Almost 20% of UK heritage sites have made ‘no improvement’ in online access information since 2018, survey finds

Nearly a fifth of the UK’s museums and heritage sites have not updated their website in the past four years to include accessibility information, a new report by disability charities has revealed.

The Heritage Access Report – produced by VocalEyes, Stagetext, Autism in Museums and the Centre for Accessible Environments – saw more than 2,250 establishments across the country provide information about what access measures they have in place for disabled visitors.

Although the number of sites providing information about hearing loops increased by 11% since 2018, the report also found that only 7% provided captioning for audiovisual material, with just 5% offering transcripts.

Meanwhile, British Sign Language (BSL) tours only rose from 3% to 4%.

Melanie Sharpe, chief executive at Stagetext, said: “Whilst many venues advocate for the inclusion of all communities, it isn’t visible on their websites and significant work still needs to happen to make inclusion a reality.

“We recognise that many places suffered significantly during the pandemic, and ongoing turbulence, including a loss of access expertise. However, commitment and action now need to be re-established.

“For example, 53% of the videos reviewed for this year’s survey did not have subtitles, making over half of the heritage and museum sector’s video content inaccessible to deaf visitors.

“This survey was produced in collaboration with three other access organisations, who are all here to support, guide and share knowledge with the heritage sector.  We are all here to help.”

VocalEyes chair Joanna Wood added: “Heritage Access 2022 is a real-time measure of the accessibility of the sector: progress in some areas but a long way from equality. It provides a comprehensive guide to the barriers excluding D/deaf, disabled and neurodivergent visitors and the solutions to address these.

“Above all though, the D/deaf, disabled and neurodivergent people who formed the majority of the digital volunteers behind the report show the sector who they miss out on when heritage is inaccessible: no access, no visit. Let’s change that.”

The report’s launch also coincides with the release of a new “benchmark tool”, where visitors to VocalEyes’ website can view a map with details of how each individual site scored for access information.

Lizzie Glithero-West, chief executive of The Heritage Alliance, said: “We have been delighted to support this project and share key guidance for the sector in partnership with our member VocalEyes.

“It’s an important contribution as part of our collective journey towards ensuring that heritage becomes more accessible for everyone in society.“

The full report and accessible versions can be found on VocalEyes’ website.

Photo: Heritage Access 2022.

By Liam O’Dell. Liam is an award-winning Deaf freelance journalist and campaigner from Bedfordshire. He can be found talking about disability, theatre, politics and more on Twitter and on his website.