Disability Essentials is an eLearning programme that helps museum staff and volunteers ensure they are confident and skilled in their engagement with disabled people.

The course is broken into 5 short eLearning modules that learners can work through using their own device and at their own pace. This flexibility is ideal for public-facing roles, like Front of House, who struggle to ‘leave their station’ to attend training.

The offer

South East Museum Development is now recruiting museums who would like to enrol up to 10 team members to undertake the Disability Essentials eLearning course for free.

Learners have until 31 March 2024 to complete the 5 eLearning modules, after which they will receive a Certificate.

To apply

Please complete a short online Expression of Interest form.

We will assess applications fortnightly on a rolling basis until the spaces are claimed.

We will confirm your acceptance on the course by email within three weeks of your submission.

About the course

The course is designed by accessibility specialists, AccessAble and aligns to the ‘three facets of accessibility’ approach:

• Information: What you can find out about a space before you use it.
• Welcome: How a disabled person is supported on arrival.
• Space: How the space can be adapted to welcome the most amount of people.

The aim of this type of approach is to ensure that disabled people and carers can participate and contribute as a part of society rather than feel apart from society.

The training courses have been designed with accessibility in mind. The ReciteMe tool is available on the learning platform, and all videos are subtitled.

How to access the learning modules

Once you have received confirmation from us that your museum has been accepted onto the course, we will put you in touch with the team from AccessAble to set up your account which can take up to two weeks to complete. After that, your team members will be able to embark on their learning journey at their own pace, using their own device via a simple log in.

Learners can save and re-enter the modules where they left off. The modules are interactive, and use illustrations, videos, and pop quizzes to secure learning.

Learners have until 31 March 2024 to complete the modules and they will receive a Certificate upon completion of the course.

We ask participants to complete a short online questionnaire at the end of the course. This allows us to demonstrate the impact of our training programme and helps us to hone and improve our offer.

Partners

This training opportunity is coordinated by South East Museum Development and designed by AccessAble with funding support from Arts Council England.

This activity supports the ‘Cultural Community’ outcome and ‘Inclusivity and Relevance’ Investment Principle in the Arts Council’s Let’s Create Strategy.