The University of Westminster has launched an innovative free online training course designed to transform how museums communicate with their audiences through audio description (AD). This initiative, supported by the Arts and Humanities Research Council (AHRC), empowers museums to make their collections accessible to everyone by creating content that resonates with blind, partially blind and sighted audiences alike, rather than treating AD as a neutral interpretation. The Workshop for Inclusive Co-created Audio Description (W-ICAD) not only bridges accessibility gaps but enriches how museum collections are interpreted and shared.
Audio descriptions are essential for blind and partially blind audiences to experience museum collections. Yet, conventional practices are rooted in outdated biases that prioritise sighted perspectives. W-ICAD redefines this process by incorporating the lived experiences and voices of blind and partially blind people alongside sighted contributors to ensure all perspectives are understood.
Spanning seven modules, the new Massive Open Online Course (MOOC) equips museum professionals, audio describers and stakeholders with the tools to adopt the W-ICAD approach in their practice. Featuring filmed content from museum experts and co-creators, the training is enriched by real-world examples from institutions like the Natural History Museum, which applied the W-ICAD principles to its Urban Nature Project and the Wildlife Photographer of the Year exhibition.
The W-ICAD model not only ensures legal compliance with accessibility standards but also sets a benchmark for inclusivity in the museum and heritage sectors.
The project has already made waves through partnerships with 11 leading institutions including the Natural History Museum, Imperial War Museums, National Museums Liverpool and the Smithsonian American Art Museum. W-ICAD is currently live on the National Paralympics Heritage Trust virtual exhibition, a project that was brought together by Co-investigator Professor Hannah Thompson at Royal Holloway, University of London and Audiovisual Translation Specialist at the University of Westminster Dr Lindsay Bywood. These collaborations provided the foundation for the W-ICAD model and informed the development of the MOOC. Other institutions, such as the Horniman Museum and Gardens, are integrating the model into long-term projects, including the redevelopment of their natural history galleries.
Dr Alison Eardley, Lead Researcher on the W-ICAD project and Reader in Psychology, Cultural Heritage and Inclusion, said: “Through W-ICAD we are not only advocating for a conceptual shift in how we currently think about access and inclusion, we are also providing the museum and heritage sectors with a practical tool that enables them to challenge the ableist underpinnings of access within our society. More than one of our co-creators have told us that taking part in the workshops themselves transformed the way they thought about museums and their place in them. The W-ICAD model enables museums to bring those benefits to all visitors.”
This project directly contributes to the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (SDG) 4: Quality Education and 10: Reduced Inequalities. Since 2019, the University of Westminster has used the SDGs holistically to frame strategic decisions to help students and colleagues fulfil their potential and contribute to a more sustainable, equitable and healthier society.
Find out more at the Workshop for Inclusive Co-created Audio Description website.
Find out more about studying on the Museums, Galleries and Contemporary Culture MA course at the University of Westminster.
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