All-Party Parliamentary Group for Assistive Technology

Minister delivers keynote at Inclusive Home Learning Symposium

On 24 November Policy Connect and the APPG for Assistive Technology held a symposium on the role of assistive and inclusive technologies for home learning and lessons learned from lockdown.   The event, chaired by Lord Shinkwin, featured a keynote address from Minister for Children and Families Vicky Ford MP and a Q&A with the audience and our expert panellists Alistair Crawford, Kathryn Stowell, Adam Gordon and Neil Beck. 

Click here for full details and findings from the event. 

Call for Evidence: AT & Employment Commission

Policy Connect and the All-Party Parliamentary Group for Assistive Technology have launched a Commission to explore how government and employers can better support disabled people to benefit from the opportunities presented by technology as they move into the workplace.  Co-chaired by Lilian Greenwood MP and Lord Shinkwin, the Commission will examine the ways in which assistive technologies and digital (in)accessibility can influence disabled people’s ability to successfully transition into employment. It will advise government, educational institutions and employers on how to put these insights into action.

The Commission welcomes all types of evidence, from analyses or internal studies you or your organisation has carried out to personal or organisational views on these issues. Click here for the full call for evidence. 

Digital Accessibility in Higher and Further Education- the challenges and opportunities of 2020

For those of us working in the world of accessibility, 2020 has long been marked as the year when all public sector body websites and apps must adhere to updated Web Accessibility Regulations (September 23, 2020, to be exact).  Now that 2020 is actually upon us, the world looks very different from what we imagined.  The outbreak of COVID-19 has resulted in the rapid, forced digitisation of education, work, and even socialising. Meanwhile, Government Digital Services, the department responsible for monitoring compliance with the regulations, has made clear there will be no delay to the 23 September deadline.  To mark Global Accessibility Awareness Day 2020, we reflect on the challenges and opportunities for digital accessibility in further and higher education presented by this landmark year. 

Read the full article here.  

Remote working and disabled employees - How a pandemic brought a long-standing issue to the forefront of the conversation

As working from home becomes the norm for millions of Britons, what does this mean for disabled people, and what can we do now to build the inclusive workspaces of the future?

Read the article here. 

The Future of Multigenerational Neighbourhoods and Communities

On Wednesday 27th May Policy Connect is taking part in an online workshop hosted by the Agile Ageing Alliance about the Future of Multigenerational Neighbourhoods and Communities.

Click here to read more. 

UK EdTech at home and abroad

APPGAT has hosted a roundtable on two government strategies that will shape the UK’s EdTech sector over the coming years. 

Click here to about our UK EdTech at home and abroad roundtable 

Smart Homes and the Future of Social Care Roundtable

APPGAT has played host to a roundtable discussion on the impact of smart home technology on disabled and older people living with care and support needs.  

Read more about the smart homes and social care roundtable here. 

Office for Students Adopts APPGAT Recommendations

The Office for Students has taken forward a number of conclusions from a roundtable on inclusive technology practice in higher education hosted by the APPGAT in April. Recommendations from the meeting were incorporated into the higher education watchdog’s recent survey of universities which looked at current practices in supporting disabled students.  Our findings informed questions about the availability of assistive software at each institution, whether disclosure of a disability on digital forms automatically triggers signposting to support and the use of alternative formats to deliver course content.  The roundtable was attended by parliamentarians and representatives from universities, HE sector organisations, technology developers, and the Office for Students.  

Minister addresses EdTech Symposium

The Minister for Children and Families Nadhim Zahawi MP has delivered the keynote address at a symposium to mark the publication of the Government's new EdTech strategy hosted by APPGAT in the House of Lords.

Read more. 

Digital Services Must be Inclusive

We must ensure that digital services are "accessible and inclusive for everyone", our head of Industry Technology and Innovation, Robert McLaren, told the Science and Technology Select Committee. Following the publication or the APPGAT's recent report on web accessibility, Robert was called to give evidence to an ongoing inquiry into the way the government provide services online. 

APPGAT report: new regulations require digital accessibility in education

The APPGAT has published its first report: Accessible Virtual Learning Environments. The report makes recommendations to both the government and the education sector to ensure that new digital accessibility regulations are used to improve teaching and learning for all students.   

"I personally can’t emphasise enough just how much assistive technology helps me in my everyday life"

At the last APPGAT parliamentary meeting of 2018, Georgie Hulme addressed MPs, Peers and associate members of the group on her experience accessing assistive technology. In her insightful talk, Georgie reflected on her journey to gaining access to assistive technology and the difference it's made for her. Georgie also identified the barriers that still remain for those who use AT, both in terms of using services and wider societal attitudes toward disability and alternative ways of communicating.  

A Child’s Right to Talk

In collaboration with Manchester Metropolitan University, the APPG for Assistive Technology hosted a daylong conference to explore the findings of I-ASC, a three-year NIHR-funded* research project. It explored the decision-making process of matching the child to the most suitable communication aid. Addressing the findings of the study, Keynote Speaker John Bercow said: “We have to recognise that there are all sorts of different needs. And policy needs to adjust to needs rather than expecting those people with the needs to adjust to a preordained policy”.

*NIHR: Health Services & Delivery Research Project: 14/70/153 - Identifying appropriate symbol communication aids for children who are non-speaking: enhancing clinical decision-making