How to collect accessibility requirements for an event
Registration opens soon, and the committee wants to ask attendees about access needs without asking for more than it needs or can use.
The short answer
An accessibility intake is an optional question at registration, a named person who reads the answers, a short promise about who will see them, and a route for turning them into actions with the venue and suppliers.
Ask what support would help, not what condition someone has. The answers feed a plan reviewed by qualified accessibility advisers and the venue; the intake itself does not decide what is accessible.
What to ask, and what not to ask
Ask an open, optional question such as whether anything would help the person take part, and offer a few examples: step-free routes, seating, captions, sign-language interpretation, materials in another format, a quiet space, dietary or language support, or a support person.
Do not ask for a diagnosis, a medical letter or proof. If a request needs a conversation, offer one with a named contact.
Who sees the answers
- Name one person on the organising team who reads responses and replies to registrants.
- Share with venue and suppliers only what they need to act on, for example a seating need and the date, not the person's name or reasons unless the person agrees.
- Ask your privacy owner what notice to put beside the question, how long answers are kept and who may access them.
- Tell registrants in one sentence who will read their answer and what will happen next.
From answers to actions
- Reply to each registrant within an agreed period, thank them and confirm what you understood.
- Group needs into anonymous categories, such as step-free access, captions or seating, for the action list. Do not infer anything about a person from their answer.
- Turn each category into a question for the right party: the venue for routes and rooms, the AV supplier for captioning and hearing support, the caterer for dietary needs. The accessibility questions builder can help draft them.
- Record each action with an owner, deadline and confirmation in the accessibility action tracker.
- Go back to the registrant with what has been arranged and any alternative, before the event.
Language and signage
Language support belongs in the same intake. Ask which language materials or interpretation would help.
For wayfinding in English, Malay and Chinese, see the trilingual signage planner. Safety wording and place names should come from the people who own them, not from translation by the organiser.
Worked example · Fictional example
Registration for a one-day member conference
Fictional organisation and figures, for illustration only.
The Fictional Association of Community Pharmacists opens registration for 280 members. The secretariat adds one optional question and names the membership officer as the reader.
Twelve registrants answer. Replies show needs for step-free access, captions, seating near the front and a quiet space. The officer replies to each person in three working days and groups the answers into four anonymous categories. The venue is asked to confirm routes and rooms in writing, and the AV supplier is asked about captioning. The action tracker is reviewed weekly until the event.
Use this yourself
Accessibility intake form wording and process
Copy the question into your registration form and agree the process with the committee. Questions for venue and suppliers can be generated with the accessibility questions builder.
- Registration question: Is there anything that would help you take part in this event, for example access, seating, captions, interpretation, materials in another format, language support, or a support person? This question is optional.
- Notice beside the question: [wording approved by your privacy owner: who reads answers, why, how long kept].
- Reader and backup (names):
- Reply period promised to registrants:
- Contact route for those who prefer to talk:
- Categories used in the action list (anonymous):
- What is shared with venue and suppliers, and what is not:
- Questions sent to venue, AV, catering and others, with dates:
- Action tracker owner and review dates:
- Final message to each registrant: what is arranged and alternatives:
Handle it in-house, or bring in help?
Your team can usually handle this when
- The event is small and the venue is familiar.
- A named person has time to reply to each request personally.
- Requests so far are simple and the venue can confirm them in writing.
Outside planning help earns its fee when
- Needs are varied or the venue and suppliers have not answered.
- Several parties must coordinate actions before the event.
- The committee wants a documented plan and a route to specialist advice.
Want the access plan documented in an Event Blueprint?
An Event Blueprint can set out the intake wording, the roles for reading and answering requests, the question packs for the venue and suppliers, and the action tracking before the event. Advice on whether something is accessible stays with qualified accessibility advisers and the venue.
Questions organisers ask
Should the question be compulsory?
Keep it optional. Some people will not want to answer, and you can still offer a contact route for anyone who wishes to talk.
Can we say the event is accessible?
Avoid that claim unless a qualified adviser or the venue has confirmed each point in writing. Describe what has been arranged and what is still being checked.
What if a request cannot be met?
Tell the registrant early, explain what can be offered instead, and ask whether it works. Keep a record of the discussion.
Who pays for access support?
The committee decides this as a budget line. Ask suppliers to quote support items separately so the cost is visible.
Related resources
Content record: Draft. Written from the cited sources and checked by automated rules; not yet independently reviewed.