Wokingham Borough Connect
 Inclusive Design Group officially starts
It’s been a little while since our last update about the Inclusive Design Group. Back then, we were inviting residents who regularly face barriers when accessing buildings, places, and services to get involved.
Everyone deserves to feel welcome and part of their community, which is a key aim of Social Care Future. But that can’t happen if some of us can’t even comfortably enter, stay in, or use parts of the community.
That’s why the Inclusive Design Group was created. It brings together residents with personal experience of barriers so they can share what works, what doesn’t, and what would make things better. Their insight will help make new and developing areas more accessible for everyone.
On Monday 23 February, we held our Welcome Meeting to help everyone get to know each other, understand how decisions are made about what gets built, and suggest ways we can run the group in a way that makes it easy for everyone to follow and share their thoughts.
In first meeting, we considered what makes a space accessible or not, and learned a lot thanks to the group’s thoughtful and friendly conversations. Here are some of the key points members shared:
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Dropped kerbs: In many places, there might be a dropped kerb on one side of the road but not on the other for quite a distance, this can mean having to travel along the road itself just to fully cross safely.
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Contrast: Good contrast and lighting make a big difference for many people. Using colours that stand out from each other helps people move around more confidently and safely.
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Quiet areas: It is helpful to have a quiet space available. Busy or noisy places can cause sensory overload for some people, so having an area where you can step away and take a break is really valuable.
Starting next month, we will start looking at projects across the borough to see how we can suggest ways to make them more accessible. We look forward to keeping you updated on the valuable work this new group is doing to make both our community and its places more inclusive for everyone.
Help us make bus travel work better
The council is reviewing the funded bus services in the borough and would really value your views.
Have your say and let them know how important the current services are to you, what might encourage you to use the bus more, and where new or improved routes could make a difference.
Nearly 800 residents have already taken part. You can share your thoughts until 20 March.
The review covers services in Arborfield, Barkham, Earley, Finchampstead, Shinfield, Sonning, Spencers Wood, Swallowfield and Riseley, Twyford, Wokingham town and Woodley, as well as park and ride services.
 Digital support for the home
Free advice is available to help residents manage everyday tasks that could be made harder by a physical or mental health condition, supporting people to live and stay in the place they call home.
Ask Sara offers expertise on more than 90 topics, including household activities and your health and wellbeing.
Simply select a subject and you will be guided through a set of questions, before being given a tailored report with recommendations.
This could advise the use of certain equipment that make carrying out that task easier, as well as technology to help you live more independently.
 Update on the evening community transport vote
In one of our previous newsletters we asked you to tell us whether evening or weekend community transport would be of help to you or someone you know.
We asked you to vote between two possible ideas that were raised by residents to see many people might be interested. The options were 'Cinema - Evening Transport' or 'Football - Weekend Transport'.
Both had lots of votes, but the winner was... Cinema! Due to this, we have started to look into next steps and will let you know as this idea develops.
If you were interested in accessible transport, with wheelchair access, to Reading FC games and you aren’t able to use the official matchday STAR coaches, you can find out about the current service here.
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