This research will examine how museums can transform the way that they think about and create digital audio interpretation for their collections, to enhance inclusion and access for all audiences. For people who are blind or partially blind (BPB), audio description (AD) is traditionally described as a verbal narrative for information available through vision. In both the UK and US, museums are legally obliged to ensure equitable access to their collections. AD is a key tool for achieving this for BPB audiences but museums need to dramatically improve AD provision. Incredibly, the charity VocalEyes found that only 5% of museums in the UK mentioned AD provision on their websites. Museums could transform accessibility through apps, such as Smartify. Smartify currently gives over 3 million users worldwide online access to more than 2 million works of art at home or through a QR code in the museum building. Of these 2 million works, only a handful are offered with AD, and all come from only two institutions - the Smithsonian National Portrait Gallery (US) and Royal Holloway Picture Gallery (UK). The need goes beyond inclusive digital access for BPB people - this project it is about enhancing the museum experience for everyone. The pandemic has spotlighted both the scope and desire for digital participation and the massive opportunity for museums to grow audiences. Our previous research has shown that AD benefits not only people who are BPB, an inclusive way to audiences globally through high-quality online access. The UK-US research team brings together experts on psychology, aesthetics and design, critical disability studies, cultural diversity, translation studies and includes members who are partially blind and non-blind, neurotypical and with learning differences and of different ethnic and cultural backgrounds. With our digital heritage sector-leading partners - Smithsonian National Portrait Gallery; Royal Holloway Picture Gallery; Smartify and VocalEyes - this research will challenge current AD practice, where sighted curators/describers produce AD for BPB audiences. We will develop and extend AD usage as a tool for all visitors (blind, partially blind and sighted). We will do this by creating and evaluating the W-ICAD (Workshop for Inclusive Co-created Audio Description) model whereby AD creation is led by partially blind co-creators, collaborating with blind and sighted co-creators. The W-ICAD model will give museums a streamlined way to create new AD, extending their digital provision and boosting inclusion. The research will compare how audiences in the UK and US experience AD so that AD creation takes account of varying cultural needs or expectations.

Current developments in data science have been employed across the commercial world but they also offer a wealth of possibilities for improving visitor experience in cultural institutions, with potential benefits on a significant scale. Indeed, in 2016-17, 52% of British people visited a museum and 74% visited a heritage site. This represents an encouraging level of engagement, however there remains significant potential for increasing participation. For example, figures from the US suggest that attendance at art museums, galleries and heritage sites showed a clear decline between 2002 and 2012. This is mirrored in recent UK figures; for example, visits to government sponsored museums and galleries declined by 0.8% in the single year from 2015/16 to 2016/17. To increase visitor numbers, and improve the experience for existing audiences, we need to develop a better understanding of visitors' responses and requirements. In line with this aim, this project will create a network to investigate the possibilities for using advanced data science to realise the full potential of museums' existing visitor data (e.g. visitor numbers, social media comments) in order to understand and improve visitor engagement. Our multidisciplinary network comprises academics from History, Psychology, Computer Science and Electronic Engineering, in combination with a diverse team of British and American museums, heritage organisations and technology companies: - Colonial Williamsburg (Virginia, US) is the world's largest living history museum, with over forty sites and two art museums. - Historic Royal Palaces runs six of the UK's most iconic palaces, including the Tower of London and Hampton Court. - The Franklin Institute in Philadelphia (Pennsylvania, US) is one of America's oldest and most respected science museums. - Sussex Past runs a variety of heritage sites and museums including Fishbourne Roman Palace, Lewes Castle and Anne of Cleves House. - The JORVIK Group comprises five heritage attractions in the city of York, including the world-famous JORVIK Viking Centre. - Royal Holloway's Picture Gallery boasts a world-class collection of Victorian art. - Mechdyne is a leading innovator in visualisation, 3D, VR and machine learning in commercial contexts. - Smartify is an SME with an app that allows museum visitors to receive detailed information using AR and museums to receive the data analytics generated. The varied nature of these partnering cultural institutions will provide our network with a uniquely diverse range of perspectives that will be shared through a range of networking events and meetings. Our final meeting will identify concrete plans for future funded research projects and network development. The planned activities will also generate documentary records of the discussions. These will be disseminated across our partners and the AHRC with a view to informing the shape of future priorities in a constantly shifting technological landscape.