Food Banks BC Accessibility Policy

At Food Banks BC, we strive to provide support and resources in a way that respects the dignity and independence of all our community members. We commit to giving people with disabilities the same opportunity to access our supports and resources and allowing them to benefit from the same services in the same place and in a similar way as other users.

At Food Banks BC, a person with a disability supported by a service dog, a guide, or a support individual will be allowed to have that support resource accompany them while accessing our services. These support persons and service dogs are granted the same access as the person they are accompanying. Under no circumstances will a person with a disability and their support resource be prevented from accessing our services and resources.

When a barrier to accessing our support and resources arises, Food Banks BC takes a proactive stance. We actively seek alternative ways to ensure access, encouraging individuals to communicate their specific needs. If there's uncertainty about accessing our services and resources, please reach out to us at info@foodbanksbc.com or 604-498-1798.

At Food Banks BC, we celebrate differences and honour individuals’ experiences. We are
committed to providing regular education and resources on accessibility and equity, ensuring that our staff and community members are always informed and equipped to promote inclusivity. We also strive to use inclusive language in our verbal and written communication.

We encourage our member food banks to:

1. Provide spaces where people are treated with dignity.
2. Celebrate differences.
3. Center accessibility needs of their employees, volunteers, and clients.

Accessibility is the work we do to ensure people with disabilities can access our services equally with others. It includes ways to remove barriers to access, including physical barriers, attitudes, communication, systemic, technology, and sensory considerations.

Below are some examples of accessibility practices that Food Banks BC encourages our members to implement whenever possible (bearing in mind the limitations some organizations face, such as space and landlord restrictions).

Physical Accessibility Practices

• Ensuring an area where a HandyDart vehicle or accessible taxi can safely drop someone off.
• Ensure the entryway to the food bank is accessible to wheelchairs, walkers, and strollers.
• Ensuring there is an automatic door at the entrance and washroom.
• Ensuring there is designated accessible parking available.
• Ensuring a rest area is available for folks with health conditions that limit their ability to stand for extended periods.
• Ensuring there is an area to wait in, protected from weather and the elements.
• Ensuring washrooms have grab bars.

Attitude Accessibility Practices

• Greeting clients as they enter the space.
• Collecting client feedback.

Communication Accessibility Practices

• Use signage or other materials that explain how the food bank runs and what to expect.
• Offering options for non-verbal communication.
• Communicating changes to stakeholders.
• Providing signage or information in languages other than English.

Systemic Accessibility Practices

• Ensuring service hours are sufficient to reduce wait times and crowding.
• Communicating to stakeholders how they can request accommodation for their disability (i.e. home delivery).
• Communicating the complaint process and how to report an accessibility issue.
• Ensuring employees and volunteers understand and agree with The Ethical Foodbanking Code.
• Ensuring food bank operators are trained in de-escalation or other methods for holding safe space.
• Providing choice to clients whenever possible.
• Providing cooking suggestions for items that may be unfamiliar to clients.

Technology Accessibility Practices

• Ensuring websites are accessible to screen readers
• Ensuring website graphs and charts have text to explain them

Sensory Accessibility Practices

• Accommodating food restrictions

• Ensuring sufficient lighting allows someone with low vision to navigate the space.
• Avoiding floors and wall colour contrasting with busy patterns.

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This website was designed to conform to Web Content Accessibility Guidelines (WCAG) 2.1 AA. The website was last updated on October 5th, 2023.

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If you encounter accessibility issues, we welcome your report. You can send the information to info@foodbanksbc.com.