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ACT Arts Inclusion Project

About

Our ACT Arts Inclusion project is focused on increasing participation of people with disability in the arts and cultural life of Canberra and the ACT.

Funded by the National Disability Insurance Scheme, the project is designed to build capacity in ACT arts organisations for people with disability to participate as artists, volunteers, workers and audience members.

The project has also been instrumental in developing a platform for ongoing engagement with the ACT’s arts and disability community into the future.

Project Officer

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Daniel Savage

Daniel Savage

Daniel is a Canberra-based artist working primarily in photography, video and performance. His practice is concerned broadly with perception – investigating the way our perceptions influence and affect our interactions with art, each other and the physical world. His work is often self-referential, exploring his individual experience of disability as a point of difference to engage audiences in exploring and reassessing establish ideas and preconceptions that exist within society. Daniel is an Accessible Arts disability confidence trainer  and an advocate for greater access for and inclusion of people with disability.

Project Participants

  • Rebus Theatre
  • The Street Theatre
  • National Gallery of Australia
  • Ausdance ACT
  • Music for Canberra
  • Canberra Contemporary Art Space
  • Canberra International Music Festival
  • Canberra Youth Theatre
  • Ainslie + Gorman

Activities

ATAG Canberra social media promotion

ATAG Canberra

We’ve set up an Accessing The Arts Group network (ATAG) for Canberra. ATAGs are regular meet ups and networking events for workers in creative and cultural industries who want to learn more about including people with disability in their professional practice.

We’ve held several in the ACT since the project commenced in 2018. The Canberra ATAG network has almost 150 members who regularly attend ATAG events.

ATAG has a dedicated theme and includes a one-hour presentation and panel discussion followed by networking over light refreshments. ATAGs are attended by a diverse range of arts workers from leading cultural institutions through to small independent operators as well as relevant policymakers from federal and local government.

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Disability training session

Disability Awareness & Equity Training Workshops

We’ve been providing disability confidence training sessions for the staff of organisations participating in the project. Our Disability Awareness and Equity Training workshops are specifically designed to help workers in the arts and cultural sector improve how they connect with and support people with disability. The training will assist participants to be more inclusive in their programming and practice.

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Access Audit at Shine Dome in Canberra

Disability Inclusion Action Plans (DIAPs)
DIAPs are one of the most effective ways of improving access for and inclusion of people with disability. A DIAP is a framework that helps guide an organisation so it can meet relevant legislative requirements and best practice benchmarks. It’s like a strategic plan for accessibility. We’ve worked with several organisations participating in the project to develop develop and implement DIAPs.

Digital Accessibility

All the world’s online, so how people access the digital assets of an organisation is now more important than ever. We’re working with several organisations participating in the project to review their websites, apps and social media, then make recommendations on upgrading their content and functionality to make it more accessible.

Advisory Panel

We’ve set up an ACT Advisory Panel comprising arts practitioners with disability. The panel provides us with a local perspective on issues relevant to arts and disability in Canberra and the ACT. We’re always looking for people to join the panel. As an Advisor you’ll work with us on various projects relating to disability, access and the arts, and we draw on your expertise for projects, with the aim of making arts and culture across NSW more accessible.

Get Involved

If you’d like to get involved in our ATAG Canberra network, develop disability confidence training for your organisation, find out more about DIAPs, make your digital assets more accessible or join our ACT Advisory Panel, please email info@aarts.net.au

 

Project Supported By:

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