B. Listening: Redefining the Accessible Event
“Accessibility for event planners is often just very one dimensional. It’s a tick box exercise”
From toilets to table heights, the first-hand challenges a participant with accessibility needs faces can often be overlooked by event planners. At the age of 17 Rachel suffered a severe spinal cord injury and broken back and through her lived experiences of exclusion, she found a passion to inspire change across the industry.
“There are easy fixes for these kind of things if they could just be looked at from a slightly broader perspective”
Rachel shares her advice for event planners setting up a framework for accessibility and inclusion at events.
Listen below or on Spotify or Apple Podcasts.
About the guest:
Rachel is an accessibility and inclusion educator and consultant, working with industry organisations to implement event accessibility and inclusion initiatives within their businesses.
She has over 30 years of experience within the events sector, successfully delivering extraordinary events all over the world to diverse audiences, heading up operational teams and holding leadership positions in global events businesses.
She is one of very few event professionals with lived experience of disability having suffered a severe spinal cord injury and broken back at the age of 17. As a consultant and educator Rachel regularly supports businesses in developing their access and inclusion practices as well as speaking on access and inclusion at industry events.
About the host:
Broadsword is a global event communications agency specialising in event production that ranges across virtual and live corporate events around the world. Based in London, Hong Kong, and New York, we are a trusted partner to global clients like HSBC and inspirational organisations such as Thomson Reuter’s Foundation.
Our diversity, equity and inclusion working group have been committing to championing, creating awareness of accessibility at events, and consulting experts in the field to hone our approach. At our core is collaboration, which we believe is integral to creating a truly accessible experience. Only by actively engaging different perspectives can we challenge and stretch our thinking and enrich the experience of our employees and attendees, no matter who they are. This was truly brought to life when we were tasked in producing a Disability and Equality Awards event in which two thirds of attendees had complex disabilities and needs. It was a privilege to work on the experience, for which we won multiple awards including Gold: Diversity and inclusion, and an eye opener on how we, as event planners, do things inclusively.