Making Night Life Accessible
Minister Catherine Martin has announced the launch of a Night-Time Economy accessibility survey, in support of Action 7 in the Report of the Night-Time Economy Taskforce, which highlighted the need for awareness-raising about the challenges people with disabilities face when socialising or working at night.
The survey was developed by the Department in conjunction with Ireland Thinks and was informed by consultation with Disabled Persons’ Organisations, artists and other stakeholders across the disability community.
The purpose of the survey is to examine the challenges for patrons and artists with disabilities accessing the Night Time Economy.
Questions include how accessible are night time activities such as a concert, the cinema, the theatre, a gallery, a restaurant, sporting venue or a nightclub. However, the survey also drills down into where difficulties might lie with accessibility, finding out about that online, getting transport to a venue and the role of staff.
Announcing the launch of the survey, Minister Martin said:
"The Night-Time Economy is where we meet friends, enjoy what our cities and towns have to offer and where we create and express ourselves. However, if we want our nightlife to be truly inclusive and diverse, we need to first understand the lived experiences that people with disabilities face when performing or socialising at night. I want to encourage people to participate in this survey so we can begin to understand the type of interventions needed to ensure we make nightlife accessible for all. I am looking forward to seeing the report from this survey and the set of actions needed to improve our nightlife for everyone."
The survey results will be collated into a report by Ireland Thinks and will contain a set of actions to further the Night-Time Economy Taskforce objective of an inclusive, accessible nightlife. These actions will be considered by the Minister who will support and work with the relevant Government Departments, agencies and the Night-Time Sector to progress the recommendations.
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