Disability Equality Scheme 2007 - 2010
Easy read version
What is in this report?
Page
A letter from the Chairman John Armitt
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Part 1 - Introduction
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Part 2 - The job of the Olympic Delivery Authority (ODA)
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Part 3 - Who is disabled?
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Part 4 - How we can make things fairer and more equal for disabled people
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Part 5 - The Areas
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Part 6 - Checking things are equal
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Part 7 - Involving people
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Part 8 - Making changes happen
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Extra information Part 1
51
A letter from the Chairman John Armitt
This is the EasyRead Disability Equality Scheme for the Olympic Delivery Authority. It says how we will treat disabled people fairly and equally.
The Scheme was made with the help and advice of disabled people. The things they said have been included in the Scheme.
The job of the Olympic Delivery Authority (ODA) is to build the Park, and everything else that’s needed for the London 2012 Olympic and Paralympic Games, in time and on budget.
We want the London 2012 Olympic and Paralympic Games to be something that people want to be a part of, that includes everyone, that is safe and that leaves something for the future.
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We must also treat disabled people fairly and equally.
We know that access is often difficult. We will ask disabled people what they need and show that we have understood by building an Olympic Park with easy access everywhere.
There will be lots of new jobs helping build the park. We want disabled people to have their fair share of these jobs.
Many builders are not used to giving disabled people jobs, we will help change this. This will not be easy but we want to work with others to make it happen.
This Disability Equality Scheme says what we want to do and how we plan to do it.
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Thank you to all the disabled people who have been involved so far. This has been very important and we will continue to involve people.
John Armitt
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Part 1
Introduction
We use the ‘social model of disability’ to explain that the way society works and how things are planned can stop disabled people from doing things that people without disabilities can do.
The law says that the ODA has to change the way we do things to make it fairer and more equal for disabled people. Other people who work with us will have to change as well.
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We also have to have a Disability Equality Scheme saying how we will do this. The Scheme has to be made after talking with disabled people and it has to be out by 3 December 2007.
One of the best ways of finding out about problems is to ask disabled people themselves. We have involved disabled people and their organisations in making this Scheme, and we will carry on involving people to make sure changes happen.
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We need to show:
· how the ODA will be making things fairer and more equal for disabled people
· the ways in which disabled people have been involved in making the Scheme
· how we will check the Scheme is working
· how we will get and use information about disabled people who work for us.
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There are 5 main areas we will work on.
Area 1
Including disabled people in designing what is built.
Area 2
Giving disabled people jobs.
Area 3
Making sure disabled people running their own businesses get work.
Area 4
Involving local people.
Area 5
Having an organisation that is able to do these things properly.
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There is more detail on these areas later in Part 5 on page 17.
The ODA will print a report each year saying how things are going.
2010
By 2010 we must have done all the things in this Scheme, checked how well it is going and then change the Scheme to make it better if we need to.
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Part 2
The job of the Olympic Delivery Authority (ODA)
Main jobs
The ODA has to do 4 main things:
1. Build all the new buildings and transport for the Games.
2. These need to be good for everyone.
3. These need to be built so they can be used after the Games as well.
4. They all need to be built within the money that has been set.
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One of the important areas the Olympic Delivery Authority has to work on, to help make all this happen, is treating people fairly and equally.
The Olympic Delivery Authority is a small company and has about 250 people working for it. The ODA pay other people to build the buildings and new transport that will be needed.
The Olympic Delivery Authority also works with other organisations as partners to make the Games happen. A list of these organisations is at the back of this report in the Extra Information 1 section on page 51.
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2008
When will things get done? · Up to the summer of 2008: we will knock down old buildings, clear the sites and design the new buildings.
2011
· Up to the summer of 2011: we will build the new buildings.
2012
· Up to July 2012: we will have some test events to check everything works before the Games start.
2013
· Up to 2013: we will change the buildings and site to be used in the future.
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Treating people equally and fairly
The law says the Olympic Delivery Authority has to work to make things fairer for disabled people. They have to:
· stop disabled people being treated unfairly
· stop disabled people being treated badly because of their disability
· help disabled people be seen in a good way
· help disabled people take part in public life
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· change things for disabled people, even if that means giving them more help than other people.
We also expect the businesses that work for us to treat disabled people fairly.
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Part 3
Who is disabled?
