European Disability Card: your passport to a more accessible culture!  

Many people with reduced mobility find it physically or financially difficult to visit museums. Added to this is the constant burden of having to justify their disability if it is considered invisible. A wide range of initiatives have been launched to help overcome this problem. Open museum presents the ‘European Disability Card’, a European initiative available in eight countries*, including Belgium.  

The aim of the card is to give disabled people easier access to sport and culture, and to get them involved in community life. It is available to anyone with a certificate of recognition of disability after 1 January 2024, and can be applied for using the following form: https://eudisabilitycard.be/en

  

It offers three major advantages to people with disabilities:   

• Recognition of their disability, even if it is ‘invisible’.  

• Benefits in regards to leisure activities, such as reduced fares and better support when needed.   

• A free card, easily available online.   

 

It is also beneficial for partner institutions:   

• By raising awareness of the inclusive actions already taken by the museum. 

• By informing visitors of the conditions offered in terms of the physical accessibility of the venue, adapted prices and programming, in complete transparency.  

Brussels Museum works with the European Disability Card and proposes reduced rates during Nocturnes and Museum Night Fever since 2025.  

Some institutions **, such as the War heritage Institute-Royal Army museum and Military history, have already taken this step. The museum has chosen to communicate transparently about the physical realities of its establishment. You will find information on how to get to the museum, the accessible exhibition rooms and the route to the accessible facilities (meaning information on the presence (or not) of external paving stones, steps, width of corridors, lifts, etc.). This precision enables visitors to make informed and independent choices.  

Would your institution like to take stock of the accessibility of its public areas? We have developed a free tool designed for museums!  

As part of Museum Night Fever 2023-24, Brussels Museums’ Open museum initiative has joined forces with Access-i to create a self-assessment form for partner museums. This tool is also intended to help museums communicate about the realities of their accessibility, even beyondthe framework of Brussels Museums events. ***  

In addition to this work on access arrangements, the museum offers free admission to carriers of the European Disability Card and one accompanying adult.  

Accepting the European Disability Card means committing to a policy of welcoming people with reduced mobility as well as joining a programme to harmonise these practices at the European level.  

The goalis to start thinking about physical accessibility and pricing in your institution and during your events. As well as gaining the ability to respond to the needs and questions of the public, so that lack of information is no longer a barrier.  

Want to find out more or join the European Disability Card project? Visit https://eudisabilitycard.be/en/for-partners

*The seven other countries are Cyprus, Estonia, Finland, Italy, Malta, Romania and Slovenia.  

** In addition to the War heritage institute, the Brussels museums that have joined the project are: the Centrale for contemporary art, the MigratieMuseumMigration, the Museums of the City of Brussels, the Fashion and Lace museum, the GardeRobe MannekenPis, the KBR Museum, the Sewers museum, the Musical instruments museum, Train World, the Royal Museums of Art and History, the Planétarium of Brussels, the Botanical gardens of Meise and the Africa Museum.  

***This tool is designed to assist institutions in their approach but does not replace the advice of a certified accessibility expert such as Access-i. 

© Jérusalem Destercke-Hock