An accessible event is one that a disabled person can find out about, buy a ticket for, get into and enjoy, without having to phone first and hope. Around one in five people in the UK has a disability, and the Equality Act 2010 asks organisers to make reasonable adjustments in advance rather than on the night. Most of those adjustments are information. This guide covers what to say on the page, how to price companion tickets, what a ticketing platform should do without being asked, and the door.
The information a disabled fan needs before buying
Say it on the event page, in plain words, in this order:
- Whether the venue is step-free from the street to the seat, including the toilets and the bar.
- Where the accessible parking or drop-off is, and how far the walk is.
- Whether there is a hearing loop, BSL interpretation, or a relaxed performance.
- Whether the event has strobe lighting, loud sound or haze.
- A named contact and how to reach them.
On tickts you mark an event as wheelchair accessible and write access notes that appear on the public page, so a fan gets the answer before they decide, not after they arrive.
Companion tickets
A fan who needs a carer or companion to attend should not pay twice. On tickts you mark a ticket type as an accessible ticket and it offers a free companion ticket alongside it. The companion gets a real ticket with its own QR, it counts against capacity, and it scans at the door like any other, so your numbers stay right and the pair are not held up at the gate explaining themselves.
Do not ask for proof at checkout. A form asking for a disability certificate deters far more genuine buyers than it stops chancers, and it collects sensitive data you then have to protect. If you must verify, do it by a friendly email after the sale.
What the ticketing page itself should do
Buying the ticket is part of the event. A checkout that a screen reader cannot read, or that times out while someone types with one hand, is a locked door before the venue's. Ask of any platform:
- Can the whole purchase be made with a keyboard, and does a screen reader announce every field and button?
- Does the page work at 200% zoom on a phone?
- Is there a guest checkout, so nobody has to create and remember a password to buy a ticket? On tickts a buyer confirms their email with a six-digit code and pays; no account is forced on them.
- Do the colours read at proper contrast, and is there a light option for people who find a dark page hard? Every tickts event can be shown in a light or a dark look, set per event.
- Can the ticket live in the phone's wallet, where the operating system's own accessibility features apply?
Reasonable adjustments, priced in
| Need | Adjustment | Cost to you |
|---|---|---|
| Wheelchair user | Step-free route stated; a space that can be booked | Usually nothing |
| Needs a carer | Free companion ticket on the accessible type | One unsold seat |
| Deaf or hard of hearing | Loop or interpreter stated where available; captions on video | Varies; state what exists |
| Sensory sensitivity | Warnings for strobe, haze and loud sound; a quiet space named | Nothing |
| Cannot use a website | A phone number and a box office sale recorded for them | A few minutes |
The door
- Brief the stewards: a companion ticket is a normal ticket; a wheelchair user does not need to queue through a turnstile designed for standing.
- Put the printed door list where the accessible entrance is, not only at the main one.
- If the accessible entrance is different from the main one, say so on the ticket page and in the reminder email.
A page that does the work
The organisers who get this right are not the ones with the biggest budgets; they are the ones whose event page answers the question before it is asked. Write the access paragraph the way you would say it to a friend on the phone, put a name at the bottom of it, and mark the companion ticket. That is most of the law and all of the goodwill.
