Vital Signs North East: Access

Access challenges

The UK’s overall income and wealth inequality is high compared to most developed countries. Half of the country’s households know what it is to be excluded in relation to education, employment, health and disability or housing. In the North East, the situation in many ways is worse. There is a strong case for philanthropy to address the challenges that disabled people face due to the poor design of spaces and services. And for it to focus on communities at the greatest risk of social and economic exclusion. But it can also make a difference to the challenges faced by people from all backgrounds who are rural dwellers or who lack local banking facilities or connections to high-speed broadband.

• National challenges: : widening access to opportunities and services to reduce the impact of inequality and disparities between communities of place, interest and identity; ensuring convenient access to essential services particularly in rural areas; tackling digital and financial exclusion.
• North East England challenges: widening access to opportunities and services to reduce the impact of above national average levels of inequality, deprivation and disparities between
  communities of place, interest and identity; ensuring convenient access to essential services particularly in rural areas; tackling high levels of digital and financial exclusion.

Widening access to opportunities and services by addressing underlying issues of exclusion:

• support for accessibility audits and improvements
• financial help for students who might otherwise be excluded from higher education or vocational training;
• advocacy for people at risk of exclusion from services.

Supporting research, policy and campaigning to raise awareness and promote action

• for example, research into how communities at risk of exclusion can sometimes be ‘designed-out’ of mainstream services; policy work to increase the accessibility of civil society organisations; campaigning on issues like the availability of accessible housing in the region.