|TOP|The Methodist Church is to make its buildings and activities welcoming and accessible to all with the help of a new disability justice strategy.

The strategy will be headed by the Methodist Church’s Alison Parker, who will report her findings to the 2007 Methodist Conference.

“Disability Justice is a serious matter,” says Alison, whose work for the project now is part of her three-year work on equalities and diversity. “It can range from simple practical matters such as making church buildings wheelchair accessible through to looking at the way we speak or the things we do and how we are with people.

“The aim is not to make people feel guilty but to promote real change that benefits all of us. There are local groups making these points within Methodism, but we need to make sure that the message reaches the whole Church.”

|QUOTE|Ms. Parker is currently gathering responses from any members of the Methodist community who felt excluded or unwelcome in any way in order to make the Church more accessible.

The Revd Jonathan Kerry, Co-ordinating Secretary for Worship and Learning, said: “We set up this project because people told us that the Methodist Church is doing a lot of good work on equalities and diversity but 'could do better'. Alison will be listening to people who may feel excluded and helping the whole Church to be better at being as inclusive as Jesus.”

While the immediate focus of the project is on disability justice, the work is also part of a wider campaign to assess the extent to which the unconscious prejudging of others exists within Methodist churches and members.

|AD|“Lack of physical access is just one visible way in which we inadvertently exclude some people, but we need to recognise that there are also invisible ways as well. As a Church we believe that we exist to welcome and support everyone,” she said.

“The goal is to stress how we can stand alongside one another to challenge racism, homophobia, sexism and prejudice against the disabled, the elderly or young people. We need to do more than just support the notion of equality: we must actively challenge our own prejudices and those of the wider society.”

Ms Parker added that the goal was not “about telling people off, or criticising the work they do”.

She said: “Every one of us has, at some point in our lives, been excluded from something we wished to be a part of, and all of us have the power to exclude others. By recognising that, we can all understand how to stand together to overcome the misinformation, prejudice and stereotypes that can otherwise divide us.”