The ICO commissioned this toolkit for (primarily) independent film exhibitors to support their work in making their venues and services more inclusive and accessible for visually impaired people.

Sight Loss in the UK

• It is estimated that currently, over two million people in the UK live with sight loss that is severe enough to have a significant impact on their daily lives, such as their not being able to drive.
• Every day, 250 people start to lose their sight in the UK.
• As we get older we are increasingly likely to experience sight loss, and the UK population is ageing. In addition, sight loss is strongly linked with certain medical conditions as well as lifestyle factors such as diabetes and obesity – the rates of which are both rising.
• The number of people with sight loss is estimated to rise to 2.7 million by 2030. By 2050, the current figure will double to over four million.

People living with sight loss want to enjoy the same experiences as everyone else. This includes going to the cinema and there is therefore a strong economic argument for film exhibitors to meet this demand, as well as the obvious social and moral imperatives for cultural organisations to aim to serve everyone within their community.

In addition, cinemas have a legal duty to make their services accessible to all people with disabilities, including visually impaired people, under the Equality Act 2010. People with disabilities who feel they have been refused or denied reasonable access to a service have the option to take the service provider to court.

Organisations that are inclusive and welcoming to people with disabilities gain enhanced community reputation and trust. People with disabilities are loyal to organisations which provide a consistently good and inclusive service.

Read the full ICO guide to Developing Visually Impaired Audiences, and check out their web page on Subtitling and audio description for information around screening accessibly to blind and partially-sighted audiences.

We recommend using professional subtitling and audio description services for your film wherever possible, to ensure the best possible standard and accessibility for your screenings.

To provide subtitles which are accessible for D/deaf audiences you will need to provide caption (descriptive) subtitles for your film, which provide extra information about the sound onscreen as well as dialogue. Subtitling often used for foreign language films translates the dialogue only and assumes a hearing audience. Please check with the individual subtitle supplier whether they provide this.

For foreign language films, you will need a Subtitler and/or Audio Describer who can translate for screen.

Here are details of some UK based organisations who may be able to help:

Subtitling, BSL and Audio Description Services

Matchbox Cineclub  – Subtitling.
Day for Night – Subtitling , audio description, translation in 45 languages.
Voicebox – Subtitling.
Glocal Media – Subtitling and BSL translation for media.
Zebra Uno – Subtitling and BSL translation for media
Capital Captions – Subtitling, audio description and translation.
Screen Language – Subtitling, audio description and translation.
Matinee Multilingual –  Subtitling, audio description and translation in 80+ languages.
Mind’s Eye – Audio Description
Vocal Eyes – Audio Description
Audio Description Association – Offers a directory of freelance Audio Describers, sorted by region.
Sign Language Media – BSL translation for media.
Reflect BSL – BSL translation for media.
Red Bee Media – BSL translation for media.
Bradford Talking Media – Subtitling and BSL translation for media.
Sign Language Direct – BSL translation for media.
Tarjuman – Subtitling and translation.

BSL Interpreter Services

If you are looking for a BSL interpreter for your film screening, event or meeting, here is a list of Interpreter services and organisations who may be able to help:

Action On Hearing Loss – BSL Interpreters, Deafblind interpreters, Lip Speakers, Sign Supported English (SSE) Interpreters.
Clarion UK – BSL Interpreters.
Sign Language Direct – BSL Interpreters and Lip Speakers.
Sign Solutions – BSL Interpreters.
Deaf Umbrella – BSL Interpreters, London and South East (Kent).
Prestige Network – BSL Interpreters.
Zebra Uno – BSL Interpreters, Lip Speakers, Sign Supported English (SSE) Interpreters, Deafblind Interpreters, international Sign Interpreter.
LanguageLine Solutions – BSL Interpreters.
BID Services – BSL Interpreters.
Royal Association for Deaf People – BSL Interpreters, Lip Speakers, Deafblind Interpreters.
Link Hearing – BSL Interpreters.
List of BSL interpreter contacts.

Speech-To-Text and Live Caption Services

AVSTTR (The Association of Speech-To-Text Reporters) – Speech-To-Text Reporters
Action on Hearing Loss – Speech-To-Text Reporters
MyClearText – Speech-To-Text Reporters
Clarion UK – Speech-To-Text Reporters
NRCPD (The National Registers of Communication Professionals working with Deaf and Deafblind People) – Speech-To-Text Reporters
BIVR (British Institute of Verbatim Reporters) – Speech-To-Text Reporters
Stagetext – Subtitling and live captioning
AI Live – Live captions
Transcription City – Subtitling and live captioning
Capital Captions – Live captioning

Captioning software

Streamtext – Realtime caption solution
CC Extractor – produces subtitle files from closed captions
Rev.com – transcription, subtitling and captions
Zubtitle – captions for social media
Speakertext – cloud-worker generated captions

FAN supported BFI Musicals in autumn 2019. This was a nationwide cinema season celebrating the spectacle and craft of Musicals on film. This major season was led by BFI, Independent Cinema Office and Film Audience Network (FAN). 

FAN member cinemas could access screening support to present films, mini seasons or events as part of the season. With screening support, they received help to fund their own independent programming and events plus support to do wrap around activity related to the seasons core titles.

