Inclusion and Accessibility
I believe that embracing the role that inclusion plays in workplace wellbeing is essential in order to create an environment in which everyone can feel safe and supported and thrive at work.
How do I make my sessions inclusive?
- I acknowledge that I can only speak from my experience as a white, straight, cis-gender, disabled woman.
- I acknowledge that I have, do, and will make mistakes and that I will learn from them and move forward.
- I acknowledge how inequality, discrimination, racism and exclusion disproportionately impact the mental health and wellbeing of certain groups of people.
- I acknowledge that those same groups of people often face multiple barriers to accessing support.
- I acknowledge that mainstream mental health organisations and resources are not always reflective of our diverse communities.
Therefore I
- Prioritise listening to various groups of people to hear perspectives different than my own and incorporate their thoughts into my sessions.
- Signpost to various organisations outside the mainstream organisations, that provide holistic, targeted support and offer resources, podcasts, and apps that are run by diverse groups for diverse groups.
- Take an intersectional approach to all topic areas.
- Speak about privilege and how it impacts our mental health and the mental health of those around us.
- Will signpost to consultants in my network when their experience and background is better suited to your needs.
How do I make my sessions accessible?
- I acknowledge disabled people are often excluded from situations and experiences because things are not accessible to them.
- I acknowledge that my experience of disability and my accessibility needs are different than others.
- I acknowledge that you cannot have inclusion without accessibility.
Therefore I
- Take a critical approach to everything I produce and investigate if anything may be inaccessible.
- Have developed my website, content and materials with accessibility in mind, using best practice guidelines and/or have created accessible versions.
- Minimize the use of idioms, and when I do use them I explain what they mean in literal terms.
- Will not use any flashing lights or bright colours and will always give trigger warnings before using videos or audio.
- Ask participants about their accessibility needs in advance of training sessions and am ready to adapt the sessions as necessary.
- Will not use features in my training sessions that may be inaccessible.