The law says that people with a physical or learning disability who are not able to do normal day-to-day things are disabled. This also includes some other people who have cancer or HIV.
This means a lot of people have a disability. Many people who the law says are disabled do not think they are and can be upset if people see them as disabled.
Lots of bosses think disabled people are only people who use a wheelchair or who are blind.
This means that we must do things to change how people think about themselves and how others think about them.
A lot of disabled people have not passed exams, don't have a job and are poor.
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There are more disabled people and more people who don't have a job living in the area where the Olympic Park is being built than other parts of the country.
A lot of these people want a job and could work if they had the right support or changes they need.
There are some disabled people working in building but we don’t know a lot about them.
We don't know how many disabled people have their own business, but it seems there are not a lot. More disabled people work for themselves they are self-employed.
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Part 4
How we can make things fairer and more equal for disabled people
The ODA looked at what we could do to make things fairer for disabled people.
There are 4 main areas: 1. Building new accessible buildings and transport.
2. Making sure the way these things are done includes disabled people.
3. Including disabled people in the work.
4. Including disabled people in the work of the ODA and what is built.
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By working in this way we will show others how well we can make something that can be used by everyone and show others what they could do too.
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Part 5
The Areas
Area 1 Including disabled people in designing what is built Disabled people will use the new Park, other buildings and transport that we build. They will be taking part in the Games as athletes, going to watch the Games and using these places in the future.
It is very important to make sure they are all accessible to everybody.
To do this we want: · to make sure everything is designed to include people
· to follow our access rules
· to include disabled people in designing these new places
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· a document that says how each building is accessible
· to work with others to make sure plans for the future are right
· to have a good set of access rules for transport and to make sure they happen
· to have a good service at the Games that helps disabled people get about
· to keep including disabled people in transport planning.
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What we have done so far on building for the Games We have: · said disabled people will be included in designing all the different buildings
· included information about the needs of disabled athletes
· got access rules for our designs
· got a main Access Officer who will be keeping an eye on things to make sure the rules are followed
· got disabled experts to give us advice on access
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· written rules about how all this works together.
What we have done so far on transport for the Games We have: · asked lots of disabled people what they think should be in the Transport Plan
· made a Transport Plan
· said the Transport Plan is for both the Olympic and Paralympic Games.
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The Transport Plan will:
● make sure everyone can get on and off transport
● make sure people can get to all the different places easily
● make sure different transport for different people gets as close to the buildings as possible
● make sure there are parking places for disabled people
● include training staff and volunteers to know what disabled people want and need and how to treat them properly
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● have a service helping people get about during the Games, called the Games Mobility Service
● have travel information about when the transport you need is coming
● leave good accessible transport for the future.
We have: · got a main Access and Inclusion Officer for Transport.
· got a Transport Access group that includes disabled people.
· Asked the Transport Access group to look at the rules, how people get to the Park, signs and door-to-door transport. 22
Future planning for the buildings · The rules about designs will be finished after we have learnt from the testing we are doing.
· The rules about access will be finished after we have asked people about them.
· The groups working on access will be looked at to make sure they are working as well as they can.
· Our rules about how we ask people about our work, including making the way we talk to local disabled people as good as possible, will be printed.
· A document that says how each building is accessible and how disabled people get out in an emergency.
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· We will work with the London Development Agency to make sure plans for the future are looked at so they are as good as possible.
Future planning for transport Accessible transport rules are being made. They will include:
● more information on what transport disabled people need for the Games and after the Games
● working with other transport organisations to have accessible and EasyRead transport information and more staff training on access
● the Games Mobility Service
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● having picture signs to help people get around
● accessible transport guides and guides in different languages.
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Area 2 Giving disabled people jobs
The ODA believes we can make it much fairer for disabled people to get jobs in building work.
To do this we want: · to make sure people get jobs in a fair way that gives disabled people more of a chance
· to work with others so people can see more women, people from black and ethnic minorities and disabled people getting training and jobs in building
· to be equal and fair about giving jobs ourselves
· to look at ways of including disabled building workers in this work
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· to work with others to look at what is happening to make things fairer for local disabled workers
· to make sure other firms treat disabled workers equally and fairly
· to make sure we can check how this is happening in firms that work for us
· to have awards for good firms that treat disabled workers equally and fairly
· to have an idea of how many disabled workers we should have
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· to carry on making things fairer by the way we work.
