Neil Howard, Senior Advisor for Access and Inclusion at Norfolk County Council, presented to the Norfolk Local Access Forum on 12 February, outlining how the council's Equality, Diversity and Inclusion (EDI) team supports outdoor access projects across the county.

Howard told the forum that no building or space is ever 100% accessible, but that incorporating accessibility thinking from the outset of a project gives the best chance of maximising benefit. He highlighted that a single disability can represent a whole spectrum of competing needs, making a pan-disability approach essential.

The EDI team follows the National Principles for Inclusive Design and has worked with Norfolk Trails, Active Norfolk, and other teams involved in outdoor access. Howard agreed to share the Inclusive Design Principles with the forum.

Katy Owen, NCC's Protected Landscapes Manager, pointed to Brancaster as an example of how early EDI engagement had improved a capital project. She also noted that an ongoing Norfolk Trails survey would provide evidence about how users currently perceive accessibility, helping to prioritise future work.

On the question of accessible parking, Howard confirmed that parking controls outside of council museums and libraries are managed at district level, not by the county council. He referenced a mapping exercise being carried out by The Clare School in Norwich, in partnership with the University of East Anglia, to identify the locations of disabled parking bays and accessible toilets in the city, and agreed to share a link to the resulting map.