Disability Arts Online

What Disability Arts Online does

Disability Arts Online (DAO) is a UK-based registered charity (no. 1180274) and private limited company founded in 2004 by Colin Hambrook in Brighton. It operates a WordPress-based digital platform that functions as a home for disability arts and culture, serving disabled creatives, D/deaf and neurodivergent artists, learning-disabled creatives, disability-led organisations, and audiences seeking accessible arts programming. The platform integrates multiple interlocking services: a digital magazine (news, reviews, interviews, opinion, showcase), community blogs, event listings, an opportunities board, educational resources, and searchable directories of artists, freelancers, and organisations. Additional products include the 'Disability and...' podcast series, the dis_place digital gallery, free one-to-one artist development sessions, the Cripping Culture heritage project, and the Our Right to Thrive poetry programme.

The platform is built on WordPress CMS with a built-in accessibility toolbar (text size, high contrast, motion deactivation, keyboard/speech navigation) and distributes content via SoundCloud, YouTube, and social media (Facebook, Instagram, X). The organisation employs a small dedicated team (1-10 staff) led by Chief Executive Trish Wheatley, with Joe Turnbull as Digital Operations Manager and Sarah Marie Mooney leading communications and marketing; founder Colin Hambrook has been reducing his editorial hours since April 2023.

DAO's revenue model is primarily grant-based, with core funding from Arts Council England (National Lottery), Paul Hamlyn Foundation, and The Grocers' Charity, supplemented by donations and paid advertising limited to jobs, opportunities, and events listings. The organisation commissions disabled creatives at modest rates (£110-£300 per piece) and provides free artist development services. All core platform services are provided free to users, positioning DAO as a community-led, content-led non-profit rather than a commercial enterprise.

Name

Disability Arts Online

Legal name

DAO (Disability Arts Online) Limited

Website

https://disabilityarts.online

Company type

Private

Founded year

2004

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1–10 employees

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Disability Arts Digital Media

NAICS

Arts, Entertainment, and Recreation (71), Independent Artists, Writers, and Performers (711510), Museums, Historical Sites, and Similar Institutions (712)

SIC

Miscellaneous Publishing (2741), Services-Mailing, Reproduction, Commercial Art & Photography (7330)

akta.pro primary industry

Special Education & Accessibility-Optimized Media (UDL, AAC, Captioning) (EDAGALAH)

akta.pro secondary industries

Disability Services & Assistive Solutions (Accessibility, Assistive Tech) (BPAGALAM), Accessible Media Production (Alt Formats, Captioning, Audio Description) (EDALAGAC)

Keywords

• Disability arts platform
• Digital arts magazine
• Community creative blogs
• Artist development services
• Accessible arts directory

Headquarters

HQ city

Brighton

HQ country

United Kingdom

HQ region

Europe

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Digital Commerce or Content

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Technology or R&D, Infrastructure, Others

Revenue model

1. Charitable Grants and Funding: Primary funding from public and private charitable sources including Arts Council England (Lottery funded), Paul Hamlyn Foundation, and The Grocers' Charity. These grants support core operations and specific programmes such as artist development sessions.
2. Donations: The organization accepts donations from supporters through a dedicated donate page.
3. Advertising - Jobs, Opportunities and Events Listings: DAO accepts paid advertising specifically for jobs, opportunities and events listing pages. This is a paid service for organizations posting opportunities. The organization does not accept advertorials.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion2 records

Distribution channels5 records

Marketing channels8 records

Core offering

Disability Arts Online is a digital publishing and community platform for disability arts and culture, offering a digital magazine, community blogs, event listings, jobs/opportunities board, searchable directories, podcasts, and an online digital gallery. It also delivers free artist development sessions and targeted support programmes (DAO Artist Support, Decode ATW) to UK-based disabled creatives. The platform is funded primarily by charitable grants, donations, and paid advertising on jobs, opportunities, and events listings.

Product overview

Disability Arts Online (DAO) operates as a digital content platform and community hub focused on disability arts and culture. The core offering consists of a digital Magazine with multiple content formats (news, reviews, interviews, podcasts, opinion, showcase), a Community blogging platform for disabled creatives, an Events listings board, an Opportunities board for jobs and creative positions, and Resources section with guides and toolkits. The platform also maintains searchable Directories for artists, freelancers, and organisations. Key content products include the 'Disability and...' podcast series and the dis_place digital gallery. Support services include Artist Development Sessions (one-to-one advice), DAO Artist Support programmes, and Decode ATW Support for Access to Work applications. Notable projects include 'Our Right to Thrive' poetry initiative and 'Cripping Culture' heritage preservation project. Founded in 2004, the organisation is registered as a charity (no. 1180274) and is supported by Arts Council England and Paul Hamlyn Foundation.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• dis_place: A digital gallery featuring disability arts exhibitions

