SCULPT for Accessibility

At Worcestershire County Council it is our aim to be digitally inclusive, to achieve our aim we recognised that we needed to upskill our workforce to enable them to create inclusive digital content. Through research and workshops across a range of teams we have developed SCULPT for Accessibility. It is a workforce approach to lay the foundations of digital accessibility awareness and deliver the basic skills needed to produce accessible content.

Digital inclusion has never been so important and part of this is addressed by the accessibility regulations. But beyond the web accessibly regulations, every single email, every attached document, and every digital communication being in an accessible format can go much further to make a real difference.

SCULPT for Accessibility came out of research into digital accessibility. It reframes accessibility into a set of bite-sized simple guidance that everyone can connect with, no matter what IT skills level you are at. It helps dispel the myths and preconceptions that meeting basic accessibility requirements is time-consuming, complicated or the web department’s responsibility.

Just like Health and Safety, Equality and Diversity or Data Protection, SCULPT is now a mandatory learning module for all new starters and existing staff at Worcestershire County Council. We firmly believe digital equality and inclusion in the workplace is the responsibility of everyone.

We still have a long way to go before our entire workplace is fully upskilled but we are determined to develop our resources and weave SCULPT in as our minimum standard across every level of leadership throughout Worcestershire County Council and into the fabric of our workforce strategies, systems, partnerships as a model of good practice for digital inclusion. We believe SCULPT could fit into any organisation to underpin workforce-wide inclusive digital practice, a vital necessity in the new ‘digital by default’ world.