What we have done so far about jobs · All companies wanting to work for the ODA are asked to make things fairer and make sure disabled people are treated properly.
· These companies must show that they have rules on making things equal and fair and have training and people to make sure they are followed.
· We have started checking up on these companies.
· A local job-scheme has been set up.
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· We have involved disabled people in looking at what stops disabled people working in building.
Things to think about to make things better The ODA does not have many building workers who have said they have a disability. Other surveys say there should usually be more. We need to look at why this is.
If we are to make jobs on the Games fairer we need to do more work with others.
We might need plans that include training for local work organisations, linking with colleges and universities that run building courses, Trade Unions and more.
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Plans for the Future · Look at ways of involving disabled people who have building jobs at the moment.
· Make sure the local job-scheme is accessible for disabled people.
· Work with others to support more disabled people to work in building.
· Carry on making sure the firms that work for the ODA treat disabled people fairly and equally.
· Make sure these firms check that their rules on fairness are working.
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Area 3 Making sure disabled people running their own businesses get work.
The ODA wants work for the Games to be as open to many different types of firms or companies, including companies owned by disabled people, organisations run by disabled people, by people from black and ethnic minorities and women.
We want to make sure this is done in a fair way. To do this we will:
· look at how firms get work and make any changes needed
· make sure smaller jobs are open to small firms
· look at how we check up on this
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· look for firms owned by disabled people
· support the London Development Agency in making their work more accessible.
What we have done so far · We have looked at what happens at the moment and found out more about firms run by disabled people.
· Set up an email system so firms can be sent details about work. This can be done at
www.london2012.com/get-involved/businesscentre/business-e-alerts.php
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· We have asked the businesses we buy from if they are owned by disabled people, women, Black, Asian or minority ethnic people. At the moment only 1 firm is owned by a disabled person.
· Checked to see who owns firms when giving out ODA work.
· We use a new system called CompeteFor to advertise work. This should be fairer.
Things to think about We use computers a lot for telling people about work. This might be a problem for some disabled people. We need to look at this, especially for smaller jobs.
We need to make sure CompeteFor is fully accessible and open to businesses owned by disabled people.
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Plans for the Future · Look at another system used to tell people about work, called BRAVO, to make sure it is accessible.
· Look again at how jobs are given out to make sure disabled people’s firms can get them.
· Contact businesses owned by disabled people about work.
· Make CompeteFor more accessible.
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Area 4 Involving local disabled people
The ODA wants to involve all local people, including people from black and minority ethnic communities, different faiths, women, disabled people, younger and older people, lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender people.
We know how important accessible information is for including local disabled people.
We want: · to make sure all events are accessible
· make the london2012.com website more accessible
· have more accessible information
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· continue to involve disabled people in our work
· have new ways of getting more disabled people working for us.
What we have done so far · draft rules about asking people what they think have been written and people are being asked about these.
· we are finding out what local disability organisations there are.
· the Website Access rules are being used to find out how well disabled people are able to use the london2012.com website.
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The website has good access, like: ● links to download software that will read the site out loud
● video with sub-titles and someone saying what is happening
● most pictures and drawings are described so that they are accessible to people using screen readers
● access to help at www.london2012.com/help-advice/index.php
· We have rules for accessible information and contact details for how to get them, including using simple English. But, so far, not many people have asked for them.
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Plans for the Future · We will work with disability organisations on the rules about asking people what they think, and the steps which must be taken to make sure events are accessible.
· We will make sure we are able to talk to and work with local disability groups.
· The website will be made more accessible.
· The site will be tested with experts, disabled people and their organisations, and any others. Changes will be made to meet the new standards and rules for web sites due out soon.
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· We want more people to get accessible information. We will look at:
● what is needed
● how they are done
● telling people how to get them.
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Area 5 Having an organisation that is able to do these things properly
The ODA knows that thinking about disabled people in the right way and finding out more about what people need will help to us do the things in this Scheme. So it is very important we are able to do this.
The ODA wants to get better at being fair and equal, including when we give people work. We want to: · make sure our rules don't cause difficulties for disabled workers
· make sure changes to make things better can be made easily
· get staff thinking about disabled people in the right way
· have more disabled staff
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· have staff working in a fair and equal way
· carry on including disabled staff in making things more equal.
What we have done so far · We have written a lot of rules to make getting a job better.
· Jobs are put into disability magazines.
