Guidelines for Accessible procurement of Goods & Services

Trinity College Dublin is committed to a policy of equal opportunity in education, and to ensuring that students and staff with a disability have as complete and equitable access to all facets of College life as can reasonably be provided.

Request for goods or services should demonstrate relevant experience of applying Universal Design principles and providing solutions that are accessible to the widest user audience, including older users and users with disabilities.

It is essential that the tool or service fulfil the following criteria:

• Be technically accessible, in that it is possible for all
  users to access all information and functionality;
• Be equally usable, in that it is not prohibitively difficult
  or time consuming for users with disabilities to carry out normal
  tasks;
• Be capable of being adapted or configured by individual users
  to meet their specific needs and preferences;
• Be capable of interfacing with appropriate, widely available
  assistive technologies employed by users.

Accessibility policy – Trinity College Dublin

Accessible Information Policy of Trinity College Dublin published in conformity with the requirements of the Disability Act 2005, Universities Act, 1997, the Employment Equality Act, 1998-2004 and Equal Status Acts, 2000-2004.

To view the policy in full -

http://www.tcd.ie/about/policies/accessible-info-policy.php

3 main processes in ensuring an Accessible tender

1. Development process

Design and implementation should be carried out in accordance with an inclusive, user-centred process, based on Universal Design principles.

Tenders should outline the main features of this process, such as:

• How user requirements including the specific needs of people with disabilities will be gathered and used.
• How user needs will be identified and taken into account.
• Methods of consultation with users, including people with
  disabilities or their representatives.

2. Quality assurance of the product or service

Prior to delivery of the <procured item> should be tested or otherwise evaluated for usability and accessibility as part of the quality assurance process.
Tenders should outline the main evaluation methods to been used, such as:

• Accessibility audit carried out by an accessibility expert.
  Please state the credentials of the expert who will carry out the
  audit.
• User testing by representative users, including users with
  disabilities. Please describe the test environment, procedures and user group characteristics.

Tenderer's may employ either or both of the above methodologies or propose their own set of methodologies.

3. Training of product or service

The successful tenderer will be required to provide any training necessary to enable staff to maintain the accessibility of the product and its information content. If any such training is necessary, tenders should include proposals and plans for this training.

If you need further clarification on Trinity College accessibility standards please contact the procurement officer at hartnetb@tcd.ie