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Before the event:
- When costing events plan ahead to ensure accessibility can be catered for.
- Ask speakers whether they require anything in order for them to attend. E.g. ‘Please let us know if you have any access or dietary requirements in order to attend this event.’
- Make information about accessibility clear when advertising the event (Is this venue accessible? Does it have wheelchair access? Is a lift available? Is there a hearing loop? etc)
- Lighting in venues can be important, for example for those that may lip read. Dimming lights can also cause problems for those with visual impairments so ensure there is sufficient lighting.
- Is the lectern/microphone stand for speaker’s height adjustable?
- If a stage is being used for presentations and it does not have ramped access then a temporary ramp should be installed.
- Consider sharing slides with participants beforehand
- The Digital Accessibility Team can provide induction loops for venues
- Create an accessible route map for attendees
- Where is the nearest accessible parking space? UCL Estates can provide further details.
- Are toilets easy to locate? Are they accessible?
- Provide a quiet room if possible. This provides a space to relax, take medicine if required, take a sensory break etc.
- Put a safety plan in place. Where are the emergency exits? Are they accessible?
The day of the event:
- Assign volunteers to meet with disabled speakers or attendees or arrival and to be their contact point throughout the event.
- Change floor plan layouts to facilitate wheelchair and mobility scooter circulation.
- Have seating reserved for people who are:
- hearing impaired to be near the interpreters, captionists, note-takers
- vision impaired
- short statured
- sign interpreters
- wheelchairs and motorised scooter users
- people accompanied by guide/service dogs - If a self-service buffet is offered, have a server assist wheelchair users or mobility impaired people by bringing food directly to their table
After the event:
- Provide alternative sources to access information after the event such as Slideshare, realtime video streaming of presentations and handouts in large print or braille.
NB. The organising department should pay for any adjustments that need to be put into place, e.g. booking a sign language interpreter / captioning an event.