· People wanting jobs are able to get in touch in different ways.
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· Training on how to make things more equal and fair has been done with bosses and is going to be done with other staff.
Things to think about in getting our organisation better at doing these things properly We need to get better at how we give people jobs to make it more equal for disabled people.
· We need the right rules about giving people jobs that work well for disabled people.
· We need to make sure disabled people don't have access problems in their jobs.
· We need to make sure our rules about this work well.
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· We need to make sure all our people are thinking about disabled people in the right way and what they say is heard. Training will help.
Plans for the Future · We will check that our rules on giving people jobs are working and make them better.
· The ways we make changes for disabled staff will be looked at to see how they are working.
· Training on making things equal will be given to staff.
· How well we do in all these areas will be checked and work will be done on any problems we find.
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Part 6
Checking things are equal
We will check: · that access to buildings is good
· that different groups of disabled people are happy with the buildings and transport
· that we have more disabled workers working for the ODA and other firms we give work to
· how many disabled people ask for and get jobs
· how many firms who ask for work or we give work to are owned by disabled people.
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Firms that work for us will also need to collect this information. It is a problem that most builders don't have this information. So we expect that:
· not many firms will tell us what we want to know
· some people may not understand what disability means, some may think saying you are disabled is a bad thing and some may not think of themselves as disabled people
· some firms may give information that is not right. This needs to be sorted out
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· some disabled business owners might not want to say they are disabled because of worries they might not get work.
All of this information will be printed and available to everyone.
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Part 7
Involving people
We know that involving people is far more than just asking what people think. It is talking about issues, listening to people and making changes people can see.
This scheme has lots of areas where disabled people will be involved. We will get better at what we do and work together as partners.
Involving people so far has helped make new rules about paying for time and travel, finding accessible meeting places, having accessible information and finding out about groups.
Staff have been told about this information so they can use it in their work.
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Some things we have done already:
Equality
· Involved some national disability organisations in making our rules about being equal and the 5 main areas.
· Disabled people have already been involved in designs and groups been set up.
· Managers went to the GLA “Disability Capital” event in October 2007 and learnt about planning accessible public transport for the Games.
· We held our first meetings with disabled people and their organisations to help us understand the problems that disabled people have when:
· they want a job in building · they run a business wanting work. 48
· We met with disabled people to talk about getting jobs, making changes and keeping jobs.
All of these talks helped make this Scheme.
We will carry on involving disabled people in this Scheme.
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Part 8
Making changes happen
The Chairman and Chief Executive of the Olympics Delivery Authority (ODA) have both said they will be in charge of making the changes in this scheme happen.
A member of the Board that runs the ODA has the job to always think about making things more equal.
Another group meets every 3 months to check how the 5 areas are going.
There is a plan of things that need to be done, called an Action Plan. (See the full scheme for more details about the plan).
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December 2010
Before December 2010, the ODA will, as far as possible:
· do everything in the Action Plan
· get and use the information that this scheme says would helpful
· involve disabled people in checking how well the Action Plan is going
· involve disabled people in making the next Scheme.
If the ODA can’t do any of these things in the way we have said, we will look at other ways of doing them. 51
Extra information Part 1
The Olympic Delivery Authority also works with these organisations as partners to make the Games happen:
· the London Organising Committee of the Olympic Games and Paralympic Games
· the Greater London Authority
· the Department for Culture, Media and Sport
· the London Development Agency
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· the 5 Host Boroughs
· Transport for London and other transport organisations like Network Rail, Highways Agency and BAA
· many agencies are involved in employment, skills, and business support initiatives – including the Learning and Skills Council, Jobcentre Plus, Construction Skills and other sector skills councils
· the Confederation of British Industry, Trades Union Congress and key unions, and construction industry bodies such as the Strategic Forum for Construction
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· private sector organisations and businesses across the UK
· the voluntary and community sector, including local and national organisations of disabled people.
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© Olympic Delivery Authority. The official Emblem of the London Organising Committee of the Olympic Games and Paralympic Games Ltd is protected by copyright. © London Organising Committee of the Olympic Games and Paralympic Games Ltd 2007. All rights reserved. The construction of the venues and infrastructure for the London 2012 Games is funded by the National Lottery through the Olympic Distributor, the Department for Culture, Media and Sport the Greater London Authority and the London Development Agency. Published December 2007.