The Scottish Accessible Information Forum (SAIF) would like to thank Michael Bell Associates (MBA) and the Federation of Independent Advice Centres (now Advice UK) who, in partnership, initially developed these Standards on our behalf and according to our specification.
We wish to acknowledge the support of the Scottish Consumer Council which hosts SAIF and the Scottish Executive Health Department which funds our work.
In particular, we would like to thank all those disabled people who participated in the focus groups held by the consultants. We would also like to thank Grant Carson at the Centre for Inclusive Living in Glasgow and Bill Fisher at the Lothian Coalition of Disabled People who set up the meetings.
Similarly, we thank the 17 agencies that made a valuable contribution to these Standards through their participation in the seminars organised by the consultants.
We are also grateful to the 188 organisations which responded to our postal questionnaire and those organisations and individuals who have completed feedback forms and provided us with so many positive comments and suggestions.
The SAIF Standards Working Group has directed this work since 1999. Members of the Standards Working Group responsible for one or both of the first two editions of this publication in 1999 and 2004 were Grant Carson, Jean Dunlop, Kate Fearnley, Kirsten Anne Ferguson, Lionel Long, Lucie McKenzie and Shirley Young. The project workers were Steve Harvey and Sarah Smith.
One of the key reasons for the publication of this revised edition was a number of recommendations made to us by the Scottish Executive Sensory Impairment Action Plan Steering Group. Those recommendations have been incorporated.
We are grateful to the Scottish Executive Health Department Adult Support and Protection Unit which facilitated the process and to the organisations on the steering group that made an input into this third edition:
- The Scottish Council on Deafness,
- Deafblind Scotland,
- The Royal National Institute of the Blind.
With the support of the current SAIF project workers, Steve Harvey and Susan Burn, this edition has been developed by the members of the 2005/06 SAIF Standards Working Group:
Jean Dunlop – SAIF vice-chairperson,
Grant Carson – Glasgow Centre for Inclusive Living,
Lionel Long – UPDATE,
Lucie McKenzie – Citizens Advice Scotland,
Nicola Noon – Scottish Council on Deafness,
Marilyn Slavin – Common Knowledge,
Sandra Wilson – Fife Employability Network,
Carolyn Wyper – NHS Ayrshire and Arran,
Mary Evans – co-opted from Dyslexia Scotland,
John Whitfield – co-opted from Deafblind Scotland.
In particular we are grateful to Nicola Noon of the Scottish Council on Deafness and Mary Evans of Dyslexia Scotland for their work in completely rewriting the Standards in plain language and making significant improvements to their accessibility.
Again we are indebted to Lynn Welsh and Irene Henery of the Disability Rights Commission for updating the section on legislation.
Ben Forsyth
Chairperson, Scottish Accessible Information Forum
2007
Go to the next page: Introduction
Contents
Go to the top of the page
(c) Scottish Accessible Information Forum, 2007
Technology provided by First Digit Ltd