled with the expense of (due to the limitations of being a listed building). But an accessible building is not accessible to a disabled person if they can't get out of their homes and use transport to visit it, so we need all parts of the city to link together if we are to realise our ambition.

This is what the partnership aims to acheive.

To this end, I was also proud to announce yesterday that the Bristol Physical Access Chain (BPAC) have formally joined the WECIL Community.

For the past 20 years, BPAC, who are a collective of local disabled volunteers, have worked tirelessly with Bristol Council and other statutory bodies to remove barriers to access across the city and advise on improvements to a range of public buildings and spaces. They are now joining WECIL so that BPAC can continue to flourish as part of the team providing WECIL Access Audits and further support to WECIL’s Business Support clients.

Volunteers from BPAC worked with WECIL on the We the Curious Access Audit and BPAC have a strong track record of improving accessibility of Bristol's visitor attractions - including SS Great Britain and M-Shed to name but two that I passed on my way to the event. 

Mayor of Bristol, Marvin Rees said of the event and the partnership

It takes a ‘One City’ Approach of collaboration to make Bristol a city of hope and aspiration, where everyone can share in its success. And so, it’s fantastic to hear that, once again, the diverse and inclusive Access All Areas event is being hosted in our city.

WECIL and We the Curious are both key levers in our city, and their Inclusive Curious City partnership will provide a beacon for access and inclusion to social, cultural and learning opportunities in Bristol.

Both organisations were founder signatories to the Bristol Equality Charter, and their partnership delivers on its key commitments of promoting inclusion, participation and equal access; recognising, valuing and celebrating diversity; and making Bristol a welcoming city where everyone feels they belong.

In the past months, Bristol Physical Access Chain have formally joined the WECIL Community, further strengthening their work to improve the inclusivity of our city’s landscape.

I wish every success for this exciting day and for the ongoing work of the partnership.

My most overwhealming takeaway from the event was the extreme gratitude I received from so many of the attendees. It has been a wonderful summer, with so much going on. My family and I certainly take for granted that if we see an event that takes our interest, we will attend it in expectation of a good day.

For too many of our guests yesterday, such simple expectations are out of reach. For many of the people I spoke to, Access All Areas was the single fun event of the summer they felt confident would be inclusive of them – it meant a great deal to them to feel so provided for. That underlines how exclusive our society is and the importance of the work we do every day at WECIL and the need for our partnership with We the Curious.