London Borough of Hammersmith and Fulham: Increasing the accessibility of council meetings

On the International Day of Disabled People in 2015 the London Borough of Hammersmith & Fulham (LHBF) made a commitment to work more closely with Disabled people to become a more inclusive and accessible borough. This led to the establishment of the independent Hammersmith & Fulham Disabled People’s Commission in 2016, which brought together 10 disabled residents with council officers and members and promoted co-production as an approach to tackling barriers for Disabled people with the borough.

The council set up a co-production unit to take this work forward, and David Isaac, one of the commission members, secured a role within the unit as a co-production co-ordinator. Meanwhile, his fellow Commissioner, Patricia Quigley, was elected as a councillor in 2018 and became Mayor of the borough in 2023.

Both David and Patricia became involved in the work of the borough as a result of the council’s initial commitment to co-production with Disabled residents and have since then been able to bring their lived experience to bear in breaking down barriers for other Disabled staff members, residents and councillors. 

They are both proud of the approach the borough has taken and are optimistic about the way the focus on co-production continues to improve accessibility across the council.

The social model of disability states that Disabled people are denied access and equity, not because of their impairment or health condition, but because of the ways society organises itself. Society disables citizens with impairments and health conditions by creating social, physical, economic and attitudinal barriers. It is these barriers which prevent people from fully participating in society, rather than impairments or health conditions themselves. 

Too many Disabled people are excluded from participating in local government, whether as residents, officers or councillors, because there are still many barriers, such as inaccessible buildings, poor communications and unhelpful policies and processes. 

On the International Day of Disabled People in 2015, the London Borough of Hammersmith and Fulham made a commitment, in light of the work it had done in partnership with local Disabled residents to end homecare charging, to work more closely with Disabled residents to deliver its ambition to be the most accessible and inclusive borough in London. 

The council established a Disabled Peoples’ Commission, bringing together residents, officers and members to set out a series of recommendations including raising Disabled people’s awareness of how to insist upon their human rights, increased co-production, upskilling to work better together and making services run in the way local Disabled people want them to.

The commission also recommended that the council establish a co-production unit to facilitate this work, recruiting Disabled people into key roles within the unit in order to realise the commission’s vision of centring people with lived experience and promoting co-produced ways of working internally as well as externally.

A key transformational project which helped to embed co-production as a way of working, has been bringing together Disabled residents, council officers, architects, town planners and designers to work together to make the new Civic Campus development as accessible as possible.

Following the Disabled Peoples’ Commission’s report recommendations, the council committed to adopting the Social Model of Disability to change the narrative about Disabled people and address the barriers they experience.

This has led to a culture shift within the council in the last few years which is gradually making a difference. Engagement with residents is improving and is certainly having an impact on how a number of services and policies are designed and delivered. 

In addition to the new Civic Campus, other achievements include Disabled residents leading projects around housing and planning, digital accessibility, inclusive environments and direct payments, co-production with children to set up new family hubs, over £2 million in external funding into the borough for co-production and the commitment to co-production with residents reaffirmed in the Corporate Plan 24-26, the Equalities Plan 22-26 and the 2022 Manifesto.

Another key impact of the Disabled People’s Commission is that participating in it encouraged Patricia Quigley to put herself forward for election as a councillor in 2018, leading to her becoming Mayor of Hammersmith & Fulham in 2023.

As Mayor, Cllr Quigley is herself an example for other Disabled people across the borough that participation in local government is possible. Cllr Quigley said it has given her the opportunity to: “recognise other barriers, not just my own. Through the work that we have done, we have shifted a real culture change”.

Since becoming Mayor, Cllr Quigley has been able to influence a number of strategic changes, in particular in relation to improving the accessibility of council meetings. One example is in the Chamber for Full Council, Cllr Quigley has successfully encouraged councillors to stop heckling during the meeting, in order to make the environment more accessible for those who are Deaf or hard of hearing. 

Another change has been the introduction of British Sign Language interpreting (BSL) at council meetings, in person and streamed online - so people who need BSL have a choice about whether they attend in person or watch remotely.

Patricia has also used her platform as Mayor to encourage councillors to receive disability equity training. As a result of her leadership, councillors are changing the way politics is being done. 

The primary barriers are that change takes time, you have to persuade people to change ways of working and reduced budgets make the scale of the challenge greater. There are no quick fixes.

Officers and leadership were very supportive and relationships with local Disabled people and community organisations were crucial in, for example, bringing in measures around British Sign Language.

Hammersmith and Fulham Council ensured accessibility measures were in place, for example, Cllr Quigley has an accessible vehicle for travelling to meetings and events. 

The Leader of the Council has experience of working with grassroots Disabled rights activists in the borough and has really driven the coproduction agenda forward. The governance team has been supportive of moving Cllr Quigley’s vision for improved accessibility at council meetings. 

 It has taken us a long time for us to get to where we are. If you don’t have the support of the political leaders, you can’t get very far,” said Cllr Quigley, “We also wouldn’t be where we are today without local Disabled people and their organisations working hard to influence us, push us to where we should be. They are the real unsung heroes.

Setting up the commission has helped to unlock the talents of Disabled residents, helping to foster sustained engagement with council programmes in the longer term.

The co-production unit is now responsible for taking this approach forward in the borough. The aim is to mainstream co-production across all council departments with ongoing support and leadership from the CEO, the leader of the council and the senior leadership team (SLT) and their department heads. 

You need political leadership and commitment to support what you want to achieve. Be constructive and influence through relationships.

Embracing co-production as ‘business as usual’ unlocks the talent in communities, both in terms of staff and councillor recruitment.

Co-production needs commitment from the top-down as well as the bottom-up. It takes a lot of people, all working together with a single goal. 

Co-Production has to be authentic, and it has to involve everyone - nothing can be ‘window dressing’. Hard work is required to convince residents to get on board and show them that their voice matters. Reach out to community groups and set up residents’ forums to listen to real feedback and continue to show residents that you are acting on what they say. Work hard to change perceptions and show people that their time given to you is worth it for them. 

Co-production is a culture shift, and it takes time - but it is worth it. Members are often looking for a quick win within their four-year term, but co-production is a long process and to be successful it needs to be supported beyond the electoral cycle.

Cllr Quigley said: “I never saw myself being a councillor but being asked makes a huge impact. It is OK to dig your heels in and be vocal for what you need - disagreeing agreeably with people who resist change, to achieve what you believe needs to be done.”