Music without barriers: providing easy access for deaf and disabled fans
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Version 0 of 1. Disabled fans want to enjoy live music with their mates. They want the same experience as everyone else. So when we talk about “access”, what we actually mean is “inclusivity”. Related: Disability and the arts: the best of times, the worst of times Attitude is Everything, the charity that improves deaf and disabled people’s access to live music and where I am CEO, works with venue owners and promoters on every aspect of a show – from how people buy tickets and the way information is presented, to staff training and the facilities and policies that are implemented. Some venues and events can never be truly accessible, but all are capable of implementing at least some measures that can make a positive difference and allow disabled fans to be part of the live experience. That’s what we believe in at Attitude is Everything: music without barriers. It’s vital small venues get involved It’s tough running a pub or club venue. Everyone knows that. According to a recent survey by the Music Venue Trust, around one third of small venues in the UK have no disabled access whatsoever. Encouragingly, more small venues have signed up to our Charter of Best Practice and we’ve suggested three inexpensive changes they all can implement to increase their disabled audiences: providing clear access information on their website; offering free tickets to personal assistants; and creating a simple viewing area. The bottom line is that small venues are incredibly important for the health and diversity of the UK’s music scene. But to me, a true community venue that supports and represents its local scene must, by default, be inclusive and involve all members of the community. Be creative Those venues and festivals that treat disabled fans well tend to see access not as something they have to do, but actively welcome the challenge. They get creative and explore new ways of reaching new audiences. The work being undertaken to attract deaf fans, in particular, is inspiring. It’s now common for some of the larger festivals to use British Sign Language (BSL) interpreters to sign lyrics at main stage performances. There’s some fantastic footage on YouTube of this at Glastonbury. Our annual showcase event Club Attitude will be live-captioned by Stagetext, making the gig accessible for deaf, deafened and hard-of-hearing fans. This will also be incorporated into the live-stream for those watching online. It’s really important to keep pushing boundaries. Technology has a big role to play One of the biggest bugbears for disabled fans is ticketing – particularly the lack of good online ticketing facilities. When we published our State of Access report last year, 83% of respondents had been put off buying tickets because of inaccessible systems. This is a technology issue and we’ve been working hard with the Society of Ticket Agents and Retailers as well a startup called Una Tickets to find a way around this. We’re exploring many other tech-related areas too, including a partnership with Ents24 whereby its online listings now highlight accessible venues. Live-streaming will also play a key role in this area. Access is good for business The contribution by deaf and disabled people to the live music economy is significantly undervalued. There are 10 million disabled adults in the UK and almost 4 million of them attended at least one gig in 2013/14 – a figure that doubled over six years while the number of non-disabled gig-goers remained relatively static. This represents a massive opportunity for the industry. Every venue and festival we work with, without exception, has seen an upsurge in tickets and concessionary sales to disabled fans. Research suggests that the best way to get businesses to embrace positive access policies is not to shame them, but to highlight good practice and the strong commercial imperatives. That makes sense. Over the last 15 years, I’d like to think that Attitude is Everything has developed into a partner for the music business and one that brings real value to the live music scene. Suzanne Bull MBE is chief executive of Attitude is Everything Club Attitude takes place on 24 March – sign up for the live stream here Join our community of arts, culture and creative professionals by signing up free to the Guardian Culture Pros Network. |