The ORL creates community by providing opportunities for people of all ages to connect with others and share their love of learning through our programs, workshops, and events. The ORL strives to ensure that everyone, regardless of age or background, feels welcome and included when they visit. Please read about how we met the requirements and follow the links to learn more.
Our Accessibility Plan highlights where we are right now, where we would like to improve, and outlines our prioritized focus areas for enhancing accessibility and inclusivity at the Okanagan Regional Library.
Our Accessibility & Inclusion Advisory Committee (AIAC) met the requirements outlined in the Accessible BC Act and is made up of staff members and community members. All participants in the committee have some kind of connection to disability. They represent a wide range of disabilities and are also from different communities in the ORL service area. Our AIAC chose to stay anonymous in this plan.
The AIAC worked collaboratively with us to share their experience and assessments to improve ORL accessibility and inclusion. They have provided advice to the ORL Management Team on strategies to reduce social, physical, and sensory barriers that prevent people from fully participating in the services, programming, spaces, and collections of the ORL. The AIAC helped review the planned feedback tools and this accessibility plan. The future work of our AIAC will include:
Please see our deliverables page for more details.
The ORL's initial accessibility work will focus on nine areas (our primary effort and quick wins) from our priority matrix:
Our Accessibility & Inclusion Advisory Committee really emphasized the need to create multiple avenues for feedback so we have created:
Our committee also helped us create and define words important in the area of accessibility work. These are:
The Okanagan Regional Library (ORL) is committed to providing equitable access to library service to all residents of our service area. We recognize that everyone has different access needs, and we aspire to meet these needs in a welcoming and supportive environment. The ORL will develop and support a work and service environment where the needs of persons with different abilities are addressed in accordance with the principles of dignity, independence, equal opportunity, and integration. The ORL will strive to meet and exceed current accessibility standards. The ORL will establish, implement and monitor policies, services, and practices through this lens of accessibility.
Danielle Hubbard Chief Executive Officer Okanagan Regional Library