Backgrounder: Enabling Accessibility Fund

Enabling Accessibility Fund

The Enabling Accessibility Fund supports the capital costs of construction and renovations related to improving physical accessibility and safety for people with disabilities in Canadian communities and workplaces.

Eligible recipients can apply for funding through periodic funding processes, where eligibility criteria are further defined, under three program components:

• The Small Projects Component provides grant funding, typically up to $50,000 per project, to support small-scale construction, renovation or retrofit projects that have a quick impact to increase accessibility in communities or workplaces. Examples of types of projects are: installing screen reader devices, hearing induction loop systems, and accessible pathways and ramps, creating a controlled multisensory environment (Snoezelen room), constructing a universally designed office and retrofitting a washroom with an accessible toilet, grab bars and taps.

• The Mid-Sized Projects Component provides contributions of up to $3 million to support larger retrofit, renovation or construction projects of facilities or venues that house programs and services geared towards addressing the social and/or labour market integration needs of people with disabilities in a holistic manner. Eligible projects may include the creation or expansion of existing centres or hubs which offer centralized programming and services for people with disabilities in their communities. Examples of such programs and services may include: educational and career planning support, job search assistance, interview and job skills development, counselling, life transition support, etc.

• NEW ‑ The Youth Innovation Component empowers youth to identify accessibility barriers within their communities and work with local organizations to develop solutions to increase accessibility and safety in community spaces and workplaces. Funding of up to $10,000 is available to support capital costs of eligible projects, which may include initiatives like: installing automatic door openers, constructing raised garden beds in a community garden or acquiring specialized wheelchairs to access sandy beaches.