Barcelona Declaration Project

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Barcelona Declaration Project

• Monaghan County Council
• Presentation to Closing Conference of Barcelona
  Declaration Project
• 19th April 2004
• by
• Siofra Kilcullen, Community and Enterprise
  Development Officer

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Barcelona Declaration Project

• Establishing a baseline for Impact Assessment

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County Monaghan
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Barcelona Declaration in Monaghan

• Endorsement of Barcelona Declaration by five Town
  Councils and County Council in July 2002
• Underlying objective to promote more favourable
  conditions for the full development of persons,
  avoiding or removing all causes that prevent such
  development

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Monaghan Context

• 8 pop. with disability (CSO 2002)
• Strong community infrastructure - 62 voluntary
  disability groups
• Network of Disability Groups established to
  address policy issues
• Social Inclusion Measures Group
• July 2003 Pilot Action

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Aims of Monaghan Pilot Action

• Develop a consultative process using an audit of
  councils projects and actions as a basis for
  this process
• Develop a model of good practice for local
  authorities involving people with disabilities
  and disability advocates

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Steps in process

1. Establish a multi-sectoral audit team
2. Train team
3. Agree thematic priorities that should be included
   in audit
4. Establish multi- sectoral sub-groups to examine
   each theme
5. Make recommendations based on output from audit
   i.e. action plan
6. Put in place on-going monitoring mechanism
7. Continually assess the implementation of action
   plan

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Multi-sectoral audit team
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Monaghan Team members

• Officials
• Carmel Thornton, Corporate Affairs
• Joan Ryan, Workplace Partnership
• Maire Cullinan, Planning
• Roisin Nic An Iarla, Roads
• Ann Murray Housing
• Paul Clarke, Building Control
• Geraldine Murphy, Personnel
• Siofra Kilcullen, Community Enterprise
• Lisa Mc Bride, IS
• Jonathon Kelly, Website
• Advocates PWD Network
• Mary Mc Kenna, DFI
• Fiona Hoey, MS
• Joe Lynch, Disability Network
• Karon Edmondson, NEHB

• James Doorly DFI
• Malachy Marron, Steadfast House
• Ann Mc Farland, NTDI
• Cathriona Mc Kee, Service User
• Victoria Groom, SES
• Regina Tinnelly, Mon Partnership
• Cllrs
• Patsy Treanor MCC
• Sheila Mc Kenna, MCC
• Sean Conlon, Monaghan TC
• Pat Treanor, Clones TC
• Rosaleen O Hanlon, MCC
• Matt Carty, Carrickmacross TC
• Gary Carville, Castleblayney TC

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Role of group members

• Officials
• to ensure all information regarding policy and
  procedures are made available to team
• Advocates and PWD
• to highlight issues affecting PWD in Monaghan and
  to feedback to the Disability Network
• Elected Members
• maintain profile of issues in local media and at
  local council level and ensure ring fencing of
  budgets for accessibility etc
• All
• identify, collate and develop recommendations
  based on audit

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Four stages in audit process

• Data identification
• Data Collection
• Analysis of results
• Recommendations/ action plan

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Data Identification Thematic priorities for
audit

• Housing and Accommodation
• Roads Transport and Mobility
• Planning and the Physical Environment
• Employment and Recruitment Practices
• Building Control and Access to Buildings
• Communications and IT
• Corporate Policy

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Data Identification Audit questions under each
thematic priority

• What is the current position?
• What measures are put in place to address access
  issues?
• How are project/policies disability proofed?
• Who is responsible for decision making?
• What measures are in place to ensure
  participation of people with disabilities in
  decision making?
• What awareness raising measures are being
  undertaken?

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Data collection process

• Multi-sectoral subgroups established involving
  PWD, Advocates, Cllrs and Staff
• Desk Research Directory of Services
• Basic training in research methods
• Interviews conducted with relevant personnel
• Disability Network participated in focus group on
  communications with Local Authority

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Data Collection Process

• Existing Council policy presented to group e.g.
  Housing Strategy, Road Traffic Management
  Guidelines, County Development Plan
• Interviews with builders and designers Website
  test group
• Access surveys conducted by Disability Federation
  of Ireland in all towns in County

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Data Analysis and Recommendations

• Series of workshops on output from audit to
  decide actions
• On-going process as new policies emerge
• Action Plan currently being finalized
• Many sections of local authority have already
  integrated recommendations into policies and
  procedures

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Measures taken to date

• Website is in process of being adapted
• Consultative seminars on voluntary housing
• Consultation in relation to County Development
  Plan
• Roads section undertaking a number of actions
  (more details later)
• Including requirement to demonstrate universal
  access in Design Briefs issued to contractors

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Measures taken to date

• Linkages established between human resource
  section of the local authority, NTDI and
  Supported Employment Service
• Integration of a disability proofing template in
  assessment process for allocation of funding
  under PEACE II Taskforce
• Customer care plan produced in braille,
  audio-visual and electronic formats

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Roads Section prior to project

• Lack of Awareness of PWD Needs
• Absence of complete Guidelines
• No emphasis placed on catering for PWDs
• Roads Engineers based in 6 different Offices, all
  with different experiences and background
  knowledge
• Lack of Co-Ordination

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Prior to This..

Dropped Kerbs Uncommon in Rural Villages
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Prior to This..

• Pedestrian Facilities Often Inadequate
• Unsuitable Width
• Unsuitable Locations
• Often completely overlooked

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Roads Department

• Barcelona Project.
• Built on Publication of Traffic Management
  Guidelines
• Increased Awareness of Issues affecting PWD
• Raised Design Issues
• Encouraged co-ordinated and consistent design
  standards

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Roads Department

• Roads Department are now
• Taking into account surveys conducted by
  Monaghan Barcelona Project Working Group
• Reviewing existing facilities
• Upgrading existing facilities where appropriate
• Considering facilities in new scheme design
• (eg Monaghan Town Pay Parking Scheme)
• Receiving first-hand feedback from PWD about
  existing facilities

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Roads Department

• One Example
• Disabled Parking Space, Citizens Advice Bureau,
  Monaghan Town
• - Existing Parking Bay Enlarged to comply with
  Building For Everyone Guidelines
• - Dropped Kerb provided for entire length of
  Parking Bay Above Guideline Specifications
• - High Visibility Signage provided

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IS Department Barcelona Declaration Project
OLD WEBSITE

• The navagation system used picture/icons to
  convey hyperlinks.
• High level links not available on every page.
• Hyperlinks are not standard colour and are not
  descriptive.
• Background is dark and text is not always easily
  legible.

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Housing Section

• Organisation of information sharing seminars
• Improved identification of housing need for PWD
• Interagency and intersectoral co-operation

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IS Department Barcelona Declaration ProjectNEW
WEBSITE

• Site Contrast
• The new site has a standard white background and
  contrasting dark coloured text for general
  content.

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Final Steps in development of Action Plan

• Integration of Indicators
• Present to the County Council and five Town
  Councils of draft Action Plan
• Public Consultation
• Approval of final plan

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Added Value of conducting pilot action

• Provides a cohesive policy framework for local
  authority to address universal access principles
• It links real local needs to local policy
• Has tangible results
• Creates new linkages between officials, PWD,
  advocates and elected members
• Highlights where real barriers to access are
• More informed decision-making for all

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Challenges

• On-going commitment by all to implementation and
  monitoring
• Need to acknowledge diversity within the
  disability sector
• Need to ensure all disability sectors are
  included in policy development
• Need to address blockages to access at a national
  level e.g. weakness in legislation
• Need for more initiatives nationally to change
  public attitudes e.g. penalty points