Explore your sector tools
Use practical resources and the 90-day planner to turn one priority into supported work.
Open the government action planner →Government · Start here
Start with the culture behind public services.
Accessibility culture shows up in the decisions that shape a public service: what leaders prioritize, who can act, how teams work, and whose experience informs improvement.
Start the self-evaluationLook at the work behind the experience
Choose one real journey.
A resident may move from a public notice to an online application, a supporting document, and a follow-up message. Different teams may own each step. A shared accessibility culture helps those teams take responsibility for the whole journey.
- Applying for a permit or benefit
- Finding and using public information
- Completing an employee service
Whose perspective is included?
Bring a service owner, an agency sponsor or decision-maker, publishing or technology staff, procurement, accessibility expertise, and people affected by barriers. Invite different perspectives through accessible ways to contribute.
Start on your own if helpful, then compare perspectives. One person’s reflection does not establish a culture across the whole organization.
Accessibility culture challenges in government
- Responsibility can be spread across agencies, vendors, and service teams.
- Accessibility may enter a purchase or publishing decision after key commitments are made.
- Resident feedback may reach support teams without changing the underlying service process.
Reflect. Find evidence. Choose a next step.
Your initial accessibility culture assessment
Think about recent work in the scope you choose. For each area, select the description best supported by what you know. “Not sure” is a useful finding.
Developmental assessment — not validated. These preliminary indicators reflect the six proposed ACLT organizational capabilities. The baseline is a planning aid, not a validated ACLT scale, maturity classification, certification, or technical accessibility or compliance result.
Each capability has one preliminary indicator rated 0–4. All six have equal weight. A full baseline is calculated only when all six can be rated; “Not sure” is an evidence gap, not a zero. These indicators are a new planning aid, not the study’s quantitative index or a validated survey.
What do the response options mean?
- Not yet in place
- We have evidence that this practice is not currently in place within the scope we chose.
- Depends on individuals
- It happens mainly through a particular person, extra effort, or repeated reminders.
- Defined, starting to use
- Expectations are documented and initial examples exist, but use or support is still inconsistent.
- Repeatable with support
- Clear expectations, ownership, and support are used in recent work.
- Sustained and improved
- Examples over time show the practice continuing across people or teams, with feedback used to improve it.
- Not sure / need evidence
- We do not have enough evidence, or perspectives differ. This is different from knowing a practice is absent.
Look for examples and exceptions. A written policy alone does not demonstrate that a practice is used.
Use process summaries. Keep resident records, employee information, and confidential case details in approved agency systems. Responses stay in this browser and are not sent to the Institute or synced to your member account.
Your draft saves in this browser as you make changes.
Choose a response for each area
0 of 6 capabilities answered
Your self-reported snapshot
Your starting point
Developmental baseline
Not validated. This self-reported result is for reflection within the scope reviewed. Do not use it to rank organizations.
Self-reported strengths
Indicators rated 3 or 4 suggest practices to sustain and verify.
Improvement opportunities
Indicators rated 0–2 suggest practices to develop or support.
Evidence to clarify
These responses describe your current view. Check them with the people involved and the evidence available; they have not been independently verified.
| Area | Your response | Example or evidence to check |
|---|
Choose one place to begin
Consider the impact on people, how often a barrier recurs, who can make a change, and the support available. You choose the priority; the tool does not rank the areas.
From reflection to practice