BBC recognised with Autism Access Award

Staff at BBC North have been presented with the National Autistic Society’s Autism Access Award - a first for a UK broadcaster. The recognition came after the introduction of a range of measures to make it easier for people with autism to visit and work at the BBC base in Salford.

The Autism Access Award is a new standard for buildings and facilities to demonstrate that they are autism-friendly, as they have made a commitment to ensuring people with autism can access them.

The award has been given to organisations who have made adjustments so that people with autism, their families and carers, find it easier to visit and use them. The standard has created a best practise guide designed to provide assurance to people with autism and their families and carers. It is based upon the efforts of staff and operations of the company to change the way they work to make access easier.

Initiatives including two interactive films on the BBC Shows and Tours website, preparing would-be visitors to BBC buildings at MediaCityUK; Autism Awareness Training for all tour guides, reception staff and security guards; and a pilot work experience scheme for people with ‘neurodiverse’ conditions, were key in securing the award.

These initiatives are part of a wider project on neurodiversity at the BBC, which will include an event celebrating the creative and analytical abilities possessed by people with conditions such as autism that can bring value to the BBC and its audiences, to be held at BBC Broadcasting House in London in May 2016.

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