Access To WorkShape is proud to be launching this Rough Guide to Access to Work for artists, arts workers, creative professionals and their employers. We’re grateful to Arts Council England London office for funding this resource. It is the harsh reality that in 2006 only 2% of the workforce in the arts and creative industries in London were disabled or deaf, compared to the available workforce of 17%. This is something that must change. Deaf and disabled people should be considered for jobs on their merits, alongside non-disabled people. The Access to Work scheme was designed to meet additional costs of employing a disabled or deaf person. An individual shouldn’t need to worry that letting an employer know about their access requirements will make it less likely that they will get the job. However, there is not enough knowledge about the scheme and some organisations still focus on the costs that they imagine they will incur rather than on the skills and experience that the prospective employee can bring. We’ve talked with a large number of arts organisations and individuals who have had contact with Access to Work and included their tips and lessons for using the scheme. These have included ‘one man bands’, large arts organisations, freelancers, paid and contract staff. All of the case studies and examples are real! This is the very first time such a guide has been produced. We would like to thank Michéle Taylor for her excellent work researching and writing this guide and all the artists, employers and arts workers who provided feedback and case studies. We’d also like to thanks the Access to Work staff at Job Centre Plus for their support. Policy and practice has already started to change as a result of this guide. We hope that this guide will help you with Access to Work and ultimately get you further, faster. 
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