Access Support Worker 101
By Ellen Larson
Recently, I found myself saying “I’m good at access”. Upon reflection, I realised that this doesn’t actually mean anything. In recent years, ‘access’ has become a buzzword in the arts sector. This is not a bad thing; awareness of access provision is the first step to being able to provide it and engaging in further conversations around the nuances of accessibility. However, like any word we hear a lot, sometimes it can lose its meaning or the provision begins to move further away from something useful and specific.
In a very literal term, access is how we enable people to participate. This covers both the physical aspects of access (wheelchair ramps, T-loops, etc) but also the harder-to-define parts. What can we do to make it easier for someone to get out of bed in the morning and participate in society? This is why access is bespoke - the answer to this question will be different to everyone.
There is also an aspect of access which is activism. Using the social model of disability, we know that people are disabled by barriers in society, not by their impairment. By supporting access needs, we are challenging society.
An exercise I like to do when I’m facilitating (learnt from Drea Spisto) is to make a ‘blue sky thinking’ list of your Conditions for Thriving, aka - everything you could possibly need to be your best self. Set a timer for 5 mins and challenge yourself to do this; don’t overthink it, just write whatever comes to mind. Your goal is to write as long a list as possible. It can be literal, like a cup of coffee, or psychological, like clear boundaries and expectations.
Here's the thing; everyone has fundamental access needs. We all need water and nutrients. We all need sleep and rest. It is just that some people have additional fundamental access needs - additional things they need to be able to participate in society.
The issue is that people often find it hard to articulate their access needs. It’s always hard to ask for what you need - it’s fundamentally hard to trust another person to help you, especially when you are struggling to help yourself. It can feel like a big, overwhelming ask. And this is if you even know what your access needs are - how on earth are you supposed to be able to articulate your needs if you don’t know what they are?!
That’s why I like doing the Conditions for Thriving exercise. Ta da, within 2 minutes you’ve got a whole list of things that help you be your best self. These might not be “needs”, but they make your life easier and they make you happier. That feels important, no? Why shouldn’t you have those things?
This is where access workers can come in. An access worker is a person who will advocate for a person's needs and support them in ensuring they have what they need to participate in society and, hopefully, thrive.
While the Conditions for Thriving exercise is beneficial and a good introduction to understanding the universality of access, it feels important to recognise that there is a barrier to people understanding their needs if they’ve never seen examples of a “good environment” for them. While I was writing this, Tom (rightly) pointed out that they would never have known they found body doubling, a technique where you do work at the same time as somebody else to help accountability and support, beneficial unless somebody had told them what it was and they tried it.
This highlights another way access support workers can support - by offering provocations of different elements of access like time management, meetings, emotional regulation, etc. They can also help with accountability - but in a different way to how your line manager might hold you accountable for your job responsibilities. An access support worker is there to support you, and they’ll hold you accountable to make the changes you want to make and to support you in getting done what you need to.
I’ve been Tom's access worker for about 9 months now and in that time, the way we think of access has evolved. Tom runs a company and it became clear early on that something we needed to do was set up the business processes and systems for the company so that tasks were clear, deadlines were set and working weeks became more manageable.This isn’t because Tom wasn’t managing before, but because we could find ways to manage things better together. We did this because Tom has ADHD, and through setting up better organisational processes we were able to create an innovative workflow which works with their ADHD, rather than in spite of or against it.
Workplaces by and large operate the same - you turn up at 9am and you work through your to-do list, occasionally meeting with others to talk about progress and figure out new tasks. When we went into lockdown, many people found they were able to revolutionise their personal workflows and find new processes that worked better for them. Often people are too busy and overwhelmed to consider another approach, or have never even considered how a different approach might benefit them.
In our work at BAP!, Tom and I take a systems approach to access. We’re not isolating certain tasks, but instead trying to create self-sustaining systems. What this looks like in a practical sense is using an organisational management tool (in this case, Asana) and utilising the tools it offers to suit our output of work and our needs. This involves some creative thinking, innovative problem solving and good research skills. We link Asana to our other tools, like our Google Drive and when we need to use a new digital tool, we assess how this fits in with our current setup. We think this approach to access is different to how people may perceive access, and that therefore my job responsibilities are different to what people expect.
Below I’ve outlined some key tips for trying out our approach. This could be beneficial if you work or want to work in neurodivergent access, if you’re wanting to implement accessible processes into your organisation or if you’re simply wanting to know more about the framework in which we created this practice.
Be willing to try something new - but set a deadline to check back in. When innovating better systems, you aren’t going to get it right the first time and that’s fine. Rather than getting stuck, set a time to check in about anything new you’re trying.
Allow a new routine time to settle - not to immediately contradict myself but when setting those deadlines, give new processes a reasonable amount of time to be tested. See how things work on a busy week compared to a quieter week.
Accept that there is never the ‘perfect’ time to try something new. Artists are constantly busy and there is never a good time to change things. Try new things on your first day back from annual leave, on the first day of rehearsals, after press night, while knee deep writing a funding application. Did this new thing help or hinder?
Small changes, little by little - trying to revolutionise everything at once is overwhelming and unsustainable. If you have a big overall vision, break it down into smaller steps.
Be present. I’ve found that nine times out of ten, the most useful thing I can do is just be there and actively listen. Let the person you are supporting talk things through and only ask questions when they reach a natural conclusion - letting them talk things through and work it out themselves gives them power and advocacy.
I find my work very fulfilling. Every week I learn new things about myself and how I work (both independently and with others). The main thing I’ve learnt is that even a ‘neurotypical’ brain has its own quirks; these might not be things we think of as being unusual, but they matter to us and that’s important.
When I said “I’m good at access”, what I could have said instead was “I am good at creating processes for neurodivergent artists”. My statement was well-intended and meant to articulate my keen interest in helping people, to demonstrate my kindness, compassion and knowledge of the subject. By leaving my statement ambiguous, I did myself a disservice as an access worker by not outlining the succinct, clear framework in which I practise. This framework has worked great for Tom and I, but due to the bespoke nature of access needs, it won’t be for everyone. But without sharing that specific knowledge and expertise, I can’t let others decide if this work is something they would be interested in. By making it specific, we distil the knowledge so it can be shared and by making it visible, we’re able to implement change.
Ellen is a freelance theatre producer, facilitator, access support worker and theatre-maker. You can contact her by emailing associate@wearebap.co.uk.