About Atlassian Williams Racing
Williams Racing, one of the world’s leading Formula 1 teams, partnered with Victoria to strengthen inclusivity for people who are deaf or have a hearing loss. As part of their wider inclusion strategy, the team wanted to ensure their workplace, visitor experiences and digital content reflected best practice, demonstrating their commitment to accessibility for employees, guests and fans alike.
Over a 12-month period, Victoria worked closely with Williams Racing to deliver a structured programme focused on Deaf Awareness, workplace adjustments, training, and community engagement.
Williams Racing wanted to create an environment where people who are deaf or have a hearing loss could fully participate, whether as employees, visitors to the on-site Experience Centre or members of the global fan community.
The team recognised that to make meaningful progress, they needed:
- A clear understanding of barriers faced by deaf employees and customers
- Deaf Awareness training across departments
- Improvements to workplace tools and infrastructure
- A review of HR processes
- Greater accessibility in digital content and onsite experiences
Their ambition was to lead the way within motorsport and the wider business community, ensuring inclusion was embedded throughout the organisation.
To guide this transformation, Williams Racing drew on Victoria’s expertise.
Victoria conducted a comprehensive Deaf Employee Experience Audit, delivered Deaf Awareness training, and supported improvements across the business. Key elements of the programme included:
1. Deaf Awareness Training
Team members participated in interactive sessions that built confidence communicating with people who are deaf or have a hearing loss.
Twenty employees were trained, with learning cascaded through departments.
2. Deaf Awareness Advocates
Williams Racing identified advocates across the business who now champion accessibility and inclusion for deaf colleagues and visitors.
3. Workplace Tools and Accessibility Adjustments
Following the audit, Williams Racing invested in key improvements, including:
- Portable hearing loops for meeting rooms
- Translation software converting spoken language into text on a tablet
- Transparent face masks to support lipreading
- Ongoing work reviewing HR onboarding and recruitment processes
4. British Sign Language Training
Ten team members were sponsored to undertake the BSL Level 1 qualification, enhancing communication across the organisation.
5. Accessible Visitor Experiences
Williams Racing organised a dedicated Experience Centre tour for Deaf F1 fans, ensuring interpreters were present and gathering feedback to improve the environment. This included enhancing lighting to support visibility of interpreters’ facial expressions and hand movements.
6. Digital Content and Community Engagement
To support accessibility, Williams Racing is reviewing external digital content, adding captioning to videos and exploring the potential for BSL overlays.
They are also exploring wider collaboration with the deaf community.
The transformation was powered by Williams Racing’s internal champion, Claire Pagano, whose leadership helped drive the initiative.
“Victoria’s quality of service has been exceptional. The virtual workshops and training sessions which have been organised have been well thought out, detailed, engaging and interactive. Williams Racing are very much looking forward to continuing our journey with Victoria.”
— Claire Pagano, Head of IT Delivery, Williams Racing
“The Deaf Awareness programme has defined several key areas of focus covering the breadth of the Williams Racing operation. Portable hearing loops and translation software have been implemented to support employees, while pilot tours of our onsite Experience Centre have been organised with Deaf F1 fans to gather feedback on how to make the experience more inclusive.
— Claire Pagano
“Looking to the future, Williams Racing is keen to further engage with the Deaf community and explore wider collaborations to raise awareness, both inside and outside the motorsport industry.”
— Claire Pagano
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