Announcing a new report on Accessible Voting
We are delighted today to announce a new policy paper, in partnership with WelcoMe, and funded by the JRSST Charitable Trust, on how to make voting more accessible for disabled people, and those with long-term health conditions.
Working in partnership with disability groups and councils across different parts of the country: Sefton in Merseyside, Basildon in Essex, Wolverhampton in the West Midlands, and Westminster, London, we have listened to disabled people about their experiences of political parties, local politics and voting at the ballot box.
On top of that, 152 people answered our survey, that found:
32% of disabled people surveyed say polling booths are inaccessible.
Over half (53%) also said staff understanding of their access needs at polling booths was poor.
78% of respondents think that political parties do not do enough for disabled people.
The report, titled ‘Creating a democracy that works for us all’, calls for a raft of reforms across local and national government, as well as specific recommendations for political parties and the Electoral Commission.
In particular, we are calling for a reform of the Elections Act in order to allow for official elections materials to be made in accessible formats.
Additional improvements include providing accessible transport on polling day, running ‘mock’ election days with disability groups to look for potential issues ahead of elections and strengthening rules around accessible communications from political parties.
We would like to thank all of those who made this report a reality. You can read our report, including accessible versions, below: