Accessibility of services for users with special needs

Strategic objectives for service provision to people with special needs are in force in policy or strategic document(s)

Review of government strategic documents related to verify that there are objectives and actions designed to improve accessibility and quality of service provision to people with special needs that are valid on the date of assessment. The objectives should cover all aspects of accessibility of services, including access to people with special needs, access to people with lower-level digital skills and access to people who speak minority languages.

The strategic document(s) have a situation analysis, including identification of existing problems and user needs

Review of government strategic documents to verify that there is a situation analysis about how easy it is to access government services by people with special needs, people with weak digital skills and those speaking minority languages.

Explicit actions are defined to achieve the objectives

Review of government strategic documents to verify that explicit actions are defined to achieve the objectives.

Responsibility for achieving objectives and executing actions are clearly assigned to specific institutions

Review of government strategic documents to verify that responsibility for achieving objectives and executing actions is clearly assigned to specific institutions.

All actions of the strategy for service provision to people with special needs include a cost estimation

Review of government strategic documents to verify that all actions of the strategy for service provision to people with special needs include a cost estimation.

Reported implementation rate of activities to improve access to services to people with special needs (%)

Review of government documentation, planning documents and reports. The reported implementation rate is calculated based on the planned actions of all action plans of all valid planning documents during the last full calendar year. If there is no information on implementation of the action plan(s) of one or more strategies comprising the accessibility agenda, it is assumed that the activities planned for the reporting year have not been implemented from the list of all planned activities of all strategies. Activities that are ongoing, continuous, or only partly implemented will not be counted. Points are allocated based on the reported implementation rate of activities related to service provision to people with special needs (x): • x < 25% = 0 points • 25% ≤ x < 90% = linear function • x ≥ 90% = 5 points.

Public buildings accessible without barriers (%)

Review of official registry or database in which the accessibility of government buildings with no barriers and buildings still to comply is recorded. If the public administration does not have a register of all public buildings of the central public administration with the information, then no points are awarded. Points are allocated based on the percentage of buildings that are accessible without barriers (x): • x < 30% = 0 points • 30% ≤ x < 75% = linear function • x ≥ 75% = 5 points.

Citizens have the right to communicate with the public administration in official sign language

Review of the legislation to verify if citizens have the right to communicate with the public administration in official sign language.

Citizens have the right to receive government written communication in braille writing

Review of the legislation to verify if citizens have the right to receive government written communications in braille writing.

Mandatory accessibility standards for construction or retrofitting of public sector buildings

Review of legislation, regulations and building codes. Mandatory accessibility standards guide the construction or retrofitting of public sector buildings and related facilities (for example access paths). Laws, regulations and building codes should, at a minimum, include provisions to remove barriers for people with reduced mobility (e.g., wheelchair access) and people with visual impairments (e.g., braille signage, audible guidance).