Staff at the Millennium Forum recently celebrated the announcement that the North West’s premier cultural venue has just been awarded the Accessibility Champion status from the Arts & Disability Access Awards (ADDA).  The accolade is in recognition of the theatre’s ongoing work in ensuring it is fully accessible to all, and the Millennium Forum is the first theatre to receive this recognition.

Lisa Heaney, Box Office & Access Manager at the Forum, is delighted that the venue has been honoured with this award. She said:

“It is always great to be acknowledged for our efforts in accessibility so we are thrilled to receive this award, especially as we are the first theatre recipient.  We have been working closely with the University of Atypical over the past three years throughout the accreditation process, so to be recognised as Access Champions is wonderful news.

This is all testament to our hardworking staff and our amazing funders & sponsors including our principal partners, Specsavers Derry/Londonderry and our Access partner, AAA; with their continued support, we are able to ensure that our theatre is fully accessible for all our patrons to enjoy.”

Alex Cregan, Access Advisor with University of Atypical, added:

“The Millennium Forum is already a leader in the region, and consistently and thoughtfully prioritise access for deaf, disabled and neurodivergent people. They worked with us to get even better and we are delighted with the results. They improved screen reader compatibility and their access newsletter and invested in sensory kits and signage for the building. We’re very happy that they are the very first organisation on the Arts and Disability Access Awards to achieve Accessibility Champion status”.

Dolores O’Reilly, AAA, also commented:

“It is fantastic to get public recognition for our efforts; access and inclusion is forefront of what we do at the Forum.  We actively promote Social Prescribing; prescribing people to the arts dramatically improves health outcomes and well-being, counters inequalities, increases social engagement, and provides community support.  The range of activities provided within the Forum has made many positive contributions to people’s lives and we are absolutely thrilled to receive this award.”