{"id":60829,"date":"2024-11-22T09:46:07","date_gmt":"2024-11-22T09:46:07","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.sense.org.uk\/?p=60829"},"modified":"2024-11-22T10:22:18","modified_gmt":"2024-11-22T10:22:18","slug":"how-to-plan-an-accessible-christmas-party","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.sense.org.uk\/blog\/how-to-plan-an-accessible-christmas-party\/","title":{"rendered":"How to plan an accessible Christmas party"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

The Christmas season is fast approaching, which means many of us are starting to plan our Christmas festivities.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

When planning a Christmas party, whether it\u2019s for a social organisation, work or friends, it\u2019s important to consider accessibility and inclusivity.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

It\u2019s easy to get excited when planning events, over things like choosing the perfect venue, tasting delicious food and organising the secret Santa. But making sure that your disabled party-goers have the same experiences as others should be at the top of your Christmas list.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

These are my top accessibility tips to consider when you\u2019re planning this year\u2019s Christmas party.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\n\n

Help disabled children feel the magic of Christmas<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Everybody deserves to feel included at this very special time of year. Please give what you can to Sense this Christmas.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\n
Donate<\/a><\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n<\/div>\n <\/div>\n\n\n\n\n

1. Choose an accessible venue<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n

When choosing the perfect venue for your Christmas party, it\u2019s important to make sure everyone who\u2019s attending can physically get in and move around inside it. This might sound obvious, but believe me, it\u2019s often overlooked!<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Any party-goers that use wheelchairs<\/a> or walking aids (or may not be using them but still struggle with mobility) will need step-free access into the venue. They\u2019ll also need to be able to move freely around the building and get to the toilets. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

This could mean making sure that there are ramps installed, or having your event on the ground floor. It also means making sure there\u2019s enough space to navigate around furniture, for example for wheelchair users or people with guide dogs<\/a>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

If there are lifts, it\u2019s worth checking they are all in working order ahead of time. Check with the venue whether they have platform lifts or stair lifts, as it\u2019s important for guests to know which is on offer. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

This avoids a situation where a wheelchair user turns up and finds that there\u2019s only stair lifts, and so no way to get their wheelchair upstairs. Trust me, it\u2019s happened to me! <\/p>\n\n\n\n

2. Make sure there\u2019s accessible toilets in the venue<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Again, this might sound obvious, but having an accessible toilet is vital.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

It has to be one that is actually large enough to use. It\u2019s important to check this – sometimes venues will tell you they have an accessible loo, but it\u2019s not actually fully accessible for wheelchair users, for example. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Some venues have Changing Places toilets, which are suited to people with more complex needs, as they have lots of space, a height-adjustable bed and hoist.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Depending on where you are hosting your party, you could also rent a Changing Places toilet on wheels, called a Mobiloo<\/a>. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

If there\u2019s no accessible toilet, disabled guests may not feel comfortable eating or drinking at the party, or even attending at all. It\u2019s crucial to think about this so that everyone can have a good night.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

3. Offer quiet zones for less stimulation<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Whenever I\u2019m out at a venue with loud music and lots of people, I find it incredibly difficult to hear what\u2019s going on, which can be so isolating and frustrating. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Other disabled people might struggle to make themselves heard in these environments. Some, like those with anxiety or sensory disabilities like autism or ADHD, might get overwhelmed or overstimulated in crowds.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Providing designated quiet areas and breakout rooms would be a great way to cater for everyone and give more options for people. These could also have less intense decorations and quieter music (or no music), to create a calmer space.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

4. Cover your guests\u2019 dietary needs<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n

“It shouldn\u2019t be left to disabled people to always ask about access \u2013 it\u2019s important that it\u2019s provided readily!”<\/p><\/blockquote><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Check the dietary requirements of your attendees when you send out the invites. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

The last thing you want to do is invite people to a venue where they can\u2019t eat much, or even anything – this is especially important for people with allergies or chronic conditions like coeliac disease or diabetes. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

5. Provide event information in plenty of time<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Sending out the information about your party as soon as possible is key.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

This means letting attendees know all about the venue, including its accessibility, and all the other things mentioned so far in this blog. You might also want to send out travel information, like nearby disabled parking spaces and local transport options.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Giving people all the information they need means they won\u2019t have to feel stressed or ask lots of questions of the party organisers in the build-up to the big night. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

It shouldn\u2019t be left to disabled people to always ask about access – it\u2019s important that it\u2019s provided readily! <\/p>\n\n\n\n

6. Consider using non-flashing decorations<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n
\"Jeffie<\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Christmas and flashing lights seem to go hand in hand. But it\u2019s worth thinking twice about this when you\u2019re decorating your party. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Some conditions such as epilepsy or migraines can be triggered by flashing lights, so alternative decorations are really important to consider. There are plenty of beautiful lights and decorations that won\u2019t cause harm, and will look just as festive.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

7. Make your secret Santa accessible<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n

If you\u2019re planning a secret Santa, then make sure to set a reasonable budget. It costs disabled people much more to have the same quality of life as non-disabled people, and Christmas is already an expensive time of year! <\/p>\n\n\n\n

It\u2019s also a good idea to plan this far enough in advance that people have lots of time to think about and get their gifts, so that it\u2019s as stress-free as possible. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

8. Remember to enjoy it!<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Christmas is such a wonderful time of year for so many people, but it can also be tricky when you\u2019re disabled.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Trying to join in with all the festive fun is much harder when you\u2019re fighting for your accessibility needs. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

You can make the celebrations that much more festive for disabled people by simply putting that care into making your event safe and accessible for everyone. Once that work is done, everybody can get their Christmas jumpers on, fill their glasses with eggnog and get into the party spirit!<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\n\n

Give the gift of inclusion this Christmas<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Every child should feel included at this very special time of year. Please give what you can this Christmas.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\n
Donate<\/a><\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n<\/div>\n <\/div>\n\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

When planning a Christmas party it’s important to consider inclusivity. Disability advocate Jeffie explains how.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":14,"featured_media":60830,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":true,"_searchwp_excluded":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[7],"tags":[],"display_author":[1218],"class_list":["post-60829","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-blog","display_author-jess-smith"],"acf":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.sense.org.uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/60829","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.sense.org.uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.sense.org.uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.sense.org.uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/14"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.sense.org.uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=60829"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.sense.org.uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/60829\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.sense.org.uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/60830"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.sense.org.uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=60829"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.sense.org.uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=60829"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.sense.org.uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=60829"},{"taxonomy":"display_author","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.sense.org.uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/display_author?post=60829"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}