Accessibility
Access all areas : how many attendees are you excluding ?
PLANETPLANIT ’ S PAUL COOK TALKS ACCESSIBILITY , LEGISLATION , THE EU AND THE IMPORTANCE OF VENUE AUDITS
I have yet to find a venue or events professional who doesn ’ t want their attendees , stakeholders , and other folks to have a great time at their events . Everyone planning events is driven in large part by how they want their attendees to feel .
If the meetings and events industry wants everyone to have a great time , why does it feel we ’ re excluding certain people ? The number of people who have a disability or condition of some kind is staggering . According to the World Health Organisation , an estimated 1.3 billion people experience significant disability . This represents 16 % of the world ’ s population or one in six of us .
People will not be coming to your events unless you make them feel welcome from the outset , and that starts with the language you use in your communications and how you design registration forms , websites , and more . All of which is in your control . You don ’ t need legislation to require you to do these things , it ’ s just common sense . But you have to put your personal experiences aside if you want to help everyone feel included .
However , accessibility legislation appears to help drive some organisations forward . According to Sammy Connell at the Association of British PCOs , “ Whilst there has been much development in this area and we have real trailblazers driving meaningful change , some are lagging behind , and having legislation such as the European Accessibility Act is good because it provides a clear framework and requires accountability . It helps to ensure that accessibility is not seen as optional but as a fundamental requirement .”
Accessibility legislation is already in place in various countries around the world . For example , in the USA , there is the Americans with Disabilities Act ( ADA ) looking after accessible issues .
However , while countries have their own legislation when events happen on their soil , the European Accessibility Act will impact planners who want to host events in the European Union , regardless of where they are based , so you will need to comply with the regulation .
The European Accessibility Act ( EAA ) becomes law on 28 June 2025 , and it ’ s likely to have a big impact on the meetings and events industry .
The Act aims to align the European Union member states , requiring them to ensure uniform accessibility standards . What ’ s interesting is that member states can set their own levels of fines and penalties for noncompliance . It ’ s clear from this that some countries take a harsher view on non-compliance with accessibility requirements than others . This is also the case worldwide , with politicians and business leaders deciding how far they want to go regarding accessibility regulation .
The EAA requires products and services to be designed to be accessible to people with disabilities . Some key areas impacting meetings and events
46 / CONFERENCE & MEETINGS WORLD / ISSUE 135