Products and services

• Digital Magazine Commissioned online magazine featuring disability arts and culture content across news, reviews, interviews, podcasts, opinion, and showcase formats, distributed free of charge by Disability Arts Online.
• Community Blogs Open community blogging platform for disabled creatives organised into Artist Perspectives, Project Blogs, and Social Commentary, with editorial support and opportunities for featured placement in the Artists Directory.
• Event Listings (What's On) UK-wide events board listing accessible shows and disability arts events with filters by date and location, accepting paid advertising from organisations promoting events.
• Opportunities Board Listings platform for arts sector jobs and creative opportunities, including DAO artist support programmes and Decode ATW support, with paid advertising accepted for opportunity listings.
• Directories (Artists, Freelancers, Organisations) Searchable directories of disabled, D/deaf, and neurodivergent artists and creatives, freelancers in disability arts roles, and disability-led and inclusive arts organisations, with filtering by art forms, communities, regions, specialisms, and access provisions.
• Disability and... Podcast Original podcast series exploring disability and access topics in arts and culture through interviews with industry professionals, distributed with transcripts and BSL interpretation.
• dis_place Digital Gallery Online digital gallery at dis-place.art hosting disability arts exhibitions and visual artwork exploring disability themes, operated as a sub-brand of Disability Arts Online.
• Artist Development Sessions Free one-to-one advisory sessions of approximately 45 minutes, delivered via Zoom or telephone to UK-based disabled artists, covering writing, arts journalism, project development, budgeting, website planning, and social media promotion.
• Our Right to Thrive Poetry and written word project led by disabled artist Ivan Riches in partnership with DAO, inviting disabled people to share creative writing, poetry, artwork, or stories on the theme of thriving as disabled people, accompanied by free webinars.
• Cripping Culture Heritage project collecting and preserving memories of the UK Disability Arts movement for future generations, inviting the community to share stories via a public call-out.
• DAO Artist Support Comprehensive support programme for disabled artists including artist development sessions, commissioning opportunities, and access to DAO resources.
• Decode ATW Support Support programme helping disabled creatives navigate and apply for Access to Work (ATW) funding in the UK.
• Resources (Guides, Toolkits, Webinars, Research) Educational and practical resources including guides, toolkits, webinars, research materials, and the Social Model of Disability collection for disabled creatives and the wider disability arts community.

Quantifiable outcome

• Over 20 years of continuous operation as the primary UK platform for disability arts and culture
• +2 more outcomes

Named customers4 records

Segments5 records

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Technology focussed Yes

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature4 records

Partnerships

Three partnerships are on record, tiered supporting.

• Ivan Riches (Our Right to Thrive)supportingStrategic or Co-development PartnerDisabled artist, musician and poet Ivan Riches leads the 'Our Right to Thrive' poetry/written word project in partnership with DAO. The project invites disabled people to share creative writing, poetry, artwork or stories on the theme of thriving as disabled people, with free webinars featuring artists Julie Farrell, Paul Wilshaw, Dolly Sen and Mik Scarlet.
• Accessible Arts & MediasupportingOthersFeatured in news section with Tim Wheeler joining as Executive Director. Collaborative relationship in the disability arts sector.
• La Route Coaching (Coaching Leadership Programme)supportingStrategic or Co-development PartnerLeadership and creative development organization dedicated to empowering disabled artists. Their Coaching Leadership Programme (CLP) is featured in DAO's organisations directory as part of the disability arts ecosystem.

Scale indicators4 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Broad incumbents

• a-n (Artists' News): UK-wide visual arts organisation publishing news, reviews, and opportunities for artists. Broad incumbent comparable to DAO's editorial and opportunities board offerings, though not disability-specific — overlapping audience and content category.

Direct peers

• Graeae Theatre Company: UK disability-led theatre company commissioning and producing work by disabled artists, with associated digital editorial and artist development. Comparable to DAO as a UK disability arts sector peer producing content and supporting disabled creatives.
• Shape Arts: UK-based disability-led arts organisation producing critical writing, artist development, and a directory of disabled artists. Closely comparable to DAO in mission (disability arts advocacy) and digital publishing of reviews, interviews, and artist resources.
• Accessible Arts & Media: UK disability and access-focused arts organisation producing accessible media, training, and resources. Directly comparable to DAO's accessibility-led editorial model and is explicitly referenced in DAO's news coverage as a sector peer.
• Unlimited: UK programme celebrating work by disabled artists through commissions, partnerships, and editorial. Directly comparable to DAO's commissioning model for disabled creatives and its role in promoting disability arts to mainstream audiences.
• DaDa (Disability and Deaf Arts): UK disability and deaf arts organisation delivering an international festival, artist development, and editorial content. Comparable to DAO as a peer disability-arts platform with both online editorial output and a community of disabled creatives.
• Axis: UK online platform and directory for disabled artists and curators, providing profiles, opportunities, and editorial. Highly comparable to DAO's Artists Directory and editorial/community offerings for disabled creatives.

Emerging players

• Mind the Gap: UK learning-disability-led performance company with digital content and artist development. Comparable to DAO in its focus on learning-disabled creatives and editorial coverage of disability arts performances.

Regional players

• Tangled Art + Disability: Canadian disability arts organisation operating a gallery, artist directory, and digital programming. Strongly comparable to DAO's dis_place digital gallery, artist directory, and editorial/community model, but operating primarily in Canada.
• Disability Arts Cymru: Wales-based disability arts organisation commissioning artists and publishing editorial in English and Welsh. Comparable to DAO's commissioning and editorial model for disability arts but with a regional Welsh focus.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses4 records

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/disabilityarts
• YouTubeyoutube.com/user/DisabilityArtsOnline
• Facebookfacebook.com/disabilityarts.online
• Instagraminstagram.com/disabilityarts
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/dao-disabilityartsonline-ltd

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles5 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Disability Arts Online