Belfast City Council has opened a public consultation on its draft Disability Action Plan for 2026 to 2029.
The council is also holding public engagement sessions, or conversations, as part of its work towards becoming a more accessible and inclusive city.
The public consultation on the draft plan will run for 14 weeks, until 12 January 2027, with events planned across the city from next month at the following venues:
Friday 6 November (11am-1pm) - Crescent Arts Centre
Monday 16 November (5pm-7pm) – Cregagh Community Centre
Wednesday 18 November (2pm-4pm) - Woodvale Community Centre
Tuesday 24 November (10am-12pm) - Glen Road Community Centre
Tuesday 8 December (11am-1pm) – Donegall Pass Community Centre.
There is also an online survey where residents can feed back on the draft plan and its proposed outcomes and actions, and you can have your say on this, via the council’s Your Say platform.
The Disability Action Plan is an important legal document which reaffirms the council’s commitment to fulfilling its statutory obligations, in compliance with Section 49A of the Disability Discrimination Act 1995 (as amended by the Disability Discrimination (NI) Order 2006).
This law places duties on public authorities to:
promote positive attitudes towards disabled people
encourage participation by disabled people in public life.
Following consultation, the final version of the Disability Action Plan for 2026-2029 will be submitted to the Equality Commission for Northern Ireland, with the plan reviewed every three years.
The draft Disability Action Plan outlines four key outcomes the council is aiming to achieve over the next three years - ‘Delivering for our Communities’, ‘Knowing our Communities’, ‘Leadership’ and having/promoting a ‘Skilled and Diverse Workforce’.
It also includes a number of actions and lists these within the plan. Examples include:
enhanced accessibility for disabled people and sign language users within the design, planning and delivery of council venues, like the flagship Belfast Region City Deal Belfast Stories project and Belfast PEACEPLUS projects;
among these is the PEACEPLUS-funded Reconnected Belfast scheme which will reconnect the Waterworks Park and Alexandra Park, with design plans including a Changing Places facility for each park and inclusive, accessible play provision and signage;
annual upgrades to be delivered to the council’s estate, including its play parks through the Playground Improvement Programme, to increase play value, accessibility and the overall quality of sites selected for refurbishment each year;
council events and outreach programming continuing to include accessibility and disability enhancement, for example, hosting a ‘Quiet Christmas’ switch-on event at 2 Royal Avenue to coincide with the main Belfast Christmas lights switch-on event at the front of City Hall each year;
tailored skills and employability initiatives for people with disabilities and working with city employers to design and deliver bespoke employment academies, as well as appointing enterprise champions;
deliver on the commitments set out in the Accessible and Inclusive Tourism Programme and ensure accessibility and inclusion are embedded within wider tourism initiatives and events;
review the provision of pedestrian and inclusive access at recycling centres and review the council’s resources and fleet accommodation at Duncrue around accessibility for council staff;
continue to promote disability and accessibility tools on the council’s websites, social media platforms and internal channels for staff, as well as evaluating the AccessAble website and app; and
improve data use on disability and accessibility in equality screenings and review mechanisms for disabled people and the D/deaf community to participate in plans and decision-making.
You can view the draft Disability Action Plan for 2026-2029 on the council website at www.belfastcity.gov.uk/equality and access the public consultation and survey on council’s Your Say platform at https://yoursay.belfastcity.gov.uk/
An Easy Read version of the Plan is also available on the council website, along with signed versions of the draft plan in both British Sign Language and Irish Sign Language.
