I would like the Guild to introduce a centralised and coordinated system of addressing accessibility issues across all departments in the Guild. The current approach to accessibility looks at resolving cases on an individual basis within departments. I do not believe that this approach is the most effective in promoting equality and inclusion within the Guild of Students. It leaves individual students responsible for ensuring that their access needs are addressed because there are insufficient avenues for accountability. It also carries potential for larger issues, or anything outside the remit of one single department, to fall by the wayside due to a lack of coordinated strategy. Accessibility should be a central concern with better systems for accountability. To ensure this, I am proposing an Action Group composed of multiple stakeholders responsible for improving access to the Guild and its events. This system would improve inclusivity in the Guild by preventing issues from getting lost or forgotten about, maintaining a clear line of direction for accessibility improvements, clearly display which areas of the Guild are most in need of enhancements, reducing burden on students to pursue updates, and restoring confidence in the Guild as an organisation that actively promotes accessibility.
I would like the Guild to actively commit to Statement 23 of the Advance HE Disabled Student Commitment for: 'Students’ unions and Guilds to ensure that their facilities are accessible and that all clubs and societies address the needs and support requirements of disabled students.’ I would like the Guild to commit to this via the enaction of a coordinated two year SMART Action Plan centering around accessibility issues, and the creation of an Action Group working on ensuring the plan is realised. This would feed into a larger accessibility enhancement project in the University which several university departments have signed on to in the creation of their own action plans.