Strategy

Consider disabled audience members’ needs throughout your campaign

It is generally cheaper and more effective to consider disabled people and organisations in your audience at the campaign planning stage. Think in terms of stakeholder engagement, representation, involvement, alternative formats and budget.

Strategy best practice

Check with your Department’s equality guidance whether you should write an Equality Impact Assessment.
Consider disabled people in both the aims and objectives of your communications plan.
Link your aims and objectives to departmental strategic business objectives, reflecting Public Service Agreement (PSA) targets.
Involve disabled people directly in planning and co-production
Apply integrated communications planning to reach the maximum number of people in a cost-effective way.
Use of a wide range of communications channels, techniques and formats.
Be clear about your requirements when writing your brief.
Collect feedback during the development stages from disabled members of your target audience.
Evaluate the impact of what you do on disabled people, particularly for large-scale, high budget campaigns.
Understand your organisation's policy on disability equality and communications and contribute to its review and development.

Questions to ask about your campaign

1. What do you know about your audiences?

2. Can you include disabled people in focus group work or other research?

3. What are the best ways of reaching your audiences?

4. Have you evaluated the impact of what you do on disabled people, particularly for large, multi-million pound campaigns?

5. Have you considered the differing experiences of disabled people, and how they might affect how you reach your strategic objectives?

6. What are the cost implications of your plans to provide information in alternative formats?

Example

A department has the objective to encourage more young people to engage in voluntary work, specifically a 10 per cent increase within the year.

The strategy planner should consider that above average numbers of young disabled people are not in education, employment or training and should prioritise them for this campaign. They could set a target of a 20 per cent increase in volunteering among young disabled people.

What you can do

Follow the strategy best practice, including:

Involve disabled people directly in planning and co-production.
Use integrated communications planning to make sure you reach the maximum number of people in a cost-effective way.