History

PhoneAbility was formed in 1995, with financial help from BT, to provide a mechanism by which information could be shared between disabled people and their representative organisations in the UK, and EU collaborations aimed at influencing the development of assistive technologies for disabled people, notably in the field of ICT. Chief amongst these was the EU COST219 project "Future telecommunications and teleinformatics facilities for disabled and elderly people". COST219 held its final conference in February 2008 and the UK National Representatives on COST 219, as well as its Information Officer, were all members of PhoneAbility.

Funding was subsequently taken over by the Department of Trade and Industry (DTI). PhoneAbility continues to receive a grant from the UK Department for Business, Innovations and Skills (BIS) on the basis that we provide BIS with impartial advice on accessibility of ICT and prepare detailed commentaries on current and developing EU legislation in the Electronic Communications sector.

Until 1996, PhoneAbility actively supported the Working Group on Hearing Impairment. It consisted of experts from organisations concerned with deafness, telecoms operators, telecoms manufacturers, the Department of Health and independent consultants in the fields of disability and telecommunications. The group produced standards for inductive and electrical coupling of hearing aids to telephones, amplified telephones and text telephones. These have been taken up by the European Telecommunications Standards Institute (ETSI) and the International Tele-communications Union (ITU). It organised research into the coupling of hearing aids to the telephone and played a major part in producing the new V.18 standard for text telephones.

With a Steering Group made up of experienced and recognised practitioners, and with access to an international body of informed opinion and expertise, PhoneAbility is an important source of awareness, information and knowledge that is uniquely placed to keep Members involved in, and abreast of, developing technology and legislation in the field of ICT for older and disabled people as it happens