New report on Assistive Technology calls for more awareness in mainstream society

The ATech Policy Lab has published a report into the awareness and use of ATech across frontline workers in public service. The report details how important ATech is for disabled people and how the rise in innovation within consumer technology is now making more specialised tools available as standard, such as dictation features in smartphones. They identify that the barriers to the use of ATech are many but can be grouped into three main categories: awareness, availability, and support. That is: being aware of the tech that can help, having the right tech available, and having the support to use it. The report echoes the qualitative data from the ATech programme nasen are running with microlink to 150 schools across England. The impact from the programme is already changing the lives of the young people in those settings. The report also highlights the impact on advocating and empowering people in employment and gaining employment if employers are more aware of what impact ATech can have on productivity. 

Raising awareness is key and the report has two recommendations for government:

• Recommendation One: We propose a partnership between government, the tech and disability sectors, and public sector leaders, to deliver training to 250,000 frontliners by the end of 2025.
• Recommendation Two: The partnership to mainstream ATech awareness should be led by a senior champion within government: we propose the appointment of a UK Chief Accessibility Officer – similar to a Commissioner role – to drive this agenda.