Access King's is the staff disability inclusion network at King’s College London.

The network’s mission is to be a conduit for access to support, communities, peers, advice, guidance, resources and spaces.

We aim to bring positive change and improve opportunities for our network voice at King’s. We will work closely with Diversity & Inclusion to build a university where equity and equality of opportunity exist for all.

Our guiding principles are:

• Accessibility
• Community
• Confidentiality
• Empowerment
• Support
• Success for All

• People with disabilities
• People with long-term and/or restrictive health conditions
• People with caring responsibilities
• People with an interest in disability inclusion
• People who manage or work / study alongside those with disabilities or long-term/restrictive health conditions

A Range of Voices: We recognise that, whilst staff are brought together to improve disability inclusion and to discuss issues that affect disabled staff, all staff have different interests and backgrounds. Meet-ups and events will reflect this diversity, wide range of people, wide range of experiences, and wide range of skills, which will lead to better problem solving and information sharing.

We welcome any staff member and Postgraduate Research student at King’s. We particularly value the contributions of those listed in ‘Our Network Voice’. We are keen to welcome staff regardless of whether you self-identify as disabled. We welcome allies who play an Important role in supporting people with disabilities or long-term / restrictive health conditions.

We will never ask you to disclose your disability, health condition or caring responsibilities. The network’s Microsoft Teams site is a private group and, although there is a degree of visibility when you join this group, we request all members maintain a strict confidentiality about its membership and contents. We also appreciate that not all disabilities are visible or permanent. If you are unsure if the Network is for you, then please come along to our next meeting or get in touch with the Co-Chairs.

These initial ideas will be refined and prioritised as we develop as a Network.

1. To raise awareness of Access King’s throughout the University, in order to promote its availability to potential members.
2. To maximise the contribution of our members to inform decision making at King’s with the voice of the network in mind.
3. To (i) promote the provision of and (ii) increase the awareness and knowledge (e.g. through signposting, AccessAble guides, and accessible tours) of accessible spaces and routes throughout King’s to help ensure individual needs are accommodated.
4. To (i) promote the provision of and (ii) increase the awareness and knowledge (e.g. through publicising of assistive technology and best practice guidelines) of accessible materials and support / tools available for staff / students at King’s, to help ensure individual needs are addressed.
5. To ensure all staff have an increased awareness of relevant support, guidance and academic knowledge (e.g. journal publications and research presentations) available at King’s.
6. To identify and improve the visibility of role models to provide inspiration and build confidence.
7. To add value by improving knowledge and awareness of issues faced by our network members, e.g. through the new governance partnership of the Equality, Diversity & Inclusion Community Forum and the Equality, Diversity & Inclusion Committee.
8. To explore and promote established and new training options, aligned to our network voice.

We aim to hold six to eight meetings a year and we maintain an online forum via a private group in Microsoft Teams. Three of these meetings will be more formal with a set agenda intended to help progress the business of the Network. The other meetings will be more informal meet ups for mutual support and networking.

Access King’s has a Co-Chair (Strategy) and a Co-Chair (Community), who lead a network committee which includes representatives from across the entire university who help to produce and deliver network meetings, events, and the co-ordination of feedback on policies and procedures. Please get in touch if you are interested; all enquiries will be treated in confidence.

Read the Access King's 2019 - 2020 Report: How far have we come? How far have we got to go?

For more information, including events coming up, please visit the Access King's SharePoint (internal).

• Yammer
• Join the mailing list
• Twitter @AccessKings
• Instagram @access_kings
• Join the Microsoft Team
• Email: access-kings@kcl.ac.uk