People with sensory loss in Wales are still rarely consulted on accessibility plans for town centres and outdoor public places, or involved in monitoring the accessibility of healthcare, and North Wales MS Mark Isherwood has called on the Welsh Government to “introduce effective monitoring of Wales’ accessibility standards for people with sensory loss, involving them in the process”.
Raising the matter with the First Minister in today’s meeting of the Welsh Parliament, Mr Isherwood said:
“When I questioned you here in January on Welsh Government action to ensure that town centres and outdoor public places are accessible for blind and partially sighted people, you stated that the Cabinet Secretary for Transport is already working on this issue.
“However, noting your response, Guide Dogs Cymru then emailed, stating: ‘I’m afraid that blind and vision impaired people are rarely consulted on Place Making Plans, in spite of Welsh Government’s expectations, and the legal requirement for Equality Impact Assessments to demonstrate accessible and meaningful engagement’.
“In similar vein, RNID’s latest report, ‘Still Ignored: The Fight for Accessible Healthcare’, has found that ‘despite the All Wales Standards for Accessible Communication and Information being introduced more than a decade ago in 2013, fewer than 1 in 5 agreed that their information and communication needs are met more often now than a decade ago’.
“Will your Welsh Government therefore introduce, at last, effective monitoring of Wales’ accessibility standards for people with sensory loss, involving them in the process, and, if so, when and how?”
Responding, the First Minister said:
“I think it is important that we use people with lived experience to help shape our policies; this is something that I know Ministers are very keen to do. I met recently with a group from the Royal National Institute of Blind People who had been giving advice on how to make our trains more user friendly. So, this is definitely happening in some areas, and I will ask the relevant Minister to make sure that this is something that’s being undertaken when it comes to town-centre development.”