For exhibitors who wanted to include Captioned Subtitles on their screenings, Sweet Charity was bookable from the ICO touring programme. Tommy and Singin’ in the Rain was available from the BFI.

Exhibitors who wanted to run a Dementia-Friendly screening, could take a look at our downloads section. Screenings are adapted to make the environment more suitable for people living with dementia. You can find more about running dementia-friendly screenings here. Dementia-friendly screenings are also sometimes called Relaxed Screenings, though these can also be suitable for people with multi sensory sensitivities or different conditions such as autism or learning disabilities.

Exhibitors who were interested in running a relaxed screening, could find out more in our quick tips for running relaxed screenings. There is also some transferable advice in our autism-friendly screenings guide, though bear in mind much of this advice is specific to people living with autism, not necessarily those who are Learning Disabled. Ideally, consult with Learning Disabled groups in your area for advice and expertise.

With Learning Disability week coming up in June, now is the time to support learning disabled representation in the film industry as well as consider access to cinema for neurodivergent audiences.

In 2019, FAN New Releases supported Signature’s title The Peanut Butter Falcon, a modern Mark Twain-esque adventure starring Shia LaBeouf (American Honey, Fury) as a small-time outlaw turned unlikely coach who joins forces with Zack Gottsagen‘s Zak, a young man with Down Syndrome on the run from a nursing home with the dream of becoming a professional wrestler. Dakota Johnson (Suspiria, Fifty Shades of Grey) stars as Zak’s loving, but stubborn, carer. 

This feel-good film features a Learning Disabled actor in a leading role, where his disability is not the main element of the story. It’s a tale of friendship and adventure, and will appeal to fans of wrestling, good storytelling, and/or road movies.

You can now watch The Peanut Butter Falcon on BFI Player.

Bookings for Community Cinema screenings can be made from Cinema For All.

You can also watch the film My Feral Heart on BFI Player. A drama in which Luke (Steven Brandon), a young man with Down’s syndrome who prizes his independence, is forced into a care home after the death of his mother. There he rails against the restrictions imposed on him, but his frustrations are allayed by his budding friendships with his care-worker Eve (Shana Swash) and a mysterious feral girl (Pixie Le Knot).

If you’re interested to run a relaxed screening, to help bring in Learning Disabled audiences to your cinema, find out more in our quick tips for running relaxed screenings. You may also find some transferable advice in our autism-friendly screenings guide, though bear in mind much of this advice is specific to people living with autism, not necessarily those who are Learning Disabled. Ideally, consult with Learning Disabled groups in your area for advice and expertise.

Neurodiversity Celebration week was founded by neurodiversity advocate Siena Castellon. According to the Department of Education, 15% of students in the United Kingdom have a learning difference such as autism, ADHD, dyslexia or dyspraxia.

This week aims to acknowledge and celebrate the many positive aspects of being neurodiverse and create a more positive perception about what it means to be neurodiverse and to change the educational landscape so that SEN students have positive school experiences. Find out more information on how to get involved here.

Celebrating unique perspectives and the value that comes from different outlooks, Neurodiversity Celebration Week encourages people to recognise the benefits that come with autism and neurodiverse perspectives. Cinemas across the country offer relaxed environment or autism-friendly screenings, with adaptations to make the space more comfortable and accessible for autistic people to enjoy film as individuals or with their families.

Organisations such as the UK Cinema Association, Dimensions, National Autistic Society and FAN have worked with cinemas to support them in welcoming autistic audiences. You can find listings for some cinemas which host Relaxed and/or Autism-Friendly Screenings here and on event listings on the Accessible Screenings website.

UK venues

Greenock | Fun Film Club at the Waterfront

Dunoon |  Autism Friendly screenings at Studio Cinema

London |  Relaxed Screenings at BFI Southbank  

Leeds |  Relaxed Screenings at Hyde Park Picture House

Glasgow |  Take 2 Access at Glasgow Film Theatre  

Glasgow |  Access Film Club at Glasgow Film Theatre 

Belfast, Glengormley & Coleraine |  Autism friendly screenings at Movie House Cinemas 

Stockton |  Relaxed performances and screenings at ARC  

Dundee |  Relaxed Screenings at DCA

Worthing | Autism Friendly screenings at Worthing Theatres  

Neath |  Relaxed Screenings at Gwyn Hall     

Walsall, Dudley, Nottingham, Derby, Leicester & Coventry | Autism Friendly Screenings at Showcase Cinemas  

Saffron Walden |  Relaxed Screenings at Saffron Screen        

London |  Relaxed Screenings at Barbican      

Hebden Bridge |  Autism Friendly (Relaxed) Screenings at Hebden Bridge Picture House

Birmingham |  Relaxed events and screenings at Mac  

Canterbury | Accessible film screenings at Gulbenkian    

Chester | Relaxed Screenings at Storyhouse

Merlin Cinemas |  Penzance, Redruth, Falmouth, Torquay, Ilfracombe, Okehampton, Coleford, Cromer, Kingsbridge, Prestatyn  |  Autism friendly screenings at Merlin Cinemas