Barbara Molony-Oates, Public Involvement Manager
As we mark Global Accessibility Awareness Day on 21 May, we’re shining a light on something simple but important: making it easier for people to tell us what they need to take part in our work and making sure we respond well when they do.
At the HRA, we want everyone involved in our work to feel respected, valued and able to contribute. Accessibility isn’t one-size-fits-all and it isn’t a ‘nice to have’. Even small barriers can make involvement harder than it should be. What works well for one person can quietly exclude another, often in ways we don’t immediately see. We know we can do better to help people work with us and have a good experience doing so.
Testing a more consistent approach
To help address this, we are currently running a pilot to test a more consistent way of capturing and responding to access and support needs across our activities. This is a live piece of work, already underway, focused on improving people’s experience of taking part-not just introducing a new process.
As part of the pilot, we’ve been developing and testing a new form and supporting emails that provide a clear, consistent way for people to share their access needs and preferences and for us to use this information well to support them. The aim is to make it straightforward for people to tell us what they need, while ensuring that this information is handled appropriately, with their consent, and shared with the right people at the right time.
What we're hearing so far
Early feedback is already shaping our approach. People have told us they value having a clear, dedicated way to share their needs, rather than raising them informally or multiple times. One participant told us: “For people who get involved with you, this process makes it really simple -only having to tell you once (unless something changes) is most refreshing to see as I get tired of repeating myself!”
We are also learning how important it is to be clear about how that information will be used and who will act on it. This helps build confidence and encourages people to share what they need. As one participant reflected: “Ensuring the appropriate information about what adjustments you can put in place is shared with the right people so that requests do not need to be repeated, and people have consistent experience regardless of who they work with at the HRA, is so helpful and makes me/others feel less abnormal, demanding, different and needy.”
Another key theme from the pilot so far is consistency. It is not just about collecting information, but about what happens next. When access needs are understood and acted on, it can make a noticeable difference to someone’s experience of taking part. Where there are gaps, it can affect confidence and willingness to stay involved. These moments may seem small, but they shape how inclusive involvement feels in practice.
The pilot is also helping us build a clearer picture of the range of needs people bring. People come with different experiences, responsibilities and ways of engaging, and these don’t always fit neatly into standard ways of working. For some, this might mean limiting meetings to manage fatigue or balance caring responsibilities. For others, it could involve receiving information in formats that work for them, having enough time to reflect and prepare in advance, or being able to contribute in ways that feel comfortable - whether that’s in writing, verbally, or at a different pace. These needs are not unusual; they are a natural part of the diversity of people we work with.
Shaping the approach together
A key part of this phase of the pilot has been working directly with people to shape our approach. We have brought together members of the public - particularly those with lived experience of access needs - to review our materials and share their views in facilitated workshops. This has allowed us to test whether the language is clear, how the process works in practice, and whether anything could unintentionally create barriers.
Building on strong foundations
Our Community Ways of Working already set out how we aim to work together in practice, creating an environment where people feel comfortable contributing, where different viewpoints are respected and valued, and where people do not need prior knowledge to take part. This includes being clear in how we communicate - for example, sharing information in advance, avoiding jargon, and explaining how meetings will run. The pilot builds on these strong foundations by helping us apply them more consistently in practice, particularly when it comes to understanding and responding to people’s access needs. This helps strengthen the quality of the insights we gather and the decisions we make.
What happens next
This is the first step in a wider programme of work, and we will continue to learn and adapt as the pilot develops, including testing the approach more widely across our activities. Global Accessibility Awareness Day is a reminder that accessibility is not something we deliver once - it is something we need to keep improving over time.
By continuing to listen, learn and refine our approach, we can continue to make involvement at the HRA more inclusive and accessible - helping ensure we hear from a wider range of voices and ultimately make better decisions for patients and the public.
The testing phase is now underway, and the new form will begin to be shared with people who are newly involved in our work.