Developed by disabled people for disabled people – but what does it mean?

All too often, disabled people can have decisions made for us, even when projects and products are designed for our use! That’s why All In is being developed with lived experiences which mean we can address barriers to creativity and culture in an authentic and impactful way.

Disability at its heart

Our team consists of people with many different access requirements and experiences, bringing valuable representation to a project that’s close to our hearts. As well as a professional interest in creativity and culture, it also matters on a personal level; whether that’s enjoying theatre productions, attending music gigs, or visiting heritage properties. By bringing together a love for what we do, and a genuine experience of barriers, we can identify questions, challenges, and opportunities sooner than a non-disabled person can.

Experience and expertise

In our initiation and planning stages, the team spent time working with disabled people and disability consultants to make sure their experience and expertise were built into All In right from the start. We also set up an Advisory Group made up of disabled people with a diverse range of access requirements and from different nations. The group are consulted every step of the way, with their insights and feedback used to shape an access scheme developed by the very people it’s designed to support.

Choosing inclusive suppliers

A good supplier is an inclusive supplier, which is why it was imperative to embed these expectations into the procurement process at Arts Council England. We carefully chose suppliers that would work with the wider team to develop and deliver different elements of the access scheme, including accessibility standards and digital tools.
 
We also asked suppliers to demonstrate how they planned to include lived experience in their work. For example, Attitude is Everything, a disability-led charity who are writing the accessibility standards, will be calling 3000+ disabled people to guide the development of this work. 
 
We were thrilled to see these efforts recognised in April 2025, when Arts Council England and All In won the Disability Smart Award for Procurement.

Positive changes beyond All In

This inclusive approach to procurement has also had wider effects beyond All In. Our suppliers are making improvements to their own inclusive practices by requiring they commit to delivering ‘Social Value’. For example, Calvium, our digital supplier, has committed in their contract to providing experience and engagement opportunities for deaf, disabled, and neurodivergent participants, and to becoming a Disability Confident Employer.
 
While All In aims to create positive change in the creative and cultural sector, we have also influenced how Arts Council England, as an arm’s length government body, can include disabled people’s lived experience into their development processes, transforming their approach to new products and services.

A future of inclusion

Currently, All In is focused on removing barriers in creativity and culture, but the representation of disabled people is important in all areas. By setting an ambitious standard in our sector, we hope other sectors will look to us as an example of what can be achieved when the inclusion and lived experience is built into a project from the beginning.