Disabled people working across the creative industries have formed a new alliance to campaign for "an inclusive cultural recovery" following the Covid-19 pandemic.

This fund has been created by Arts Council of Northern Ireland in response to the COVID-19 outbreak and is administered by University of Atypical. Artists of all disciplines are invited to apply for 25 grants of up to £1,000 each, in order to research and develop their practice…

Arts Council of Northern Ireland and University of Atypical are delighted to announce a new fund specifically for D/deaf and disabled artists in response to the COVID-19 outbreak.

During this difficult time of the COVID-19 pandemic when people need the arts more than ever, arts and cultural organizations have quickly responded by making their programming and content available to audiences around the world via online platforms. There is another important consideration, however, beyond availability: is the content accessible for people with disabilities?

For people with disabilities, online resources often represent a particularly valuable opportunity to access culture. This is why the #culturecheznous platform has given pride of place to this specific offer, which is destined to become a permanent feature.

In these extraordinary times we are living in, the disability community and those who work and participate in arts and culture are grappling with an uncertain future both professionally and personally. COVID-19 has drastically impacted everyone’s social lives forcing us to self-quarantine and to rely on our emails, social media and video conferencing platforms such as Zoom, Facetime and Skype to connect with others. Whilst many of us have benefitted from technology to keep us connected with family, friends and colleagues, there are still barriers when it comes to how accessible these platforms are for people with disability.