The National Association for the Visual Arts (NAVA) has announced the launch of its Disability Action Plan, an initiative aimed at taking a significant step towards championing inclusivity and equity in the visual arts.
This Disability Action Plan reflects NAVA’s intent to challenge ableism and promote equitable conditions for people with disability to thrive across all aspects of the visual arts, further building on the principles of access and equity highlighted in NAVA’s Code of Practice for the Visual Arts, Craft and Design.
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“NAVA’s Disability Action Plan is a living document, designed to grow and adapt over time, ensuring we remain responsive to the evolving needs and rights of our community,” says Penelope Benton, Executive Director. “We recognise that access and inclusion are not static goals, but ongoing commitments that call for genuine dialogue, thoughtful feedback and a readiness to embrace change. The arts have always been a powerful driver of social progress and, at NAVA, we believe it is our responsibility to lead by example, creating a more inclusive and equitable visual arts sector”.
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NAVA’s Disability Action Plan sets out four key goals aligned with its mission to improve fundamental conditions of work and practice, these are to:
- Challenge ableist attitudes and behaviours in the visual arts.
- Create an accessible community for NAVA members.
- Support the employment and work of artists and arts workers with disability.
- Establish accessible systems and processes within NAVA and for its members.
NAVA’s approach follows the social and human rights models of disability, recognising that barriers – whether physical, attitudinal or systemic – must be addressed for people with disability to fully participate in the arts.
NAVA’s Disability Action Plan can be viewed here.
An easy English version of NAVA’s Disability Action Plan can be viewed here.
For more information.
