Disability Arts Cymru recommends that concessions should be offered in the following circumstances:
Some venues request that a wheelchair user or blind person is accompanied due to "fire regulations". In this case, the disabled person does not have the option of attending on their own, so the companion ticket should be free of charge, regardless of other concessions available to the disabled person (see examples below)
If choice of accessible seating or route is restricted, concessions should apply. Prices should be no higher than the lowest available ticket price. This concession should also be available to a companion.
a) Deaf people will need to sit near the front in order to see a sign language interpreter, or may need to sit within a certain area to use the hearing induction loop or to see captioned theatre or film subtitles. These concessions should also be available to a companion.
b) Blind people may need to sit where infra red headsets can be used in order to access an audio described facility.
These seats may usually have the most expensive ticket prices, but in these cases, the lowest available price should apply. These concessions should also be available to a companion.
For example, Deaf and hard of hearing people and people with visual impairments may need to sit near the front in order to be able to hear, lip-read or see more easily. Concessions should be available to meet such situations, and should also be offered to a companion.
For example, some people with learning difficulties may be unable to attend without their Support Worker. The Support Worker should be able to attend free of charge.
It is for the venue to decide whether or not proof of status is required. Venue policy should be clear on whether or not concessions will be permitted if a disabled person does not have proof of status.
All managers, box office and front of house staff should be aware of venue policy, procedure and practice on concessionary rates. It is essential that these are clearly communicated, and that staff are aware of who has responsibility in specific situations.
For example, staff need to know how to respond in a situation where a disabled person asks for concessions but can provide no proof of status if this is required.
If policies, procedures and practices are not amended to take disability issues into account, it is possible that an organisation may find it is contravening the Disability Discrimination Act. It is now against the law to provide a service that discriminates against disabled people.
Understanding disability issues: Management and staff should be committed to a rolling programme of arts-specific Disability Equality Training. This will help organisations to avoid discriminating against disabled people unintentionally, and will encourage best practice in disability issues.
A Disability Consultant can be employed to work with organisations on development of policy.
Disability Arts Cymru can provide further information on Disability Equality Training for further details.
Remember: the 2001 Census showed that 23% of the population of Wales has a long term illness or impairment. So non-discriminatory policies and good access and should be a priority for all service providers.