Creative Saskatchewan: Building Accessibility into Everyday Work

Since launching its 2026-2028 Accessibility Plan, Creative Saskatchewan has been turning its commitments into practical changes. Making improvements to website and communications, rethinking event planning, creating opportunities for client feedback, and strengthening supports for employees are important actions that build accessibility into everyday work and help remove barriers for people with disabilities.

Accessibility Champions Lead the Way

A key part of Creative’s Saskatchewan accessibility journey has been establishing Accessibility Champions. These employees help identify barriers, support the implementation of the accessibility plan, and keep accessibility part of everyday conversations and decision-making.

“We wanted accessibility to become part of how we work, not just something we think about occasionally,” says Carrie Sweeney, Creative Saskatchewan Communications Coordinator. “Having dedicated champions helps keep the conversation going and ensures accessibility is considered in everything we do.”

That approach is showing up in tangible tools for employees. An accessibility checklist now helps staff plan more inclusive events, while an Accessible Communications Best Practices Guide provides guidance for creating clear, accessible content.

Learning Through Feedback

Creative Saskatchewan is also finding new ways to listen to the people it serves. Opportunities for clients and stakeholders to share their experiences and provide feedback are helping the organization better understand where barriers exist and where changes can make a difference.

Innovation is part of that process, too. A pilot project providing audio summaries of documents recognizes that people access and process information in different ways.

Building a More Inclusive Saskatchewan

Conversations about accessibility and accommodations are now incorporated into recruitment and employee performance discussions, helping employees identify the supports they need.

One of their biggest lessons has been that barriers are not always obvious.

“Developing our accessibility plan broadened our perspectives on things we might not otherwise have noticed,” Carrie says. “Working with accessibility experts helped us identify those barriers and focus on practical solutions.”

Sharing the Lessons

For organizations beginning their own accessibility journey, Creative Saskatchewan’s advice is simple: listen, ask questions and seek guidance from people with lived experience and accessibility expertise.

As they continue implementing their accessibility plan, their experience shows that meaningful change does not always come from one big initiative. Sometimes, it starts with looking at a familiar process differently, asking a new question, or recognizing a barrier that was previously overlooked.

By building accessibility into everyday decisions, Creative Saskatchewan is helping create a more inclusive creative sector and a province where more people can participate, contribute, and belong.