Introduction to Audio Description for small museums- 3 session programme

If the ticket type for your region has sold out, please join our waitlist here https://www.smartsurvey.co.uk/s/116SQO/

Trainers:

Roz Chalmers, Audio Description Association

Yusuf Osman

What will be covered?

Many visitors can benefit from good communication and description of the museum space and the objects within it, this includes blind and visually impaired visitors, people living with dementia, people with sensory processing disorders and children.

This series is designed to equip participants with the knowledge, skills and confidence to provide great audio description which is tailored to their museum and audiences. By booking on this page you agree to attend all three sessions:

• Visual Awareness 30 June 10am – 1pm
• Audio Description Overview 7 July 10am – 1pm
• Audio Description Scenarios 21 July 10am – 1pm

If you would like attend the first session only, please book onto this seperately.

Session 1 – Visual Awareness – This introductory session is open to all and will be led by a blind or visually impaired practitioner. Participants will learn more about the experience of blind and visually impaired people, with particular reference to website accessibility and guiding.

Session 2 – Audio Description Overview - Following the first session, participants will be guided through some of the principles of audio description in museums including describing the space as a whole and providing descriptions of both 2D and 3D objects. The group will also discuss additional considerations such as website information, guiding people safely through a space and other practical elements.

Session 3 – Audio Description Scenarios – Building on the previous two sessions, and some reflective activities, this session will explore the challenges and benefits of different approaches.

Who should attend?

Just Session 1 – anyone who interacts with the public (including front of house, security, café team, stewards)

All three Sessions – those in curatorial and/or learning and engagement roles

These sessions do not assume any prior knowledge, but participants in session 2 and 3 must attend all previous sessions.

Learning objectives

• To understand the benefits of providing great audio description in museums of all sizes.
• To learn more about the experience of blind and visually impaired visitors.
• To reflect on different formats of audio description and which might be the most suitable in different situations.
• To build skills and confidence in delivering useful and engaging audio description.

Format

Each session will include a 30 minute break. A detailed timetable will follow.

Accessibility

To help us ensure you get the most out of the session, you will be asked to email us with any access requirements you may have when you complete your order form. Please see the list of examples of adjustments we can make. This list is not exhaustive and we would be happy to accommodate other requirements where possible, please email us to discuss.

Eligibility

MDSE is funded by Arts Council England (ACE) to support museums in the South East of England within ACE’s Accreditation scheme. The South East is defined as the local authority areas of:

• Bedfordshire (Bedford Borough, Central Bedfordshire and Luton Borough)
• Berkshire (Bracknell Forest, Reading, Slough, West Berkshire, Windsor & Maidenhead and Wokingham)
• Buckinghamshire and Milton Keynes
• Cambridgeshire and Peterborough
• Essex, Southend-on-Sea and Thurrock
• Hertfordshire
• Kent and Medway
• Norfolk
• Oxfordshire
• Suffolk
• Surrey
• East Sussex and Brighton & Hove
• West Sussex

We prioritise places on our training programmes for museums which are Accredited or officially Working Towards Accreditation. ACE publishes the official lists of Accredited and Working Towards Accreditationmuseums on its website. Where possible we will make places available for museums which do not meet these criteria but the number of places will vary depending on the event format.

London tickets

MDSE is working with Museum Development London (MDL) to deliver some of our training and development programmes.

If you are working or volunteering for a museum in London you are eligible to attend this session.

Terms & Conditions:

For full details of our programmes conditions, see our Terms and Conditions on our website

By booking a place on to a Museum Development South East training event, you are agreeing to the following terms and conditions:

• That you are from a South East museum which is in Arts Council England’s Museum Accreditation Scheme. Where this is not applicable you acknowledge that MDSE will facilitate your attendance if availability permits and that you or your organisation will pay any fees which may apply.
• It is a condition of receiving this ACE funded training that the online evaluation sent to the email address provided at the point of booking is completed by the specified deadline. This deadline is in the email notification unless a paper evaluation is specifically requested and submitted on the day of the training session.
• By booking a place you agree that you will make every endeavour to attend the event and you will give us at least 24 hours’ notice if you need to cancel your booking. If you repeatedly cancel your booking without sufficient notice you agree that we may exercise our right to remove you from future event bookings.