Accessibility Plan

The Accessible British Columbia Act, enacted in 2021, aims to make British Columbia more accessible by identifying, removing, and preventing barriers for people with disabilities. 

As part of the Act, public sector organizations—including school districts—are required to: 

• Establish an Accessibility Committee. 

• Develop and maintain an Accessibility Plan. 

• Provide a way for the public to report accessibility barriers and provide feedback.  

The Act is guided by six principles that shape accessibility planning across the province: 

• Inclusion – Everyone should be able to participate fully and equally.  

At Sea to Sky School District, these principles guide our commitment to creating welcoming, inclusive, and accessible learning and working environments for all members of our school community. 

Goal 1: Create Inclusive and Accessible Learning Environments

Goal 2: Identify, Remove, and Prevent Barriers

• Accessibility: The state of having programs, services and environments that allow all individuals to participate fully in society without encountering barriers. 

• Accessibility Committee: An official group formed by one or more organizations in collaboration with people with disabilities to create an accessibility plan and feedback mechanism. 

• Accessibility Plan: A plan developed by an Accessibility Committee that identifies challenges and solutions for addressing accessibility barriers. 

• Barrier: Anything that prevents a person with a disability from fully participating in all aspects of society because of their disability. This includes physical/environmental, attitudinal, information, communications, policy or practice, and technological barriers. Types of barriers: 
  • Physical/Environmental Barrier: A barrier resulting from building design, smells/sounds, lighting, the area adjacent to the building, shape of rooms, the size of doorways, and so on.
  • Attitudinal Barrier: A barrier that arises from the attitudes of staff, students and the school community, including discriminatory behaviours and a lack of disability awareness.
  • Communication Barrier: A barrier that arises from difficulties receiving information in person, by telephone or online, interacting with teachers, peers, receptionists or other staff, and receiving training.
  • Information Barrier: A barrier that arises from inadequate or incomprehensible signage, difficulties reading brochures, forms, manuals, websites, fax transmissions, equipment labels, computer screens, and so on.
  • Policy or Practice Barrier: Rules, regulations and protocols that prevent a person from performing their job satisfactorily or participating in society. Policy, practice, and procedures that prevent a student from accessing the curriculum and fully participating in the school community.
  • Technological Barrier: Barriers resulting from computers, photocopiers, fax machines, telephones and switches, including the lack of assistive technologies.

• Disability: The state of being unable to participate fully and equally in society as a result of the interaction between an impairment and a barrier. (For more information about disability, types of disability, and support, refer to Appendix A: Disabilities.) 

• Impairment: A physical, sensory, mental, intellectual, or cognitive limitation, whether permanent, temporary or episodic. 

Accessibility is an Ongoing Journey 

Sea to Sky School District is committed to continuous improvement. Working alongside our Accessibility Committee and community members, we will: 

• Review and update our Accessibility Plan every three years 
• Publish annual progress updates 
• Continue identifying and removing barriers 
• Foster inclusive learning and working environments for all