§ 24. Mr. Tom ClarkeTo ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office what step he is taking to ensure disabled access to Government publications. [58939]
§ Mr. KilfoyleThe Central Office of Information (COI) provides a number of services to government departments to assist them in ensuring that their information material is accessible to people with disabilities. The COI's Informability Unit offers advice and consultancy on604W accessible information issues and also procurement of accessible formats. The Unit has published The Informability Manual, which is widely used throughout government departments and the private sector as a good-practice guide to making information accessible.
The COI also produces two magazine services, one on audio cassette (Sound Advice), the other on British Sign Language and subtitling on video (Public Scene). These magazines are available to government departments and agencies to publicise details of current publications and campaigns to sensory impaired audiences. Both services are supplied free to organisations which relate to people with disabilities or literacy problems and act as disseminators of the information to their particular audiences.